Most parents dream of giving their children a better life with more opportunities. For hard-working professionals who have established careers and those with advanced educations around the world, sometimes those opportunities include entering the United States.
Using your job as a means to secure a visa can be one of the more straightforward ways to legally enter the United States. A nonimmigrant employment visa can allow you to legally live and work in the United States for years, and these visa holders can typically renew or extend their visas, provided that their employer has an ongoing need for their services domestically.
If you do secure a work-related visa, you will typically have the right to have your family travel and live with you while you work in the United States. Are there any current limitations or restrictions in place regarding children entering the United States via their parents’ work visas?
Children must be under 21 and unmarried to travel with parents
There is a separate visa application process for dependent children and spouses who want to enter the country with a loved one who has received a work visa. Much like employment visa applicants, those immediate family members entering the country on a family visa will have to pass a background check and supply necessary documentation as requested by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
For children to enter the United States either traveling with a parent who has a work visa or entering after their parent has already come to the United States and gotten established, they must remain unmarried in order to qualify. Additionally, they must be under the age of 21. Biological, adopted and legal children, like stepchildren, may potentially qualify for entry through a parent’s work visa.
Are there family limits on the number of children who can travel?
Families come in all shapes and sizes, and the USCIS does not penalize those who have large families. Provided that your family can cover all of the costs associated with the applications, travel expenses and domestic accommodations required to bring multiple children with you, the USCIS does not typically limit the number of dependent children who can travel with a parent entering the country with a work visa.
