If you are a derivative applicant (spouse or child), you should submit the following evidence to apply for a Green Card under a family-based preference immigrant category:

• Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status;
• Copy of documentation showing your relationship to the principal applicant, such as a marriage certificate, birth certificate, or adoption decree;
• Copy of the Form I-797, Approval or Receipt Notice, for the principal applicant’s Form I‑130 (unless you are filing your Form I-485 together with the principal applicant’s Form I‑485);
• Copy of the Form I-797, Approval or Receipt Notice, for the principal applicant’s Form I‑485 or a copy of the principal applicant’s Green Card (if not filing together with the principal applicant’s Form I-485);
• Two passport-style photographs;
• Copy of your government-issued identity document with photograph;
• Copy of your birth certificate;
• Copy of your passport page with nonimmigrant visa (if applicable);
• Copy of your passport page with admission or parole stamp (issued by a U.S. immigration officer) (if applicable);
• Copy of Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Record or copy of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) admission or parole stamp on the travel document (if applicable)
  • Note: If CBP provided you with an electronic Form I-94 upon your arrival/admission to the United States, you may print out a paper version of the Form I-94 from the CBP website at www.cbp.gov/I94;
• Proof that you have continuously maintained a lawful status since arrival in the U.S.;
• Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, or I-864EZ, Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of the Act;
• Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record (you may submit this form together with Form I-485 or later, such as by mail when we request it or in person at your interview, if any);
• Certified police and court records of criminal charges, arrests, or convictions (if applicable);
• Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility (if applicable);
• Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States After Deportation or Removal (if applicable);
• Documentation of past or present J-1 or J-2 nonimmigrant status (if applicable), including proof of compliance with or a waiver of the 2-year foreign residence requirement under INA 212(e) (for more information, see Form I-612, Application for Waiver of the Foreign Residence Requirement);
• If you currently hold A, G, or E nonimmigrant status, include Form I-508, Request for Waiver of Rights, Privileges, Exemptions and Immunities. Additionally, if you are a French national, you may also need to include Form I-508F;
• Form I-566, Interagency Record of Request – A, G or NATO Dependent Employment Authorization or Change/Adjustment to/from A, G or NATO Status (only if you have A, G, or NATO nonimmigrant status); and
• Form I-485 Supplement A, Adjustment of Status Under Section 245(i) (if applicable).

Note: Certain forms, including Form I-485, have a filing fee. You must submit the correct filing fee for each form, unless you are exempt or eligible for a fee waiver. Please see USCIS’ Filing Fees and Fee Schedule for more information. 

The updated filing fee for F1 visas can be found here.

In order to be eligible for a Green Card as a derivative applicant in a family-based preference category, you must meet the following requirements:

• You properly file your Form I-485:
  • Together with the principal applicant’s Form I-485 (and the principal applicant’s Form I-485 is ultimately approved);
  • While the principal applicant’s Form I-485 is still pending with USCIS (and the principal applicant’s Form I-485 is ultimately approved);
  • After USCIS approves the principal applicant’s Form I-485, as long as:
    • The principal applicant is still a lawful permanent resident, and
    • You were the principal applicant’s spouse or child at the time USCIS approved his or her Form I-485; or
  • After the principal applicant obtained an immigrant visa and was admitted into the United States as a lawful permanent resident, as long as:
    • The principal applicant is still a lawful permanent resident, and
    • You were the principal applicant’s spouse or child at the time he or she was admitted into the United States.
• You are currently the principal applicant’s spouse or child;
• You were inspected and admitted or inspected and paroled into the United States;
• You are physically present in the United States at the time you file your Form I-485;
• An immigrant visa is immediately available to you at the time you file your Form I-485 and at the time USCIS makes a final decision on your application. (For information on visa availability, see Visa Availability and Priority Dates, Adjustment of Status Filing Charts, and the Department of State website to view the Visa Bulletin.)
• None of the applicable bars to adjustment of status apply to you;
• You are admissible to the United States for lawful permanent residence or eligible for a waiver of inadmissibility or other form of relief; and
• You merit the favorable exercise of USCIS’ discretion.

The processing time for an F1 visa petition and application can take a long time due to the annual cap on the number of visas issued.

The typical wait time for relatives within this category is eight years. For citizens of the Philippines and Mexico, the wait time is more than 15 years.

Currently, only 23,400 visas are issued for this preference category.

The excess number of petitions are rolled over to subsequent years in chronological order until their priority dates become current. The U.S. Department of State publishes the cut-off dates for priority dates each month in the visa bulletin.