F2B Family second preference B: unmarried adult son or daughter of a permanent resident
F2B is for the unmarried son or daughter aged 21 or over of a green card holder. It gets the smaller slice of the second preference allocation and moves slowly. Marriage disqualifies the beneficiary outright, which makes this the category where the most eligibility is lost by accident.
- Duration
- permanent
- Extensions
- Not applicable. The green card is unconditional and renewed with Form I-90 every ten years.
- Work
- Yes, without restriction once residence is granted. A pending F2B petition confers no work authorisation and no lawful status.
- Dependents
- The beneficiary's unmarried children under 21 are derivatives with the same priority date and may follow to join. A spouse cannot be a derivative, because marrying ends F2B eligibility.
- Path to a green card
- The petition is the path. When the priority date is current the beneficiary consular processes on the DS-260 or, if lawfully present and otherwise eligible, files Form I-485. If the petitioning parent naturalises, the petition converts automatically to F1 - which is not always faster, and INA 204(k) permits the beneficiary to elect in writing to remain in F2B.
- Processing time
- Governed by the queue. A September 2026 final action date of 22AUG19 for most of the world implies a wait of about seven years; Mexico, at 15FEB09, is over seventeen years; the Philippines, at 01JUN13, over thirteen. Derived from the September 2026 Visa Bulletin. USCIS I-130 adjudication times are separate and unverified here.
- Annual cap and waiting lines
- F2B takes 23% of the overall family second preference limit. The second preference limit is 114,200 plus any excess over the 226,000 worldwide family limit plus unused first preference numbers; the FY2026 worldwide family-sponsored limit is 226,000, the per-country limit 28,862 (29,136 with carryover) and the dependent area limit 8,247 (8,325 with carryover). September 2026 final action dates: all chargeability areas 22AUG19, China-mainland born 22AUG19, India 22AUG19, Mexico 15FEB09, Philippines 01JUN13. Dates for filing: all areas, China and India 01SEP19, Mexico 15MAY10, Philippines 01OCT13.
Who qualifies
- An unmarried son or daughter aged 21 or over of a lawful permanent resident
- The unmarried children under 21 of that son or daughter, as derivative beneficiaries
- A person who was an F2A child beneficiary and turned 21 - the petition converts to F2B and keeps its original priority date
Requirements
- Proof the petitioner is a lawful permanent resident
- Proof of the parent-child relationship
- The beneficiary must be and remain unmarried until residence is granted
- A current priority date under the Visa Bulletin
- Admissibility under INA 212(a) or an available waiver
- Form I-864 from the permanent resident parent, or a joint sponsor
- A medical examination
How to apply
- 1
The permanent resident parent files Form I-130. The filing date is the priority date.
- 2
Wait, and do not marry. Check the Visa Bulletin monthly.
- 3
When the dates for filing chart reaches your priority date, the National Visa Center collects the DS-261, DS-260 fee, Affidavit of Support fee, Form I-864 and civil documents.
- 4
When the final action date passes your priority date, attend the medical exam and the consular interview.
- 5
Enter on the immigrant visa and pay the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee.
- 6
If the petitioning parent naturalises, decide deliberately whether to accept conversion to F1 or to file a written election under INA 204(k) to stay in F2B. Compare the two lines on the current Visa Bulletin before choosing.
Fees and forms
| Form I-130 petition, paper filing | $675 |
| Form I-130 petition, online filing | $625 |
| DS-260 immigrant visa application processing | $325 per person |
| Affidavit of Support review by the National Visa Center | $120 |
| USCIS Immigrant Fee | $235 |
| Form I-485, applicant 14 or older, paper | $1,440 |
| Form I-765 work permit filed with an I-485 submitted on or after 1 April 2024 | $260 |
What changed in 2025 and 2026
- September 2026 Visa Bulletin - the Department of State advanced dates across family categories because issuance to nationals affected by Presidential Proclamations 10949 and 10998 has fallen, and warns of possible retrogression or unavailability before 30 September 2026.
- 1 January 2026 - annual inflation adjustment to the H.R. 1 fees.
- 29 April 2026 - DHS final rule implementing the H.R. 1 fees and related procedures.
- May 2026 - USCIS guidance treating adjustment of status as an extraordinary exercise of discretion.
- 20 July 2026 - public charge final rule rescinding the 2022 regulations, effective 18 September 2026.
- FY2026 - worldwide family-sponsored limit 226,000, per-country limit 28,862.
Where it goes wrong
- Marrying during a decade-long wait. It ends eligibility permanently - there is no F3 equivalent for the child of a permanent resident, so the petition simply dies.
- Accepting automatic conversion to F1 on the parent's naturalisation without checking the numbers. For Philippine nationals in September 2026, F1 sits at 01MAY13 and F2B at 01JUN13, so the difference is a month; for Mexican nationals F1 is at 01JAN08 and F2B at 15FEB09, so conversion costs a year.
- Sitting in the United States without status for the whole wait and then finding that adjustment is unavailable because of the entry without inspection or an accumulated unlawful presence bar.
- Letting a derivative child age out without running the CSPA subtraction and without seeking to acquire residence within a year of visa availability.
- Assuming an approved petition guarantees a visa. The September 2026 bulletin explicitly warns that categories may go unavailable before the fiscal year ends.
Also in family preference
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