PRESS RELEASES 2007

U.S. Embassy Resumes Accepting I-130 Immigrant Visa Petitions

March 30, 2007

The U.S. Embassy has resumed accepting immigrant visa petitions from American citizens who are resident in Lebanon.  American citizens may request immediate relative immigrant classification, as well as true emergency cases, such as life and death or health and safety, and others determined to be in the U.S. national interest.  Examples of family emergency include minor children who would be unexpectedly left without a caretaker.

I-130 petitions will be accepted at the Embassy on Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., by prior appointment.  Appointments may be requested by e-mail to BeirutIV@state.gov.  The Consular Section is closed to the public on the last Friday of each month. 

To demonstrate residency in Lebanon, American Citizen petitioners must be able to show that they have permission to reside in Lebanon and that they have been doing so continuously for at least six months before filing the petition.  Individuals who are in the country on a temporary status, such as student or tourist, would not be considered to meet the residency standard.

All lawful permanent residents, and American Citizens resident in the United States or with a permanent address in the United States, must file I-130 petitions at the USCIS Service Center having jurisdiction over their place of residence (as indicated on the USCIS website:  http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-130.pdf).

As of January 22, 2007, consular offices abroad were instructed to cease accepting certain immigrant visa petitions because consular officers lacked the means to perform the required criminal background checks on American citizen petitioners, as required by the Adam Walsh Act.  Subsequently, the Department of State and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) worked to develop a mechanism whereby USCIS will perform these required “Adam Walsh Act” checks for any petitions accepted abroad by consular officers.