IR-2/CR-2 Child of a U.S. citizen
This is the immigrant visa for the unmarried child under 21 of a U.S. citizen. Like the spouse category it is uncapped, so there is no priority date and no queue. CR-2 is the conditional version, used when the child gets residence through a parent whose own marriage to the citizen was under two years old.
- Duration
- permanent
- Extensions
- Not applicable. A CR-2 conditional card lasts two years and requires Form I-751; an IR-2 card is valid ten years and is renewed with Form I-90.
- Work
- Yes, without restriction once residence is granted. A child adjusting inside the country can request an EAD on Form I-765 under (c)(9) while the I-485 is pending, though most children under 16 have no need for one.
- Dependents
- None. Immediate relatives have no derivative beneficiaries. A child of the child - the citizen's grandchild - needs a separate route and does not follow along.
- Path to a green card
- This category is the green card. Because there is no queue, the CSPA age freeze is generous here: for an immediate relative the age locks on the date the I-130 is filed, so a petition filed the day before the 21st birthday protects the child even if adjudication takes years. A child who acquires residence while under 18 and living in the citizen parent's legal and physical custody becomes a U.S. citizen automatically under the Child Citizenship Act.
- Processing time
- No visa queue, so the wait is adjudication only. Current I-130 and I-485 times are published at egov.uscis.gov/processing-times and change monthly; consular cases add NVC review and post scheduling. Specific month figures here are unverified.
- Annual cap and waiting lines
- None. Immediate relatives are exempt from the INA 203(a) numerical limits and from the 7% per-country limit, so the September 2026 Visa Bulletin lists no final action date. A child who turns 21 or marries falls out of this category and into F1 or F3, where the September 2026 final action dates are F1 22JAN20 for all chargeability areas, China and India, 01JAN08 for Mexico and 01MAY13 for the Philippines; F3 22OCT14 for all chargeability areas, China and India, 01JUL01 for Mexico and 22FEB06 for the Philippines.
Who qualifies
- An unmarried son or daughter under 21 of a U.S. citizen, born in wedlock
- A child born out of wedlock, to the mother always, and to the father if the child was legitimated or the father showed a bona fide parent-child relationship before the child turned 21
- A stepchild, if the marriage creating the step-relationship took place before the child turned 18
- An adopted child, if adopted before turning 16 and in the adoptive parent's legal custody and residence for two years, or an orphan or Hague convention adoptee on the separate I-600 or I-800 track
Requirements
- Proof of the parent's U.S. citizenship
- Proof of the qualifying parent-child relationship - birth certificate, marriage certificate creating the step-relationship, adoption decree
- The child must be unmarried and under 21 when residence is granted, subject to the Child Status Protection Act
- Admissibility under INA 212(a) or an available waiver
- Form I-864 from the citizen parent at 125% of the poverty guidelines, or a joint sponsor
- A medical examination
How to apply
- 1
The citizen parent files Form I-130 with proof of citizenship and proof of the parent-child relationship. File before the 21st birthday - that date is what CSPA freezes.
- 2
For a child abroad: the National Visa Center collects the DS-261, the DS-260 fee, Form I-864 and civil documents, then schedules the consular interview.
- 3
Complete the panel physician medical exam and attend the interview with the parent's supporting evidence.
- 4
Enter the United States on the immigrant visa and pay the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee.
- 5
For a child already in the United States after a lawful entry: file Form I-485 concurrently with the I-130.
- 6
If the child was under 18 and in the citizen parent's custody when residence was granted, apply for a Certificate of Citizenship on Form N-600 or simply apply for a U.S. passport.
Fees and forms
| Form I-130 petition, paper filing | $675 |
| Form I-130 petition, online filing | $625 |
| DS-260 immigrant visa application processing (consular route) | $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-485, applicant under 14 filing with a parent's I-485, paper | $950 |
| Form I-485, applicant under 14 filing with a parent's I-485, online | $900 |
| Form I-751 to remove conditions on a CR-2 card, paper | $750 |
What changed in 2025 and 2026
- 4 July 2025 - H.R. 1 (Pub. L. 119-21) created new non-waivable fees, none of which fall on the I-130 or a child's I-485.
- 1 January 2026 - first 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.
- 29 June 2026 - alien registration final rule, relevant for a child aged 14 or over who is in the country without status.
- 20 July 2026 - public charge final rule rescinding the 2022 regulations, effective 18 September 2026.
- September 2026 - the Visa Bulletin records reduced immigrant visa issuance for nationals covered by Presidential Proclamations 10949 and 10998, which affects consular scheduling even in uncapped categories.
Where it goes wrong
- Letting the child marry before residence is granted. Marriage moves the case to F3 instantly and there is no way back, and F3 in September 2026 sits at a 2014 priority date.
- Missing the 18th-birthday rule for stepchildren. If the parent's marriage happened after the child turned 18, no step-relationship exists for immigration purposes.
- Assuming CSPA works the same way it does in preference categories. For immediate relatives the age is frozen at filing; in preference categories it is a subtraction calculation with a one-year sought-to-acquire requirement.
- Forgetting that a child adopted after age 16 does not qualify at all.
- Failing to apply for proof of citizenship when the child derived it automatically on becoming a resident under 18, then discovering the gap decades later.
Also in immediate relative
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