Upgrade a Petition

If you naturalize (become an American citizen) you may ask the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to change the petitions you filed for family members when you were a lawful permanent resident (LPR) from one category to another.  This is called upgrading.  For example, a petition for a spouse will be changed/upgraded from F2 to IR1.  That is, the petition changes from a preference category with numerical limits to an immediate relative category without numerical limits.  The applicant no longer has to wait for her/his priority date to be reached.

Upgrading a petition sometimes has consequences.  A preference petition for a spouse permits derivative status for children.  An immediate relative petition does not.  You, the petitioner, would need to file separate petitions for each of your children.

Source: U.S. Department of State.

Last reviewed October 2023