Immigrant Visas

News flash!!!  Fee Increase for Immigrant Visa Petitions Effective July 30, 2007, the fee for filing I-130 immigrant visa petitions is revised from US$190 to US$355 and for I-600A/I-600 fee from US$545 to US$670.  All fee payments for immigrant visas and immigrant visa petitions are payable in cash only.

Filing Immigrant Visa Petitions in Singapore

Effective immediately, the Immigrant Unit in Singapore will accept I-130 petitions for immediate relative immigrant classification from American Citizens who are resident in Singapore.  To demonstrate residency in Singapore, the American Citizen petitioner must be able to demonstrate permission to reside in Singapore (e.g. Singapore Permanent Resident status, an Employment Pass, Dependant’s Pass, or other permanent status) and have been resident in Singapore for at least six months before filing the petition.  American citizens who are in Singapore on temporary status, such as students or tourists, do not meet the residency standard and must file their petitions directly with the domestic United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office having jurisdiction over the American citizen's place of residence.

Emergency Cases:  The Immigrant Visa unit will accept I-130 petitions from American Citizens who are not resident in Singapore in the event of a true emergency (life and death situation, significant health and safety issue, minor children unexpectedly left without a caretaker).These cases are very rare and will be handled on a case-by-case basis.

Petitioners who reside in Singapore may file the I-130 Petitions directly at the Embassy on Tuesdays and Thursdays only, between 0900 and 1100.  Please monitor the Embassy website for holiday closures.

Petitioners must bring original civil documents as well as copies of each for the filing process.  Original documents will be returned after filing.  Original documents required for initial filing include: the petitioner's passport, the beneficiary's passport (if resident in Singapore), evidence of the petitioner's status in Singapore, evidence of the beneficiary's status in Singapore (if applicable), evidence of the relationship between the petitioner and beneficiary, and any other relevant civil documents (marriage certificates, birth certificates, prior divorce decrees).

The application fees of US$355 must be paid in cash (US dollars or Singapore equivalent).

Documents can be found on the Internet at www.uscis.gov.  Please see the section entitled "Immigration Forms."

We wish to reiterate that the Embassy will accept petitions only from American citizens who they are resident in Singapore (i.e. PR card, work permit, dependant's pass, etc).