Immigration Processing Times

Getting Help from New Jersey Immigration Attorneys

The Department of Homeland Security’s United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offers a number of avenues through which individuals from foreign countries can visit for certain purposes or eventually obtain citizenship. Unfortunately, government agencies are known to be rather slow, and it comes in part due to the high numbers of cases they deal with and the importance of quality control.

Because there are so many forms and so many different objectives tied to the processing of these forms, the USCIS opens windows of time to allow them to accept certain applications at a given time. It’s important not to miss these, and working with our New Jersey immigration attorneys eliminates the risk of missing them, assuming we have been made aware of the desired process before the window closed.

Knowing Where to Look

There are hundreds of different processes one can file with the USCIS, which would make it impossible to list them all here as a complete source. The USCIS’s website has a universal tool you can use to check the processing time for your particular case, but there are a few things you’ll need to know first.

You’ll need to know the following to check your processing time:

The name of the office handling your case
The name of the form your case is using
The day that the USCIS received your case

In some cases, such as for asylum, the processing time can last years, and for others, such as to petition for a nonimmigrant worker visa, the time opens for a certain period within the fiscal year. Additionally, once your case is filed, the site offers a feature you can use to check the status of your application, and the site will tell you important, expected time frames for common cases to be settled.

Call (800) 909-8129 to put our experienced and dedicated New Jersey immigration attorneys on your side to help you navigate these sometimes very confusing and frustrating processes.

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4713 Bergenline Avenue
Union City, NJ 07087

Find Out About Your Immigration Options

Speak with our attorneys today to talk about your situation and we will walk you through your options.

If you have a green card, find out if you can become a U.S. citizen.
If you are here on a visa, find out if you can get a green card.
If you do not have immigration status, find out if you may be eligible to get a green card, visa or work permit.
If you have a criminal arrest or conviction, find out how it might affect your situation, or if there is a way to erase it from your record.
If you are detained or put into deportation proceedings, ask for a hearing in front of a judge to get out of detention and to fight your deportation.

Common Questions

I am a fiancée of a U.S. citizen living outside the U.S. How can I enter the U.S. to marry?
Your fiancée must apply for a Fiancée Visa, also known as the K-1 Visa. The visa is for parties who have physically met within the past two years, have an intent to marry, and can document a relationship together. The visa is only for those who are residing abroad and cannot be used if the alien is in the US. The application is filed from within the US and when approved, will be forwarded to the American Consular where the alien fiancée will apply for the visa and be interviewed by an officer - usually about 8-12 months from the date of filing.
I live in the U.S. and I am marrying a U.S. citizen. How can I get a green card and become a permanent resident?
Assuming you have entered the US with a visa or are protected by an old law called 245i, you may be eligible to adjust status to receive a green card from within the US. If you have been illegally present for more than 6 months, you cannot travel until the green card is in hand. Current processing time is about 5-7 months.
I live outside the U.S. and I married a U.S citizen. How can I come to the U.S. to live?
To enter the US after a marriage to a US Citizen, you would go through Consular Processing. Paperwork would be filed in the US and forwarded to the embassy abroad to schedule an interview. The processing time frame from start to finish is between 9-11 months, depending on the embassy abroad. The process is document-intensive and requires careful attention to detail.

Conferences & Speaking Engagements

Staying Current to Provide Our Clients the Best Protection

Our Founding Attorney Lloyd E. Bennet, Esq. is one of the rare attorneys with as many as 30 years of experience who still possess the drive to learn more and better advocate for his clients. Immigration law is a field that changes constantly as world politics unfold and new leaders front the United States. In order to stay on top of this, Attorney Bennet serves as Chapter Chair for the American Immigration Lawyers Association’s New Jersey Chapter, a position that requires conducting and attending conferences and public presentations to analyze changes in immigration law and what they could mean for our clients. His role in the immigration law community keeps his representation on the cutting edge.