Can I sponsor a friend now and sponsor my siblings later?

[nixone]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Utah

I am not a US citizen yet, but hope to become one in next six months (submitted N-400 last week). A son of a good friend of mine is married to a US citizen and wants to start a green card process. He is undocumented. His dad has asked me if I can be his son's sponsor. We are not even from the same country, but they are great people and I want to help. Two questions:

1. Do you see any problems me sponsoring him?
2. If I sponsor him now, is that going to cause a problem when I sponsor my siblings. I hope to submit documents for my siblings as soon as I get my US passport, but I know the process will take 10-12 years from that point.

Thank you in advance!

 

[ecmst12]

Are you independently wealthy? If not, it's unlikely you can afford to sponsor multiple people. You do know that when you sponsor someone you are agreeing to financially support them if they are unable to support themselves, right? And that is a legal obligation that's pretty much impossible to get out of?

 

[PaulMass]

1. Do you see any problems me sponsoring him?

No

2. If I sponsor him now, is that going to cause a problem when I sponsor my siblings. I hope to submit documents for my siblings as soon as I get my US passport, but I know the process will take 10-12 years from that point.

No. Your obligations to the first sponsor will be long completed when you sign for your siblings.

 

[t74]

Do you understand your financial obligations? It could easily become a nightmare. I recommend against it. I will not sponsor my SIL's siblings due to that leaving me to live in poverty if they are irresponsible or cannot find work to support themselves.

Your friend and his family should sponsor. If they cannot, they can get more jobs. I suspect the family of your friend is unwilling to sponsor because they know the risks.

 

[nixone]

Thank you all for your time and replies.

ecmst12: I am not wealthy, but wanted to help a friend in need if I could.

PaulMass: You said, "No. Your obligations to the first sponsor will be long completed when you sign for your siblings." Please keep in mind that I will be filling green card petitions for my brother and sister (both are married with their own families) within 5-6 months (as soon as I become a US Citizen). Would that be a problem?

t74: I appreciate your suggestion, but my friend's whole family is without proper legal documents. Both my friend and son have good jobs. In fact, the father makes the same amount of money I make, but he is not able to show his income for this purpose, I think. His hope is that when his son becomes legal and gets his citizenship, he will sponsor both mom and dad, so they can be "free" too .

 

[Proserpina]

Before we start on the sponsorship requirements, we do need to know the answer to this....

Did they overstay a visa, or did they enter without inspection?

 

[nixone]

Before we start on the sponsorship requirements, we do need to know the answer to this....

Did they overstay a visa, or did they enter without inspection?

They overstayed their visa. The family (dad) entered under student visa (F1).

 

[t74]

How is your friend (the father) working if he does not have legal status in the US? If he is working under the table and making the same as you are, then you are not likely to be making a lot of money to begin with. Once you sign to sponsor, your issue is with the US government. Was the son an overstay as well and working illegally and eligible for a green card by reason of marriage to a US citizen? These types of marriages (for a green card) are known to happen.

The fact that they were willing to violate US immigration law should be a red flag to you. IMO, it is not in YOUR best interest to become involved with this situation; the risks to you and your future plans are too great. Do you really want to become involved with people who were willing to overstay? Have you considered what would happen if the sibling category was suddenly moving faster and your siblings would be eligible before your obligation to your friend's son ended? Do you have the income and assets you need?

Your friendship may not last - especially when money comes between you.

 

[Proserpina]

How is your friend (the father) working if he does not have legal status in the US? If he is working under the table and making the same as you are, then you are not likely to be making a lot of money to begin with. Once you sign to sponsor, your issue is with the US government. Was the son an overstay as well and working illegally and eligible for a green card by reason of marriage to a US citizen? These types of marriages (for a green card) are known to happen.

The fact that they were willing to violate US immigration law should be a red flag to you. IMO, it is not in YOUR best interest to become involved with this situation; the risks to you and your future plans are too great. Do you really want to become involved with people who were willing to overstay? Have you considered what would happen if the sibling category was suddenly moving faster and your siblings would be eligible before your obligation to your friend's son ended? Do you have the income and assets you need?

Your friendship may not last - especially when money comes between you.

Completely agree.

This is a nightmare waiting to happen. We can all understand OP's wish to help, but I just cannot see this ending well. At all. Ever.

I'd like to clarify something though - PaulMass was incorrect.

The obligation created by the I-864 can last...forever. It ONLY ends if one of these criteria are met:

1. The immigrant or sponsor dies
2. The immigrant naturalizes
3. The immigrant acquires enough qualifying SS quarters
4. The immigrant abandons US residency (or is deported)

It could leave the OP on the hook forever.