What Can I Do If My Parent or Family Member is Undocumented?

Approximately 6.3 million households in the United States include someone who is an undocumented immigrant. Nearly 70% of these households also include U.S. citizens or others who are in the country legally. These “mixed-status” households are often home to U.S. citizen children and their undocumented immigrant parents.

Their future, at best, can be unpredictable.

With threats of mass deportations looming, it’s important to understand the current climate as well as options that may be available to those with undocumented loved ones.

In this article, we explore three paths that may be available for citizens and lawful permanent residents (LPRs) to gain legal status for their undocumented parents and other immediate relatives.

The best course of action for each family will depend heavily on their specific circumstances and current immigration policy.

But let’s first confirm who is considered an unauthorized or "undocumented" immigrant.

Undocumented Immigrants

An undocumented immigrant is someone who lives in the United States but doesn’t have legal authorization to do so. An immigrant may be in the U.S. without legal status for several reasons. These include:

• Entry without inspection (EWI): An individual crosses the U.S. border without going through an official port of entry or without being inspected by a U.S. immigration officer
• Visa overstay: Someone initially enters the country legally with a visa (e.g., tourist, student, or work visa) but remains in the country after their visa has expired
• Violation of visa terms: A person enters the country legally with a visa but violates the terms of their visa, such as failing to maintain student status
• Asylum: Some immigrants enter the U.S. seeking refuge from harm or persecution in their home countries but may not have legal status while their asylum application is being processed
• DACA: Immigrants brought to the U.S. as children may have been granted temporary work authorization and deportation protection under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program

Since DACA protections don’t change immigration status, recipients are still considered undocumented immigrants. The temporary nature of these protections, and the program in general, has sparked much debate about the legal limbo of DACA recipients.

Challenges for Undocumented Immigrants 

Regardless of the reason for their unlawful presence, undocumented immigrants in this country face common obstacles. These can include limited access to:

• Healthcare
• Education
• Employment opportunities

And perhaps most significantly, undocumented immigrants face the constant risk of deportation.

What Can Undocumented Immigrants Do?

There are several potential paths for undocumented immigrants to gain legal status in the United States. Eligibility depends on their circumstances.

For example, an undocumented immigrant who marries a citizen or green card holder may be able to obtain their own green card.

Victims of certain crimes who’ve cooperated with law enforcement may also be eligible for a U visa.

Family members who are citizens or LPRs can open up potential avenues for undocumented immigrant parents and other immediate relatives to gain legal status.

LPRs are non-citizens with permanent resident status. Lawful permanent residency is also often called a "green card."

Adjusting Status After Lawful Entry

If your parent is an undocumented immigrant, adjusting status after lawful entry is one way they may be able to obtain a green card.

This could be a viable option if:

• They initially entered the country legally
• They’re otherwise admissible to the U.S. for lawful permanent residence or eligible for a waiver
• You’re a citizen or LPR
• You’re at least 21 years old

This path may also be used for other undocumented immediate relatives, including spouses and unmarried children (under 21 years of age). However, other relatives like grandparents and siblings do not qualify.

Application Process

The process typically begins with the immigrant visa petition. The citizen/LPR files a Petition for Alien Relative (Form I-130) with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

This form establishes the qualifying relationship between you (the sponsor) and your undocumented immediate relative (the beneficiary).

Once USCIS approves it, the beneficiary files an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status (Form I-485). Additional required forms usually accompany this application.

One of them is Form I-864, which shows you can financially support your beneficiary. Because you’re sponsoring them in this process, you’ll typically complete an Affidavit of Support (Form I-864) at this time.

Citizens vs. LPRs

Beneficiaries of citizens may generally file all these forms at the same time. LPR beneficiaries, on the other hand, are subject to visa limits. They must wait to file application materials until the petition is approved and a visa number is available.

Additional documentation

As the USCIS reviews your materials, it will usually collect biometrics from your beneficiary and interview you both.

Careful Consideration

With the 2025 Trump administration’s strict position on immigration, these applications will face heightened scrutiny. Filing these materials may come with associated risks.

As such, it’s critical you evaluate all your options carefully and confidentially with a trusted legal advisor experienced in immigration law.

Adjusting Status After Illegal Entry

Even if your undocumented relative initially entered the country illegally, status adjustment may still be a possibility. However, it is important to know that this is only possible in a relatively small number of cases.

Most immigrants who enter illegally will not be able to adjust their status without first leaving the country to apply at a U.S. Consulate Office abroad (although hardship waivers are possible in some cases). There may also be an enforced wait period before they are allowed re-entry to the U.S.

The same general criteria apply. You may be able to help your parent or relative if:

• You’re a citizen or LPR
• You’re at least 21 years old
• Your beneficiary is otherwise admissible to the U.S. for lawful permanent residence or eligible for a waiver

However, in order to file an application to adjust status after illegal entry, your immediate relative must have been the beneficiary of a qualifying petition/application filed no later than April 30, 2001. Maybe they had a relative who began the process of bringing them into the U.S., or an employer started a petition for them to take a new job.

Qualifying documents include:

• Petition for Alien Relative (Form I-130)
• Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker (Form I-140)
• Application for Alien Employment Certification (Form ETA 750)

It doesn’t matter if you weren’t the sponsor on the original qualifying document for your undocumented family member. If one of these documents was filed by the 2001 deadline, you can use it to try and adjust their status.

Application Process

If you didn’t file the qualifying petition/application, you’ll need to file Form I-130 to begin the status adjustment process.

Then, as with the application process after lawful entry, your beneficiary will complete the I-485 application along with the other required forms. You’ll complete the financial support affidavit here, too.

For these applications, a supplemental form and payment of a $1000 penalty are also required.

Citizens vs. LPRs

As with lawful entry, citizens applying to adjust their parent's status after illegal entry:

• Aren’t subject to visa limits and availability
• May generally file all forms concurrently

LPR beneficiaries must still wait to file application materials until the petition is approved and a visa number is available.

Additional Documentation

As the USCIS reviews your materials, it will usually collect biometrics from your beneficiary and interview you both.

If You're a Member of the Armed Forces

Lastly, if you’re a current or former service member, you may be able to gain legal status for your undocumented immediate relatives in yet another way. It’s a policy called Parole in Place for Parents of Armed Forces Service Members.

This PIP program can’t get your undocumented relative a green card. But it can provide a path to one.

PIP Criteria

It may be helpful to review key differences and similarities between this policy and the two adjustments of status processes. Amongst several features, parole in place:

• Is available to citizen and LPR service members (active duty or veteran)
• Has no citizen/LPR age requirement
• Can provide renewable temporary legal status (typically for a year)
• Generally handles LPR and citizen applications in the same way
• May be used for immediate relatives (same groups included)
• Uses the same process for legal and illegal initial entry

PIP also requires admissibility or a waiver, but it’s slightly different.

Since PIP itself grants parole status, this relief can help overcome certain grounds of inadmissibility.

All three paths to legal status may require an Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility (Form I-601) as appropriate.

Application Process

The PIP process begins when you file an Application for Travel Document (Form I-131) to request parole in place.

Once granted PIP, your parent or relative may be able to adjust their status after lawful entry, even if their initial entry was illegal.

This is one of the policy’s key benefits. It effectively overcomes the barriers posed by illegal entry.

Additional Documentation

As the USCIS reviews your materials, it will usually collect biometrics from the applicants. Interviews may be conducted on a case-by-case basis.

What If None of These Apply?

You may have an undocumented immigrant parent or family member who isn’t eligible for any of these. But that doesn’t mean there’s no path to legal status for them. And even if they are eligible, there can be pros/cons and potential risks involved.

This is not a legal landscape you want to navigate alone. The stakes could not be higher.

Getting Legal Help

Nonprofit organizations with resources and legal services may be able to get you started.

You can also talk with a qualified immigration lawyer who can help you navigate this unpredictable climate. You can share the specifics of your situation with them confidentially. And they can help you understand your options in real time, against a rapidly changing backdrop.

Determining how to proceed will be difficult, but finding an advisor who can truly help you doesn’t have to be.

Findlaw’s dedicated directory of immigration attorneys is arranged by state. Just click on yours to view local lawyers who are staying on top of developments.

At this unpredictable time, an immigration attorney with compassion and experience may be your strongest ally.