CRISPIN R. ARANDATHERE is no death without life. Then there is the afterlife, a resurrection, if you will.In terms of US immigration, a US visa petition is born when a qualified family member gets the official acknowledgment that the petition was received by the specific US Citizenship and Immigration Services Office.Simply putting the documents and fees in an envelope and mailing the entire package does not assure birth. Until the documents are received, evaluated for completeness and given a receipt number, the visa petition remains in the conception stage.Aa a guide to the Three Kings, the birthplace of petitions has changed.The petition delivery room used to be the district office with jurisdiction over the petitioner’s place of residence: then the USCIS midwives moved to adjudication centers, later renamed service centers.To know when and where your petition was born, check the USCIS receipt number: “WAC” means it is with the Western Adjudication Center, now known as the California Service Center. “LIN’ refers to petitions and applications with the Nebraska Service Center located in Lincoln, Nebraska.“EAC” stands for Eastern Adjudication Center, now known as Vermont Service Center and “SRC” for cases received and being processed at the Texas Service Center, formerly known as the Southern Regional Center.But first, a detour. The petitioner must be sure that the petition goes through a petition emergency room. This is called a lock box facility where the petition package is checked and reviewed for completeness before being sent off to the specific delivery room (service center).Let’s say a USCIS acknowledgment receipt – a petition’s birthdate – shows as WAC96-234-98765.WAC is where the petition was received; the next two digits – “96” shows what year the petition was filed (in 1996); the following three digits “234” represents the workday when the case was encoded into the computer, the receipt was processed and the fee taken. Hence, “234” would mean the petition was received on the 234th processing date of the fiscal year.The US fiscal year is from October 1 to September 30.The last five digits, “98765” are case identifiers, sequential numbers assigned to a petition as it is being processed at the service center.Then the first period of pacing back and forth the delivery room begins. Expectant father or mother (petitioners) may check the delivery status online at https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/.Yes, either parent can “carry the child.” Whoever would assure the faster delivery birth and release from the nursing room should file the petition. For example, between two parents one of whom is a US citizen and the other a green card holder, the US citizen must be the one to file for a minor child and the only parent who can file a petition for a married son or daughter.Minor children are not subject to quota. Therefore, the waiting period – from filing to visa issuance – is approximately just a year, compared to 2 to 12 years of waiting if the petitioner is a lawful permanent resident.After approval, the newborn petition is sent to the National Visa Center for monitoring and release to the parents. The delivery date is actually the filing date – commonly known as the priority date.A petition takes its place in the five queues for Family-sponsored categories; released on a first come, first completed basis. The preference categories are:First: (F1) – unmarried sons and daughters of US citizens: F2A – spouses and children of permanent residents; F2B – unmarried sons and daughters (21 years of age or older) of permanent residents; F3 – married sons and daughters of US citizens; and F4 – brothers and sisters of adult US citizens.When the priority date becomes current, immigrant visas become available and visa applicants with complete documentation get reunited with the petitioner/parents. Visa babies who lack paperwork are not released even if their number in the queue comes up.Why and when do visa petitions die, which in immigration and visa laws means revocation?“An approved visa petition may be automatically revoked if the petitioner withdraws the petition or if the petitioner or principal beneficiary dies, upon legal termination of the marriage upon which the petition was based, upon the marriage of a second preference unmarried son or daughter, or upon the termination of status of a lawful permanent resident petitioner (unless he or she becomes a US citizen).” Section 20.3 of the USCIS Adjudicator’s Field Manual.ResurrectionWhen the petitioner/parent or qualified family member dies, the petition dies as well. However, current law allows the principal beneficiary to request that the petition be resurrected through a humanitarian reinstatement or revalidation request.The main factors given favorable consideration are 1) if there is substitute sponsor to assume the financial obligation of ensuring that the applicant will not become a public charge; and 2) if there is a qualified relative in the US—with legal status as citizen or green card holder—who will suffer extreme hardship if the reinstatement request is denied.Then there is the death by natural means or passage of time.Even if both the petitioner and beneficiary are alive, failure to pursue the immigrant visa application will result in the termination of the petition and visa application (registration).
