Children under 21 years old who live in the United States and are under the protection of a State court could be eligible for the Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) and become legal permanent residents.
The SIJS requirements are:
- Be under 21 years old
- Live in the United States
- Be unmarried
- Have a state court order that establishes that it is not in your best interest to return to your home country and that you cannot be reunited with one or both of your parents because of
- Abuse,
- Abandonment, or
- Neglect
Once the state court makes these findings, you can file your SIJS petition along with the state court’s order. Once your petition is approved, you will be able to apply for adjustment of status once you have a visa available depending on your priority date.
Attorney Yunuen Mora of Cross Border Lawyer has helped many children get a state court order and successfully submitted SIJS petitions and adjustment of status applications.
