Where and How to Petition for an Immediate Relative


U.S. Citizen Services	Visas to the U.S.	Lincoln Resource Center	Bahasa Malaysia

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Where and How to Petition for an Immediate Relative

American Citizens Resident in Malaysia

American citizens who live in Malaysia may file immediate relative petitions at the U.S. Embassy in Kuala Lumpur. Immediate relatives include spouses, minor unmarried children and parents. Fiancés are not considered immediate relatives and fiancé petitions must be filed with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in the United States.

To file an immigrant visa petition for an immediate relative, the U.S. citizen petitioner and all immediate relatives beneficiaries must appear in person at the Immigrant Visa Unit of the U.S. Embassy between 2:00 - 3:30 PM on Mondays or Fridays. The following original documents are required:

Original and one (1) photocopy of proof of the petitioner's U.S. citizenship (e.g., U.S. Passport or Certificate of Naturalization);
If the petition is for a spouse or unmarried minor child, an original and one (1) photocopy of the petitioner's marriage certificate. If the document is not in English or Bahasa Malaysia, you must also provide a translation.
If the petition is for a spouse or unmarried minor child, original or court-certified copies of divorce decrees or death certificates to prove termination of the petitioner's or beneficiary's previous marriages. One (1) photocopy of each original or court-certified copy of these documents is also required. If the documents are not in English, you must provide a translation.
Completed Petition for Alien Relative (Form I-130) for each beneficiary.
One color photograph of each petitioner and beneficiary. The photo must be 2 inches x 2 inches on a white or off-white background. The photo must have been taken within the past 6 months and show your full face.
Two Biographic Information forms (Form G-325A), one for the American citizen, and one for each beneficiary.
The original and one (1) photocopy of each beneficiary's birth certificate. If the birth certificate is not in English, you must provide a translation.
The filing fee of $355.00 or the equivalent in Malaysian ringgit. The fee must be paid in cash.

Once the consular officer has approved the petition, the petitioner and beneficiary must complete the following steps:

The petitioner must complete an Affidavit of Support (Form I-864). The I-864 must be notarized, and the consular officer can do so without charge.
The beneficiary must then complete all forms included in an application packet that will be provided by the Immigrant Visa Unit.
Each beneficiary 16 years old and above must obtain a Malaysian Certificate of Good Conduct (the police certificate). Please go to this link for detailed information about how to obtain the Certificate. Beneficiaries must obtain police certificates from every country where they have lived for one year or more. Police certificates can take several weeks or months to obtain.

Forms (1) - (3) above may be submitted in person at the Embassy in Kuala Lumpur at the time of the interview.

When the required forms and procedures have been completed, we will send an appointment letter to the beneficiary. Medical examination forms will be included with the appointment letter. The medical examination may not be completed you receive the examination forms.

It is difficult to predict how long the immediate relative immigrant visa process will take, but eight to ten weeks is not unusual. Some can take much longer. For that reason, American citizens resident in Malaysia who wish to petition an immediate relative should contact the Embassy to begin making preparations at least six months in advance of the planned departure date. The immigrant visa interview is usually the last step before an immigrant visa is issued. If the beneficiary is found eligible at the time of the interview, the visa is normally issued within one working day.

If you have any other questions about immigrant visas, please see the detailed information available on the Department of State's official website, or e-mail us with your question at klconsular@state.gov. The Embassy responds to telephone inquiries about immigrant visas only between 9:00 AM - 12:00 noon on Mondays and Fridays.

American Citizens Resident Outside of Malaysia

Subject to workload, the Immigrant Visa Unit will consider accepting clearly approvable immigrant visa petitions for immediate relatives from American citizens not resident in Malaysia. All such petitions should involve beneficiaries who are either Malaysian citizens or permanent residents of Malaysia.

If accepted, the requirements for processing immigrant visa petitions are the same as above.

All other petitions must be filed in the United States at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) office that has jurisdiction for the place of the petitioner's residence. The website for DHS is http://www.dhs.gov.

Please Note:

Effective immediately, consular posts abroad will accept petitions for immediate relative immigrant classification from American citizens who are resident in their consular districts, including members of the armed forces, as well as true emergency cases, such as life and death or health and safety, and others determined to be in the national interest.

To demonstrate residency in a consular district, American Citizen petitioners must be able to show that they have permission to reside in the consular district and that they have been doing so continuously for at least six months before filing the petition. Individuals who are in the country on a temporary status, such as student or tourist, would not be considered to meet the residency standard.

Examples of family emergency include minor children who would be unexpectedly left without a caretaker. Examples of national interest include facilitating the travel of United States military and other USG direct hire employees assigned overseas who are pending transfer on orders and need to petition for immigrant classification of their spouse and minor children at posts overseas.

All lawful permanent residents, and American Citizens resident in the United States or with a permanent address in the United States, must file I-130 petitions at the USCIS Service Center having jurisdiction over their place of residence (as indicated on the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-130.pdf).

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Where and How to Petition for an Immediate Relative

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This site is managed by the U.S. Department of State.
External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.