Follow to Join Application(Form I-824)

This application is appropriate for individuals who have adjusted status to Lawful Permanent Resident in the U.S. and whose family member(s) will apply for an Immigrant Visa at a U.S. consulate abroad. This process is known as "Follow to Join."

Most U.S. consulates require an approved Form I-824 application in order to start the Follow to Join process. The Form I-824 notifies the U.S. consulate that a Primary Applicant's status has been adjusted to Lawful Permanent Resident.

The benefit of filing a Follow to Join application is that qualifying family members may apply for an Immigrant Visa without waiting for a Form I-130 Immigrant Petition to be approved and a visa number to become available.

In order to qualify to Follow to join, the following criteria must be met:

• The foreign family member must be a spouse or unmarried child (under the age of 21) of the U.S. Green Card holder
• If the foreign family member is a spouse, the marriage must have occurred before the Primary Applicant became a Lawful Permanent Resident
• If the foreign family member is a child, he or she must have been born before the Primary Applicant became a Lawful Permanent Resident

Please note that individuals who married a Lawful Permanent Resident after he or she obtained a Green Card do not qualify to Follow to Join, nor do children who were born after their parent became a Lawful Permanent Resident.

When applying for U.S. Citizenship through naturalization, United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) does require a Citizenship test to be taken by all applicants. The Citizenship test will be based on the ability of reading, writing and speaking English, knowledge of American history and the government of the United States.