So the Petitioner died? Don't wait another 20 years - get the Humanitarian Reinstatement

April 30, 2012 - PRLog -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yJ_ryMCGNU



  Humanitarian Reinstatement Criteria—Under prior law if there was automatic revocation of the petition due to death, USCIS/DOS could grant humanitarian reinstatement.

DOS criteria in evaluating a request for humanitarian reinstatement include whether there is: (1) disruption of an established family unit; (2) hardship to USCs or LPRs; (3) a beneficiary who is elderly or in poor health; (4) a beneficiary who has had lengthy residence in the U.S.; (5) a beneficiary who has no home to go to; (6) undue delay by INS or consular officers in processing the petition and the visa; and (7) a beneficiary who has strong family ties in the U.S.

Under the Family Sponsor Immigration Act of 2002, PL 107-150, 116 Stat. 74 (Mar. 13, 2002), certain relatives (spouse, parent, mother-in-law, father-in-law, sibling, child (if at least 18 years of age), son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, brother -in-law, grandparent, grandchild, or legal guardian) may be substituted to meet the affidavit of support requirements under INA §213A(f)(5), when the petitioning relative has died.

The I-130 beneficiary must ask the AG to reinstate the petition and must demonstrate that she has a substitute sponsor. If a beneficiary does not have a qualifying relative, she may make an estoppel argument.

Prior to INA §204(l) a petition could not be reinstated on humanitarian grounds if the petitioner died before the petition was approved. Similarly, death of a principal beneficiary would have invalidated the petition for derivative beneficiaries. But even under the prior law, courts found that it was improper to automatically revoke a petition without considering a humanitarian exception where petitioner died before the application was approved but INS approved it.