USCIS Changes CSPA Age Calculation: Adjustment-of-Status Cases to Use Dates for Filing

On February 14, USCIS revised its policy manual so that CSPA age will now be calculated based on the Dates for Filing chart, whereas previously the Final Action Dates chart was used.

Under U.S. immigration law, a “child” under the age of 21 may immigrate together with their parents. However, green card applications and adjudications often take a long time, and a child may turn 21 while waiting, thereby aging out and losing eligibility to immigrate with their parents.

In 2002, Congress passed the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA), which adjusts or freezes a child’s age. This is commonly called the “CSPA age,” calculated by subtracting the time USCIS took to process the case from the child’s biological age when the priority date becomes current; as long as the resulting age is under 21, the child remains eligible to immigrate with their parents. For further explanation, see the article “What Is the CSPA Adjusted Age.”

The green card priority dates include two charts: the Dates for Filing chart (also called Chart B) and the Final Action Dates chart (also called Chart A). For applicants adjusting status within the United States, when USCIS permits, they may file Form I-485 and pay the fees once their Chart B date becomes current, but they may still need to wait until their Chart A date becomes current before receiving the green card. See the article “What Are Green Card Priority Dates.”

Previously, CSPA age was calculated using Chart A. Some applicants whose children had not yet aged out when Chart B became current filed their applications and paid the fees, but by the time Chart A became current, the children had aged out and the applications were therefore denied. Under the revised calculation method, when Chart B becomes current and the applicant files Form I-485, the applicant already knows the child's CSPA age and whether the child is eligible to immigrate together, rather than facing the situation of having paid the fees but not knowing whether eligibility would still exist when USCIS adjudicates the case.

This policy is effective immediately. If your child previously aged out under CSPA due to the difference between Chart A and Chart B and the application was denied, you may file Form I-290B to request that USCIS reopen or reconsider the case. There are time limits for filing Form I-290B, so if this applies to you, you should file as soon as possible.

In addition, Chart B applies only to adjustment of status within the United States; overseas consular processing has always used Chart A. USCIS's announcement did not state whether overseas applicants may also use Chart B to calculate CSPA age. If they cannot, it would mean that children in a certain age or time range, under the same conditions, would be eligible to immigrate through adjustment of status in the United States but ineligible when applying at an overseas consulate—such applicants might try every means to come to the United States to adjust status rather than wait for consular processing in their home country, and affected applicants might sue the U.S. government.