13 May 2026 Can I Expedite My Case?
Many people all have the same request or desire: to have their case expedited. They offer so many different reasons:
- The petitioner is sickly and dying.
- A child is aging out
- The person has waited so many years to be legal and is impatient or losing hope
- It has been years since the person has been back to the Philippines because of their immigration status, and they are so anxious to take a trip and see family.
- The person has been in the Philippines for years, waiting and separated from their family and finally wants to be together with them in the United States
- The person is nervous and anxious under the Trump administration and wants to get legal as soon as possible.
Now let’s discuss how, when, and why a person may request their case be expedited for an interview: You may only request to expedite your immigrant visa processing if your priority date is current or that visa is available, and only for specific reasons. If your priority date is not current, no interview can be scheduled. Your case must also be “documentarily qualified” by the NVC, meaning all your fees have been paid and your forms and applications have been properly submitted. Even if your priority date is current, your case will not be scheduled for an interview unless you are also documentarily qualified.
What is a priority date?
Your priority date is basically your place in line for a green card. It is usually the date when:
- Your immigrant petition was filed (like Form I-130 or I-140), or
- In some employment or PERM cases, when the labor certification was filed with the U.S. Department of Labor.
Every month, the government releases the Visa Bulletin, which shows which priority dates are currently being processed, or are eligible for an interview. When your priority date becomes “current” in the Final Action Dates chart, it means a visa number is available for you. (This means your priority date is earlier than, or before, the date listed in the visa bulletin. For example, if the current priority date is March 1, 2013, your priority date must be at least one day earlier, or February 28, 2013, or earlier.)
When can a case be expedited?
When you ask that your case be expedited, you’re asking the government to process your case faster than normal and ahead of everyone else. In other words, you’re asking if you could cut in front of the line once your priority date is current. To be clear: If your priority date is NOT current, you cannot expedite your immigrant visa case, because no visa is available to you yet.
Your case cannot be expedited until your priority date becomes current. Once your priority date is current, then you may request an expedite—but only if you meet certain criteria.
Common expedite reasons may include:
- Urgent medical needs
- Severe financial loss
- Humanitarian situations
- U.S. government interests
- Child is aging out and is not eligible under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA)
But even then, expedited requests are discretionary. That means the government can approve or deny them. And you will need to provide strong evidence to support your request, such as Dr. letters on their stationery attesting to the dire medical circumstance of the petitioner or beneficiary and other proof of an emergency. Impatience and anxiousness are not considered grounds to expedite, because everyone else is impatient and anxious just like you.
If you have a case that is being processed and believe you are eligible to have the case expedited, you may want to consult with an attorney who can help make the request and increase the chances for success.
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