ARE THE CURRENT WAIT TIMES WITH U.S. CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES (USCIS) OR THE NATIONAL VISA CENTER (NVC) SO LONG THAT YOU ARE THINKING WHETHER THERE IS A WAY TO SPEED THINGS UP?
Yes! There are ways to request an expedite with immigration and see whether your case might be considered as a priority. If these are some of the questions you have:
(1) Do I meet the requirements to file an expedite request?
(2) What is the criteria or standard that needs to be met?
(3) Do I need to prove what I am claiming for the expedite or can I just file a letter requesting it?
(4) How do I know whether I qualify for one?
-- Then, you came to the right place. Let's split this up into 2 parts because each agency has its own requirements. Before we get started, it is always recommended that you seek assistance from an experienced immigration attorney to evaluate your case.
USCIS CRITERIA OR CIRCUMSTANCES FOR EXPEDITE REQUESTS
(1) Severe Financial Loss to a Person or Company;
(2) Urgent Humanitarian Reasons and Emergencies;
(3) Clear USCIS Error; or
(4) U.S. Government Interests. You may visit the USCIS website to review their policies and procedures on expedite requests for petitions. Generally, once the petition is filed and you have obtained a receipt notice, the expedite process may begin. However, all factors should be discussed and reviewed with an immigration attorney to see whether an expedite may be filed. You should have documents and/or supporting evidence ready to show an immigration attorney to evaluate the matter.
EXAMPLE OF A SUCCESSFUL EXPEDITE REQUEST FOR VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT (VAWA) PETITION: Client had a pending VAWA petition but needed status in her home state to provide necessary medical care for her U.S. citizen child. Her immigration status/pending VAWA had set a lot of limitations for providing necessary care for her child. After gathering several documents and preparing a memorandum with supporting evidence to USCIS, our firm was not only able to get the expedite request granted but client's I-360 application was approved in 4 days! Once we received the I-360 VAWA petition approval, we also requested that the I-485 adjustment of status be expedited, which took approximately 3 months without an interview! Generally, VAWA cases take approximately 3 years or more to get an adjudication. Our client contacted us after waiting 1 year to see if her matter can be expedited.
NATIONAL VISA CENTER CRITERIA FOR EXPEDITE REQUESTS
(1) A visa must be available; and
(2) the case involves a life or death medical emergency.
The criteria/standard for NVC is different than what USCIS' policy and procedures are. Just because a request for expedite was successful at the USCIS level, it doesn't mean it will apply at the NVC level. There will be a need to explore another expedite at the NVC level and you must meet the criteria NVC has.
EXAMPLE OF A SUCCESSFUL EXPEDITE REQUEST FILED BEFORE THE NVC: Permanent resident parent applied for her unmarried daughter over 21 who was going to undergo consular processing. Once the I-130 petition was approved and the visa became available, all the documents were provided and beneficiary was marked as 'documentarily qualified.' However, it was taking an extremely long time because of COVID related shutdowns and enormous back-log, Our law firm filed an expedite request with NVC involving serious issues surrounding the petitioner. Ultimately, the matter was referred to the U.S. consulate and the beneficiary was scheduled for an interview within 2 months of submission!
ADDITIONAL HELPFUL INFORMATION:
(1) If an expedite is filed and it does not get approved/granted, it will not impact your initial application processing time. The matter will continue on the regular estimated processing time given by immigration.
(2) Expedite requests are discretionary. They are handled on a case-by-case basis.
(3) If the expedite request is approved/granted, the officer handling the matter will now take the case/application and adjudicate it based on what was filed and provided.
(4) If an expedite request is approved/granted, the underlying petition or case that was filed does not automatically get approved/granted. This now leaves room for the officer to make a decision on the application/case that was filed.
(5) If an expedite request was previously denied, you may try filing another request if you have additional supporting evidence and compelling factors.
If you have questions about whether your case qualifies for filing an expedite request, it would be best to set up a consultation to discuss your case in detail.
This blog was written by Attorney Poonam Minhas for informational purposes only. This blog is not to be construed as legal advice nor a formation of an attorney-client relationship. The successful cases mentioned in the blog were handled by the Law Offices of P. Minhas, P.C. Previous successful cases do not guarantee a future outcome. If you have questions about your immigration case, you may contact our law firm to set up a consultation. [October 2023]