Giving capital does not make a parent a derivative applicant. The investor’s spouse and qualifying unmarried children may seek derivative benefits; parents and siblings do not qualify on the basis of this investor relationship.
Choose the principal applicant deliberately
Record who owns and invests the gifted funds and who is intended to immigrate. Review children’s ages and any CSPA issue before assuming the whole family can use one case. A donor may have a separate immigration question requiring separate analysis.
Avoid describing the transaction as a family package in which every contributing or dependent relative automatically receives residence. A donor does not acquire any immigration entitlement by providing the funds; derivative eligibility flows from the relationship to the principal applicant and from that person's own case. Where a parent provides capital and hopes to accompany the family, that hope needs assessing as a separate matter with its own basis, and it should be discussed candidly before the money moves rather than assumed.
Choose the principal applicant deliberately, since the choice determines who else may derive status and the obvious candidate is not always the best one on the facts. Watch children's ages throughout, as the process can extend over a long period; a child approaching 21 should be raised with counsel early, since statutory provisions addressing age calculation exist in some circumstances and their application depends on the facts.