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Spouse of a Deceased U.S. Citizen (IW Visas)

A spouse of a deceased U.S. Citizen may file a petition on his/her own behalf under the following conditions:

  • You were married to a U.S. citizen who is now deceased and who was a U.S. citizen at the time of death
  • Your citizen spouse died less than two years before the date on which you file this petition
  • You were not legally separated from your citizen spouse at the time of death; and
  • You have not remarried
  • You must reside legally in the consular district of the US Embassy or Consulate at which you are requesting to file; and
  • You must be able to remain in the country where the Embassy or Consulate is located for the time it takes to process the visa.

Note: If your deceased citizen spouse filed a Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, before they died, you do not need to file a Form I-360 because we automatically converted your spouse’s Form I-130 to a Form I-360.

How to file an I-360 petition

Step 1:  Schedule an Appointment – If you wish to file Form I-360 (Petition for Widow/er) at the U.S. Embassy Tokyo or Consulate General Naha, please fill out the Appointment Request Form.  We will email your appointment date and time.

Step 2:  Bring the following documents – on the day of your appointment:

Important Notices

  • English translations of all foreign language documents are required. Any foreign language document must be accompanied by a full English translation that the translator has certified as complete and correct. The translator must certify that he/she is competent to translate the foreign language into English. It is not necessary to have the translation notarized.
  • If you wish to retain an original document, you must bring a photocopy with the original. We will return the original to you after the interview by request.

Print out the checklist below and prepare the documents in order. Check the boxes pertaining to your case. On the day of the interview, submit the checked list on top of the gathered documents.

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PASSPORT:  Your valid passport
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COMPLETED Form I-360
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PROOF OF SPOUSE’S CITIZENSHIP:  Official proof of U.S. citizenship of your spouse such as a birth certificate if born in the United States, Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship issued by USCIS, Form FS-240 Report of Birth Abroad of a U.S. Citizen, or U.S. passport which was valid at the time of the citizen’s death.
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MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE:  Original copy of your marriage certificate to the U.S. citizen and proof of termination of all prior marriages of either of you.
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DEATH CERTIFICATE:  Original copy of the death certificate of your U.S. citizen spouse.
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BIRTH CERTIFICATE:  Your original birth certificate (e.g. koseki shohon).
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FEE: The Filing Fee should be paid at the Embassy/Consulate cashier in yen or U.S. dollars on the day of your interview. You may pay by cash, or credit card (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express, Diner’s Club, and JCB).

Notes:

  1. Be prepared to pay with cash in case the credit card verification system is temporarily unavailable.
  2. Payment by credit card is billed in U.S. dollars.
  3. DO NOT pay the fee through the Non-Immigrant visa Web site. Application fees paid for the wrong visa category will not be accepted and cannot be refunded.
  4. This fee is non-refundable, regardless of any action taken on your petition.


IMPORTANT

The Embassy may request additional information anytime during the application process.

Step 3:  Decision

If your I-360 petition is approved:  You must next apply for an immigrant visa. The instructions for the next steps will be given to you by email. Among the documents you must gather and retain are police clearance(s) and a medical examination. Schedule an immigrant visa appointment, only after you have gathered all necessary documentation. We conduct the interviews by appointments only.

If your I-360 petition was denied: A U.S. relative, a U.S. permanent resident, or U.S. employer may file an immigrant petition on your behalf in the normal manner. Information on the various types of immigrant and employment based petitions are available at Department of State website.