Can I sue USCIS for taking too long on my immigration case?

In some cases, yes.

When USCIS or another federal agency has failed to act on an immigration matter for an unreasonable period of time, federal court litigation may be available under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and/or the federal mandamus statute.

These lawsuits generally do not ask the court to approve the immigration benefit. Instead, they may ask the court to require the government to perform a legally required duty and make a decision.

Potential cases may involve prolonged delays in:

• Adjustment of status applications
• Naturalization applications
• Family-based immigration petitions
• Employment-based petitions
• EB-5 petitions and related applications
• Waivers and other immigration benefits
• Certain cases involving prolonged agency inaction after interview or additional review

How long should I wait before filing a mandamus lawsuit?

There is no single waiting period that makes a delay automatically “unreasonable.”

Federal courts typically look at the circumstances of the case, including:

• how long the application has been pending;
• normal processing expectations;
• whether the agency has provided a meaningful explanation;
• whether security or background checks are involved;
• whether the applicant has contributed to the delay;
• the harm caused by continued inaction; and
• whether litigation could create strategic risks.

For that reason, we evaluate each delayed case individually before recommending federal litigation.

Will filing a lawsuit force USCIS to approve my case?

No.

A mandamus or APA delay lawsuit generally seeks agency action, not guaranteed approval.

If the underlying application has substantive weaknesses, forcing a faster decision can sometimes result in a faster denial. A litigation strategy therefore must evaluate both the delay and the strength of the underlying immigration case.

We have experience to help, tell us your story: info@fengvisa.com