Success Stories: IR-2 Immigrant Visa Issued to Filipino Child Born Out of Wedlock at the U.S. Embassy in Manila
We recently received an approval for an IR-2 Immigrant Visa for a Philippine national at the U.S. Embassy in Manila, allowing the child of a U.S. citizen to reunite permanently with his father in the United States. Congratulations to our clients!
Under U.S. immigration law, an IR-2 visa is designated for unmarried children under the age of 21 of U.S. citizens. However, when a child is born out of wedlock to a U.S. citizen father, additional legal hurdles apply. Unlike petitions filed by mothers, a U.S. citizen father seeking to petition for a child born out of wedlock must either prove that the child was "legitimated" under the law of the child's or father's domicile before the age of 18, or demonstrate a bona fide parental relationship established before the child reached 21 years of age.
In this case, the beneficiary was a teenager born out of wedlock in the Philippines to his U.S. citizen father and Filipina mother. To meet the stringent statutory requirements, our firm compiled and submitted comprehensive, well-documented evidence demonstrating a genuine financial, emotional, and parental relationship between the father and son. Thanks to this thorough submission, the initial I-130 Petition for Alien Relative was approved by USCIS without a single Request for Evidence (RFE).
Following the I-130 approval, the case was transferred to the National Visa Center (NVC), which collects required financial documents, civil certificates, and the DS-260 immigrant visa application. Once NVC marked the case documentarily complete, it was forwarded to the U.S. Embassy in Manila for the final immigrant visa interview.
By the time of the scheduled interview in Manila, the beneficiary had actually reached 21 years of age. Under ordinary circumstances, turning 21 would cause an applicant to "age out" of the immediate relative classification, potentially delaying their visa by years. However, because the I-130 petition was both filed and approved prior to his 21st birthday, the beneficiary was protected under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA). Under the CSPA, his age was effectively "frozen" at the time the petition was filed, allowing him to retain his IR-2 immediate relative category despite turning 21 during consular processing.
Following a successful interview at the U.S. Embassy in Manila, the IR-2 immigrant visa was officially issued, clearing the way for the young beneficiary to travel to the U.S. as a Lawful Permanent Resident.
Navigating family-based immigration laws—especially cases involving CSPA age-out protections and children born out of wedlock—requires strategic evidence gathering and deep legal technical knowledge. We are immensely proud to have assisted this family through every milestone of their journey. Please contact us to set up a consultation to see how we can help. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Tumblr and TikTok, for up-to-date immigration news. Please note that past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
Torregoza Legal PLLC is the law firm for immigrants, by immigrants. We are founded on the motto of LegalEase: we do away with the legal jargon and make law easy to understand, so you can focus on what’s important to you – going for your American Dream.
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This website and blog constitute attorney advertising. Do not consider anything on this website or blog legal advice as the law is dynamic, particularly in the immigration field and nothing in this website constitutes an attorney-client relationship being formed. Set up a one-hour consultation with us before acting on anything you read here. Past results are no guarantee of future results and prior results do not imply or predict future results. Each case is different and must be judged on its own merits.