Q: Can my niece who was born in Mexico whose mom passed away and father is in prison in the US come live in the US?
Need some advice please. My brother ran to Mexico to avoid getting arrested about 17 years ago. A year after being in Mexico he met his common law wife. He had my niece who is now 16. My brother never put his name on the birth certificate as he was illegally in Mexico. Last year his common law wife passed away from cancer. He then decided to leave my niece with her maternal grandmother and returned to the US and turned himself in. He is serving 3 years and is up for parole 08/2020. My nieces grandmother decided that she couldn’t care for my niece and sent her way. My niece was taken in by one of my aunts as my niece was homeless and no one to care for her. What my family and I want to know is what can be done to bring my niece to the US? She is now 16 and I’m afraid she can loose any rights by the time my brother gets out. My brother also has 2 sons who are US citizens and paternal grandparents that are also here in the US that can help with anything that needs to be done.
A: Your niece might already be a US citizen. We recommend you speak with an immigration attorney to confirm. Even if your brother’s name is not on the birth certificate, a DNA test would show the relationship.
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