Strategy keeps special needs family together

"She needs us for everything. How can they say she's not a child anymore?" My client was facing an impossible choice: leave her special needs daughter behind or give up her green card.

My client got approved for a National Interest Waiver - a green card category for people whose work benefits the United States. 

She's an author writing self-help books on nutrition and lifestyle coaching.

Getting the NIW approved was already a huge win. 

But for her, the approval meant nothing if her daughter couldn't be included.

Her older daughter has a rare genetic condition and will need lifelong support. 

The parents help their daughter with everything - daily tasks, decisions, care.

If the daughter couldn't come, the mother wasn't moving.

Here's the problem:

Once a child turns 21, they age out and can no longer be included as a dependent. 

The daughter was approaching 21 and immigrant visa appointments at the local U.S. consulate had a one-year wait.

My client was terrified her daughter would age out before they could complete the process.

And here's what made this case so frustrating:

The immigration system doesn't distinguish between a typical 21-year-old and one who needs lifelong support.

No exception. 

No accommodation. 

No recognition of the reality.

My client asked me: "How can they say she's not a child when she can't do anything on her own? She needs us."

I didn't have a good answer. 

I still don't.

But I could find a solution.

The family was able to lawfully enter the United States for the father’s employment with a U.S. employer. 

After moving to the United States, the family was able to file Adjustment of Status applications, freezing the age of their special needs child while the process was pending.

The case was approved. 

The family is here together.

This case reminded me how inflexible our system is. 

It's an area that needs advocacy.

Until the law changes, cases like this require strategy and creativity.

Sometimes the biggest wins aren't just about approvals - they're about keeping families together when the system tries to pull them apart.