I-730, Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition
ALERT: Effective May 6, 2024, all Form I-730 following to join refugee (FTJ-R) petitions are being processed at the USCIS International Operations Division rather than the Asylum Vetting Center. We shifted this workload to better serve Form I-730 petitioners and beneficiaries by establishing a dedicated team with primary responsibility for initial domestic processing of FTJ-R petitions. This will help us process this critical family reunification program more efficiently.
We will automatically transfer any pending Form I-730 FTJ-R petitions filed by refugee petitioners from the Asylum Vetting Center to USCIS International Operations and send the petitioner a transfer notice. If you have a pending Form I-730 FTJ-R petition, please refer to the transfer notice you receive for more information about the transfer of your petition. Please note, USCIS International Operations is not open to the public and does not accept requests or inquiries made in person.
Because the Asylum Vetting Center no longer completes initial domestic processing of Form I-730 FTJ-R petitions, the Asylum Vetting Center cannot respond to any Form I-730 FTJ-R inquiries. Please do not go to or make inquiries at the Asylum Vetting Center or any asylum office because office staff are not able to receive or respond to any Form I-730 inquiries.
REMINDER: Please submit a passport-style photograph or a recently taken clear photograph of each family member you are petitioning for. If you do not provide the required photo, we may issue a Request for Evidence (RFE), and it could take longer to process your petition.
If you are a principal refugee admitted to the United States within the past 2 years or a principal asylee who was granted asylum within the past 2 years, you (the petitioner) may use this form to request that your spouse and unmarried children under 21 years of age (the beneficiaries) join you in the United States. In certain circumstances, unmarried children over 21 years old may be eligible for following-to-join immigration benefits. For more information, see our Child Status Protection Act page. In some cases, we may grant a waiver of the 2-year filing deadline for humanitarian reasons. See the Instructions for Form I-730 (PDF, 91.53 KB) for more information.
The processing of Form I-730 petitions depends on various factors, including your status as a principal asylee or refugee and the current location of your beneficiary. Form I-730 processing is divided into three steps:
- Receipt and Initial Domestic Processing;
- Beneficiary Interview and Additional Processing; and
- Department of State Returns (as appropriate).
Receipt and Initial Domestic Processing
The Service Center Operations Directorate (SCOPS) receives all Form I-730 petitions. SCOPS performs initial domestic processing of Form I-730 following-to-join asylee (FTJ-A) petitions. The Refugee, Asylum and International Operations Directorate (RAIO) performs initial domestic processing of Form I-730 following-to-join refugee (FTJ-R) petitions at USCIS International Operations. Generally, USCIS processes Form I-730 petitions in the order we receive them.
If we need additional evidence, we will issue you a request for evidence (RFE) and give you an opportunity to respond.
Beneficiary Interview and Additional Processing
Once we complete initial domestic processing of your Form I-730 petition, and if we determine that your relative appears eligible as a follow-to-join asylee or refugee, we will send your petition to the appropriate office to interview your spouse or child and continue processing. After receiving your petition, the interviewing office will notify you, your spouse or child, and any representative of record, and provide additional instructions.
If the beneficiary is located within the United States, we will forward the petition to the appropriate USCIS domestic field office based on the beneficiary’s residence. We will send you a transfer notice listing the USCIS field office. You can find more information on USCIS domestic field offices on the USCIS Field Offices page.
If the beneficiary is located outside of the United States, we will forward the petition through the Department of State’s (DOS) National Visa Center (NVC) to a USCIS international field office or a U.S. embassy or consulate with jurisdiction over the beneficiary’s residence.
If your beneficiary is located outside of the United States in a country where USCIS has an international field office with jurisdiction over the country where your beneficiary lives, your beneficiary will be interviewed by USCIS. You will receive a transfer notice listing the USCIS international field office that will interview your beneficiary and complete processing. Currently, USCIS maintains international field offices in China, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Kenya, Mexico, Qatar, and Turkey. Please note that the USCIS Nairobi Field Office also processes Form I-730 following-to-join refugee petitions for beneficiaries located in Burundi and Uganda. You can find information about USCIS international offices on the USCIS International Immigration Offices page.
If your beneficiary is located outside of the United States in a country with no USCIS international field office presence or jurisdiction, a DOS embassy or consulate will interview and complete processing of your beneficiary on USCIS’ behalf and will determine your beneficiary’s eligibility to travel to the United States. If your beneficiary will be interviewed at a DOS embassy or consulate, you will receive an approval notice from USCIS after initial domestic processing of your petition is complete. You can find more information about U.S. embassies and consulates on the DOS U.S. Embassy Locator page, which also includes details on whether the U.S. embassy or consulate is open for interviews and additional processing.
Department of State Returns
If DOS interviews and processes the beneficiary outside the United States and finds a basis for ineligibility, DOS will return the petition to the domestic USCIS processing component for further review of the decision. We will then review the Form I-730 petition and may re-open the petition and request additional information, deny the petition, or reaffirm the petition and return it to DOS for continued processing.
Form Details
Dates are listed in mm/dd/yy format.
If you complete and print this form to mail it, make sure that the form edition date and page numbers are visible at the bottom of all pages and that all pages are from the same form edition. If any of the form’s pages are missing or are from a different form edition, we may reject your form.
If you need help downloading and printing forms, read our instructions.
Mail your petition to:
USCIS Texas Service Center
Attn: I-730
6046 N. Belt Line Rd. Ste. 730
Irving, TX 75038-0019
You can find the filing fee for Form I-730 by visiting our Fee Schedule page.
Please do not submit this checklist with your Form I-730. The checklist is an optional tool to use as you prepare your form, but does not replace statutory, regulatory, and form instruction requirements. We recommend that you review these requirements before completing and submitting your form. Do not send original documents unless specifically requested in the form instructions or applicable regulations.
If you submit any documents (copies or original documents, if requested) in a foreign language, you must include a full English translation along with a certification from the translator verifying that the translation is complete and accurate, and that they are competent to translate from the foreign language into English.
Did you provide the following?
- Proof of your status as a principal asylee or refugee in the United States, for example:
- Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Record, (granting you asylee or refugee status);
- Court order from an immigration judge;
- Form I-766, Employment Authorization Document (EAD);
- Form I-512, Authorization for Advance Parole; or
- Form I-571, Refugee Travel Document.
- A passport-style photograph or a recent, clear photograph of each family member you are filing for;
- A copy of both sides of your family member’s Form I-94, Arrival-Departure Record, if they are in the United States; and
Primary evidence of a family relationship for each family member you are submitting a petition for:
- Spouse (PDF, 997.34 KB):
- A copy of your marriage certificate, evidence you each legally terminated any previous marriages (if either you or your spouse were), and evidence of legal name changes (if applicable).
Note: On Feb. 14, 2022, the USCIS Refugee, Asylum and International Operations Directorate issued Revised Guidance on Informal (“Camp”) Marriages (PDF, 997.34 KB). The revised guidance recognizes certain informal marriages for the purpose of obtaining derivative refugee or asylee status and directs USCIS officers to consider evidence of an informal spousal relationship, including when a marriage certificate may not be available.
- Child:
- If you (the petitioner) are the child’s mother: A copy of your child’s birth certificate showing their name and your name, and evidence of legal name changes if the names on the birth certificate do not match the names on the petition.
- If you (the petitioner) are the child’s father: A copy of your child’s birth certificate showing the child’s name and your name, and a copy of your marriage certificate if you were married to the child’s mother. If you were not married to the child’s mother, then you must either submit evidence that the child was legitimated by civil authorities or submit evidence that a bona fide parent-child relationship exists or existed between you and the child. Legitimation laws may vary by country. (For more information on legitimation, see the USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part B, Chapter 8.)
- Stepchild:
- A copy of your child’s birth certificate, a copy of the marriage certificate between you and the child’s natural parent, and evidence of legal name changes (if applicable).
- Adopted child:
- A certified copy of the adoption decree, evidence that you lived with the child for at least two years, a certified copy of the court order granting custody (if applicable), and evidence of legal name changes (if applicable).
- Spouse (PDF, 997.34 KB):
If primary evidence is not available from civil authorities, submit the following as secondary evidence:
- Religious institution record;
- School record; or
- Census record.
If secondary evidence is not available, submit affidavits (sworn written statements related to the facts at issue). If you submit affidavits, they must overcome the absence of primary and secondary evidence.
For a complete list of supporting documentation, see the Form I-730 Instructions (PDF, 91.53 KB).
Filing Tips: Review our Tips for Filing Forms by Mail page for information on how to ensure we will accept your form.
Don’t forget to sign your form. We will reject any unsigned form.
Following-to-Join Refugee Petitions Only
On Feb. 1, 2018, USCIS and DOS implemented procedures requiring additional information for FTJ-R beneficiaries to determine eligibility. You should submit a Form I-590, Registration for Classification as Refugee (PDF, 696.08 KB), for your FTJ-R relative along with the Form I-730 petition. Your relative does not need to complete Parts 5 or 8 or sign the Form I-590. We will not deny a Form I-730 that does not have a Form I-590, but we may request this information from petitioners if they do not submit it.
You cannot use Form I-590 to request refugee status directly with USCIS. For information about the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, see our Refugees page.
Change of Address
It is important to notify USCIS and or DOS if your contact information or your beneficiary’s contact information changes.
- Please go to uscis.gov/addresschange for information on how to change your address with USCIS.
- If your beneficiary is located outside the United States and a USCIS international field office will interview and process them, contact the USCIS international field office. You can find contact information at the USCIS International Immigration Offices page.
- If your beneficiary is located outside of the United States and a U.S. embassy or consulate will interview and process them, contact the NVC and the U.S. embassy or consulate. Find contact information for U.S. embassies and consulates at the DOS U.S. Embassy Locator page.
Form I-730 Beneficiaries Located Abroad Where There is No U.S. Government Presence
USCIS is working closely with DOS to identify how to process Form I-730 petitions in locations outside the United States where there is not a U.S. government presence. If your beneficiary previously resided in a country without a U.S. government presence but has left that country, please update their address information, using the instructions above, so either USCIS or DOS can process them in a third country.
Outside of Normal Processing Times Inquiry
If the most recent notice you received indicated that a USCIS office is processing your Form I-730 petition, and it is taking longer than the normal processing times listed for Form I-730 petitions on our Processing Times page, you may submit an “outside of normal processing times” inquiry for your pending Form I-730 petition.
- For Form I-730 petitions being processed at the Texas Service Center, USCIS International Operations, or at a domestic field office, you may submit a case inquiry online.
Please note that USCIS International Operations is not a public-facing office and does not accept requests or inquiries made in person.
- For Form I-730 petitions pending at a USCIS international office, please contact the USCIS international office processing your petition. You can find contact information at the USCIS International Immigration Offices page.
- USCIS does not have processing time information for Form I-730 petitions pending with DOS. For Form I-730 petitions being processed by a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad, see the Department of State U.S. Embassy Locator page for contact information.
Expedite Requests
For information on making an expedite request for USCIS processing, please refer to our How to Make an Expedite Request page, which includes information on expedite criteria. If your situation matches any of the USCIS expedite criteria, you have already filed your Form I-730 petition with USCIS, and you would like to request expedited processing, please check the most recent notice you have received and use the chart below to submit your expedite request to the USCIS office processing your petition.
| If your Form I-730 is being processed at | Then submit your expedite request |
|---|---|
| The Texas Service Center | To the USCIS Contact Center |
| USCIS International Operations | To the USCIS Contact Center, or mail it: By U.S. Postal Service (USPS): DHS/USCIS By FedEx, UPS, or DHL: DHS/USCIS Please note that the Asylum Vetting Center is not a public-facing office and does not accept requests or inquiries made in person. |
| A USCIS domestic field office | To the USCIS domestic field office. See your transfer notice for the mailing address. |
| A USCIS international field office | To the international field office. See the International Immigration Offices page for contact information. |
Corrections to Submitted Form I-730 Petitions
If you have filed your Form I-730 petition and need to update information or make changes to the petition, contact the appropriate USCIS or DOS office processing the Form I-730 petition using the instructions above. Your most recent receipt or transfer notice will list the office that is processing your Form I-730 petition.