Filing Special Immigrant Juvenile Form I-360 in Person Before 21st Birthday

An individual seeking special immigrant juvenile classification must file his or her Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant before his or her 21st birthday. 8 C.F.R. 204.11(b). The USCIS has a policy allowing certain special immigrant juvenile petitioners who are almost 21 years of age to file their Form I-360 at a USCIS field office [see policy].

The USCIS explains that special immigrant juvenile petitioners may arrange to file the Form I-360 in person at a USCIS field office within two weeks of their 21st birthday [see USCIS website guidance]. Special immigrant juvenile petitioners who are further from their 21st birthdays should file their Form I-360 through mail in accordance with the form instructions.

In order for a special immigrant juvenile petitioner to file his or her Form I-140 in person within two weeks of his or her 21st birthday, the petitioner or his or her attorney or accredited representative must first contact the USCIS Contact Center by phone to request a special immigrant juvenile expedite appointment with a USCIS field office (consult the USCIS website for up-to-date contact information). If the request is granted, the relevant USCIS field office will accept the Form I-360 for processing and date stamp the page. The field office will then provide the petitioner with a photocopy of the first page of the Form I-360 and send the Form I-360 and any supporting documents to the USCIS Lockbox for receipting.

Upon receiving the Form I-360, the USCIS Lockbox will follow the same reporting procedures that it would follow for a normally mailed Form I-360. It may reject the Form I-360 if it was improperly filed. If the Lockbox facility receipts the Form I-360, it will issue a Form I-797, Notice of Action, to the petitioner. The Form I-797 will use the date the USCIS field office physically received the Form I-360 as the receipt date.

Most special immigrant juvenile petitioners will be able to file their Forms I-360 by mail. However, this special in-person option for petitioners who are within two weeks of their 21st birthdays exists to help ensure that a petitioner will not miss the age limit deadline due to circumstances beyond his or her control, such as mailing delays or court delays in obtaining a required juvenile court order.

We have written extensively about laws and policies regarding special immigrant juveniles here on site [see category].