Help with a question

My mom got married today, December 27, to a U.S citizen.

I'm 17 years old and about to be 18 in February 2.

She was told they can't petition me because I was already 17.

Is this true? The guy that told her doesn't seem to be professional and a lawyer said we can....so I need an advice.

as long as she gets USC status before you're 21 and petitions for you by then you should be alright :\

As far as I know, the cut-off age is 21. Although I'm not sure if it only means you have to be under 21 during the time of application, because I know a lot of people from my country who aged out after the petition was filed and the embassy still denied them. The best bet is to consult a lawyer. They will tell you more about it.

Well we went to see a lawyer, that charges us 100 dollars. He said that since they got married in the eyes of the government he's my dad so I could be included with her so he would ask for me and her...But they're not going to do the process with him since he charges a lot.

Your mother's new husband would only be able to petition for you if he legally adopted you. Under the law, he is not your legal parent until those adoption papers go through. I would definitely consult another lawyer. Pro bono advice is available from some community programs and law school, you should check around your town or city.

WOW you are lucky. Your mom got married right before you were 18, which is the cutoff age. "A step-child, as long as the marriage creating the step-relationship occurred before the child turned 18". Check this out on the >>> USCIS WEBSITE <<<<

According to that, to apply for you, your step parent needs to submit

* A copy of your step-child’s birth certificate issued by civil authorities
* A copy of your civil marriage certificate to your step-child’s biological parent
* Proof of the legal termination of all previous marriages for you and/or the biological parent (divorce decree, death certificate, annulment decree)


You don't need to be adopted (if you are, you can see the requirements are different).

Good luck.

Oh my god, thank you so much. That made my day, weekend, week, month, and even my year! That was really helpful! Thanks for giving me such useful link and taking your time!

My family didn't know this.

NO PROBLEM! Never believe advice people give you, even lawyers! I'm not sure where people get their facts from.

Hope everything goes smoothly (it should). I don't even think you need a lawyer.

Best of luck!!

My mother got married too a few months ago I think. I wish I could be 17

We're happy for you man. Keep fighting for us, though. If you go to college and there's a initiative to pass Dream in your school, volunteer if you can.