While many California immigrants come to the States with the intention of starting a future for a new family, you might also be concerned with your ability to reunite your family on American soil. The good news is that, as a permanent resident, you are eligible to petition for certain members of your family to come to the USA.

Your green card status is the potential first step towards permanent residency and citizenship for your children and your spouse. Your eligible relatives, as outlined in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services information portal, are as follows:

• Your unmarried sons and daughters who are 21 years old or older
• Your spouse
• Your unmarried sons and daughters who are under 21 years old

While you may petition for all of the above individuals to gain permanent residency, they might not all be accepted at once: Instead, USCIS prioritizes your applications. The service gives primary preference to any unmarried children you have with a US citizen. The lowest preference category contains siblings of US citizens. 

Should you become a United States citizen, you might be in a position to petition for your own siblings' permanent residence status— albeit at the lowest priority level for such an application. Until such a time, you should receive second-tier priority when you submit a residency application for your spouse or your unmarried children. It also bears mentioning that, depending on whether or not your relatives are currently residing in the USA, the National Visa Service might be the first agency to handle your application. Please view this article as general information, not as legal advice.