Interim Decision #2334 

• MATTER OF HEUNG 

In Visa Petition Proceedings 

A-21020882 

Decided by Board November 25, 1974 

In order to support a claimed brother and sister relationship a petitioner has to establish. 

that he and the beneficiary are or once were "children of a common parent" within the 

meaning of section 101(b)(1) and (2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Petitioner's 

mother married the father of the beneficiary in 1974. By virtue of that 1974 marriage, 

the beneficiary became the stepchild of petitioner's mother through operation of section 

101(b)(1)(B) of the Act, and petitioner's mother became the parent of the beneficiary 

within the meaning of section 101(b)(2). Therefore, the petitioner and beneficiary have a 

common parent for immigration purposes, and the petition under section 203(a)(5) of the 

Act should be approved, notwithstanding there is no eonsanguineons relationship between petitioner and beneficiary. Matter of Campbell13 I. & N. Dec. 552 (BIA 1970), 

overruled. 

ON BEHALF OF PETITIONER: Joseph P. Fallon, Jr., Esquire. 

30 Hotaling Place 

San Francisco, California 94123 

The United States citizen petitioner applied for preference status for 

the beneficiary as his stepsister under section 203(a)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. In a decision dated August 16, 1974, the 

district director approved the visa petition, concluding that the petitioner and the beneficiary should be regarded as "brother" and "sister" 

within the meaning of the Act. Inasmuch as this conclusion is in conflict 

with our decision in Matter of Campbell, 12 I. & N. Dee. 552 (MA 1970), 

the district director has certified his decision to us pursuant to the 

provisions of 8 CFR 3.1(c). We shall overrule Matter of Campbell, and 

affirm the decision of the district director. 

In Matter of Campbell, supra, we held that a United States citizen 

petitioner could not confer a fifth preference classification upon her 

stepsister, since they were not "sisters of the whole or half blood" in 

that the petitioner and the beneficiary did not have a common natural 

parent. However, in cases dealing with adoption, we have recognized 

that individuals may qualify as "brothers and sisters" by virtue of 

adoption in accordance with section 101(b)(1)(E), even though such a 

relationship is not consanguineous. Matter of Fong, 10 I. & N. Dee. 497 

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Interim DecLsion #2834 

(BIA 1964); Matter of Butterly, 14 I. & N. Dec. 460 (BIA 1973): We 

overrule our holding in Matter of Campbell, supra, because it is inconsistent with the reasons underlying the foregoing decisions. 

We agree with the district director that the definitions of the terms 

"parent" and "child" in section 101(b)(1) and (2) should be applied in 

determining whether an alien qualifies as a "brother" or "sister" within 

the meaning of section 203(a)(5). We have employed such definitions in 

similar instances. See, e.g., Matter of Coker, 14 I. & N. Dec. 521 (BIA 

1974), where we held that in order to qualify as a "daughter" for 

preference purposes, a beneficiary must once have qualified as a "child" 

of the petitioner under section 101(b)(1), and Matter of Kim, 14 I. & N. 

Dec. 561 (B LA. 1974), where we held that a beneficiary who fails to 

qualify as a legitimated ,child under section 101(b)(1) is ineligible for 

preference status under section 203(a)(5) as the "brother" of the petitioner through the paternal relationship. In support of a claimed brother 

or sister relationship, a petitioner has to establish that he and the 

beneficiary are or once were "children" of a common "parent" within the 

meaning of section 101(b)(1) and (2) of the Act. 

In this case, the petitioner's mother, Helen Cheung Heung, married 

Joseph Wing Kau Wong in 1949. The petitioner was burn of this marriage in 1952. The petitioner's parents were divorced in 1955, and the 

petitioner's mother married Bernard Kwok Hing Henn' in 1974. The 

latter had also been married previously, and the beneficiary was the 

legitimate child of that prior marriage, which ended in divorce in 1971. 

By virtue of the 1974 marriage, the beneficiary became the stepchild 

of Helen Cheung Heung, through operation of section 101(b)(1)(B) of the 

Act. Conversely, Helen Cheung Heung became the parent of the beneficiary within the meaning of section 101(b)(2). Helen Cheung Heung, 

of course, already qualifies under the Act as the parent of her son, Alan 

Shul Lun Wang, the'petitioner herein. Thus within the context of the 

Immigration and Nationality Act, the petitioner and the beneficiary 

have a common "parent", namely Helen Cheung Heung. 

Since the petitioner and the beneficiary are "children" of a common 

"parent" within the meaning of section 101(b)(1) and (2) of the Act, they 

may be regarded as "brother"- and "sister" for purposes of section 

203(a)(5). Accordingly, we affirm the decision of the district director. 

ORDER: The decision of the district director is affirmed. 

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