K-3 and K-4 Adjustment of Status

How do K-3 and K-4 nonimmigrants adjust status?

See K Visa Adjustment of Status.

What is K-3 status?

K-3 classification was created to permit certain spouses of U.S. citizens to enter the United States while a previously filed Form I-130 immigrant petition was pending.

A K-3 applicant therefore generally has:

• A valid marriage to a U.S. citizen;
• A Form I-130 filed by that citizen;
• A K petition filed by the same citizen;
• A K-3 visa issued abroad; and
• Admission to the United States in K-3 status.

The ultimate immigrant classification remains based on the spousal Form I-130.

K-3 adjustment requires approval of the Form I-130

8 C.F.R. §245.1(i) provides that a person admitted in K-3 status may apply for adjustment after approval of the Form I-130 filed by the same U.S. citizen who petitioned for the K-3 classification.

Once the I-130 is approved and the applicant otherwise qualifies, Form I-485 can proceed through the K-3 adjustment framework.

The K-3 must adjust through the same U.S. citizen petitioner

INA §245(d) and 8 C.F.R. §245.1 restrict adjustment after K admission.

A K-3 cannot ordinarily avoid that restriction by later seeking adjustment through:

• A different spouse;
• An employment-based petition;
• A family petition filed by another relative;
• A diversity visa selection; or
• Another unrelated immigrant classification.

Divorce can destroy the K-3 immigrant basis

K-3 adjustment is based on the spousal Form I-130 filed by the U.S. citizen K petitioner.

If the marriage ends before permanent residence, the applicant must examine:

• Whether the Form I-130 remains valid;
• Whether any survivor provision applies;
• Whether VAWA self-petitioning is available;
• Whether INA §204(l) applies after death rather than divorce; and
• Whether the K-3 has any other lawful route that is not prohibited by INA §245(d).

Unlike Matter of Sesay's special K-1 framework, K-3 adjustment normally depends on a valid approved spousal I-130.

K-4 status is available to qualifying children of the K-3 spouse

A qualifying unmarried child under 21 may obtain K-4 nonimmigrant classification to accompany or follow to join a K-3 parent.

But K-4 nonimmigrant eligibility and K-4 adjustment eligibility are not identical.

A K-4 needs a separate approved Form I-130

The K-3 spouse's Form I-130 does not provide derivative immigrant classification to the K-4 child.

Immediate-relative petitions do not carry derivatives.

Therefore, before a K-4 can adjust:

• The same U.S. citizen who petitioned for the K-3 parent must file Form I-130 for the K-4 child;
• The child must independently qualify under the family relationship created with that citizen;
• The I-130 must be approved; and
• An immigrant visa must be available.

Matter of Valenzuela: K-4 cannot adjust through another petitioner

In Matter of Valenzuela, 25 I&N Dec. 867 (BIA 2012), the Board held that a person admitted in K-4 status may adjust only on the basis of the Form I-130 filed by the U.S. citizen K visa petitioner.

The applicant in Valenzuela later had another potential family relationship, but INA §245(d) prevented adjustment through that different basis.

Matter of Akram: the K-4 must independently qualify as the petitioner's child

Matter of Akram, 25 I&N Dec. 874 (BIA 2012), addressed a K-4 whose mother married the U.S. citizen petitioner after the child had already turned 18.

The Board held that the K-4 could not adjust because:

• The K-4 needed an approved Form I-130 from the U.S. citizen K petitioner;
• The child had to qualify as the petitioner's child for immigrant visa purposes; and
• The marriage creating the proposed stepchild relationship occurred after the K-4's 18th birthday.

Therefore, no qualifying INA §101(b)(1)(B) stepchild relationship existed.

See K-2 Child Adjustment of Status.

The marriage creating the K-4 stepchild relationship generally must occur before age 18

Where the K-4's immigrant classification is based on a stepchild relationship, INA §101(b)(1)(B) generally requires the marriage creating that relationship to occur before the child's 18th birthday.

The U.S. citizen should file the K-4's I-130 before age 21

Current USCIS Form I-129F instructions specifically warn that a K-4 is eligible to adjust only if:

• The child was under 18 when the U.S. citizen and K-3 parent married; and
• The U.S. citizen files Form I-130 for the K-4 before the child reaches age 21.

Where a qualifying immediate-relative I-130 is properly filed before age 21, the Child Status Protection Act may affect the later age calculation.

CSPA cannot create a missing stepchild relationship

The Child Status Protection Act can protect qualifying age in appropriate immigrant petition cases.

But CSPA does not change the separate statutory rule requiring the marriage that creates an INA stepchild relationship to occur before age 18.

Therefore:

• A qualifying stepchild relationship must first exist;
• The U.S. citizen must timely file the required I-130;
• Only then should CSPA age protection be analyzed; and
• CSPA cannot cure the Matter of Akram problem where the marriage occurred after the child's 18th birthday.

K-3 and K-4 cannot adjust through employment

The restriction in INA §245(d) is not limited to family petitions.

A person admitted in K-3 or K-4 status generally cannot use an unrelated approved employment petition to adjust inside the United States.

Examples include:

• EB-1A;
• EB-2 NIW;
• PERM-based EB-2;
• EB-3;
• EB-5; or
• Another unrelated employment classification.

The applicant may have a separate consular-processing strategy, but that requires analysis of departure consequences, unlawful presence, removal history, and inadmissibility.

K-3 and K-4 status termination should be monitored

K classifications are temporary and tied to the underlying family process.

Status can be affected by events such as:

• Denial or revocation of the relevant Form I-130;
• Denial of adjustment;
• Divorce;
• Expiration of the authorized K period;
• Age or marriage changes affecting a K-4; and
• Other terminating events under the K regulations.

The applicant should verify current status before relying on K classification for work authorization, travel, or adjustment filing.

Overstay and unauthorized employment still require analysis

K-3 and K-4 applicants are restricted by INA §245(d), but they also must satisfy the other applicable adjustment provisions.

The filing should separately analyze:

• Expiration of K status;
• Unauthorized employment;
• INA §245(c) exemptions applicable to immediate relatives;
• The applicant's immigrant classification;
• Individual inadmissibility; and
• The specialized K restriction.

A K applicant should not assume either that overstay automatically prevents adjustment or that immediate-relative treatment eliminates every other K-specific requirement.

K-3 affidavit of support

A K-3 adjusting through the approved spousal Form I-130 is generally subject to Form I-864 requirements.

The U.S. citizen petitioner normally provides:

• Form I-864;
• Tax transcript or return evidence;
• Current income evidence;
• Household-size information; and
• Other sponsorship documentation required by the current instructions.

A qualifying joint sponsor may be used when appropriate, but the petitioning sponsor generally remains required.

K-4 affidavit of support

Once the K-4 has an approved Form I-130 from the U.S. citizen petitioner, the child ordinarily proceeds as the citizen petitioner's family-based immigrant beneficiary.

The Form I-864 package should correspond to the child's approved immigrant classification and current household structure.

The filing should not simply rely on the K-3 parent's affidavit-of-support package without confirming that the K-4 child is properly included under the current sponsorship rules.

K-3 and K-4 applicants must be admissible

Approval of the underlying I-130 does not establish admissibility.

USCIS can separately examine:

• Criminal inadmissibility;
• Controlled substance conduct;
• Fraud or misrepresentation;
• False citizenship claims;
• Prior removal;
• Unlawful presence following departure;
• Alien smuggling;
• Medical grounds;
• Public charge and financial sponsorship; and
• Security grounds.

Each K-4 child has an individual inadmissibility analysis separate from the K-3 parent's case.

Medical examination requirements

K-3 and K-4 nonimmigrants generally complete immigration medical examinations during visa processing abroad.

At adjustment, review:

• Overseas medical examination date;
• Vaccination documentation;
• Class A or Class B findings;
• Whether USCIS has the original medical record;
• Current Form I-693 validity rules; and
• Whether a new civil surgeon examination is required.

Conditional residence can apply

A K-3 spouse adjusting through a marriage that is less than two years old when permanent residence is granted generally receives conditional residence under INA §216.

A qualifying K-4 child can also be subject to the conditional-residence framework associated with the marriage creating the immigrant classification.

The relevant date is the date permanent residence is granted.

Removal proceedings and K-4 precedent

Matter of Valenzuela and Matter of Akram both arose in the removal context and remain important when a K-4 attempts to renew adjustment before an immigration judge.

The cases establish that:

• K-4 admission does not itself create immigrant visa eligibility;
• The U.S. citizen K petitioner must file the qualifying I-130;
• The K-4 must independently qualify as the citizen's child;
• The statutory stepchild requirements matter; and
• A different immigrant petitioner cannot ordinarily overcome INA §245(d).

Example: K-3 spouse has approved I-130

Example: K-4 has no separate I-130

Example: marriage creating stepchild relationship occurs at age 18

K-3 adjustment evidence checklist

• K-3 visa and passport.
• Form I-94.
• Marriage certificate.
• Form I-130 receipt and approval notice.
• Evidence I-130 petitioner is the same citizen who filed the K petition.
• Bona fide marriage evidence.
• Form I-864 and financial evidence.
• Medical examination evidence.
• Certified criminal records where applicable.
• Evidence addressing inadmissibility.
• Evidence supporting favorable adjustment discretion.

K-4 adjustment evidence checklist

• K-4 visa and passport.
• Form I-94.
• Evidence of relationship to the K-3 parent.
• Marriage certificate between the K-3 parent and U.S. citizen petitioner.
• Evidence the marriage occurred before the K-4's 18th birthday when stepchild classification is used.
• Separate Form I-130 filed for the K-4.
• Form I-130 approval notice.
• Evidence the I-130 petitioner is the same citizen who filed the K-3 petition.
• Evidence of timely I-130 filing before age 21 where required.
• CSPA analysis where applicable.
• Form I-864 evidence.
• Medical examination evidence.
• Certified criminal records where applicable.
• Evidence addressing individual inadmissibility.

Common K-3 and K-4 mistakes

Primary authorities

Related INA245.com guides

Frequently asked questions