What are the unforeseen circumstances for USCIS?

Asked by: Mrs. Lora Padberg V  |  Last update: February 20, 2026
Score: 4.4/5 (66 votes)

Unforeseen circumstances for USCIS involve major disruptions like natural disasters (hurricanes, wildfires), national emergencies (pandemics, public health crises), conflicts abroad, or other major events (terrorist attacks, system outages, mass shootings) that prevent people from meeting deadlines or attending appointments, triggering potential relief like extensions or rescheduled dates, requiring individuals to request flexibility with proof of impact.

What are the special circumstances for USCIS?

Unforeseen circumstances, such as natural catastrophes (hurricanes, wildfires, severe weather, etc.), national emergencies (public health emergencies), severe illness (including COVID), or conflicts abroad, can sometimes affect the processing of your USCIS application, petition, or immigration request.

What are some common reasons for USCIS delays?

The Most Common Immigration Case Delays: Where Applicants Get Stuck

  • Incomplete or Weak Evidence Package. ...
  • Failure to Understand Which Processing Stream Applies. ...
  • Errors or Delays in Biometric Appointments or Interviews. ...
  • Security Checks, Name Checks, or Background Investigations. ...
  • Agency Capacity & Workflow Bottlenecks.

What are the hardship factors for USCIS?

General Hardship Factors

USCIS, through policy guidance and case law, has identified five broad hardship factors,7 or categories, that may support a finding of hardship: Family ties and impact; • Social and cultural impact; • Economic impact; • Health conditions and care; and • Country conditions.

What are urgent humanitarian reasons for USCIS?

An applicant may demonstrate urgency by establishing a reason to be in the United States that calls for immediate or other time-sensitive action, including (but not limited to) critical medical treatment, or the need to visit, assist or support a family member who is at an end-of-life stage of an illness or disease.

Why Was My USCIS Interview CANCELLED?

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What are examples of humanitarian reasons?

Here are ten examples:

  • Disaster relief. Natural disasters are a major cause of the world's death and suffering. ...
  • Shelter. Speaking of shelter, it's one of the most important aspects of humanitarian aid. ...
  • Food. Food insecurity is a global issue. ...
  • Agricultural crisis. ...
  • Water. ...
  • Sanitation. ...
  • Medical care. ...
  • Children's aid.

Is USCIS processing faster in 2025?

In 2025, USCIS processing times are mixed, with some forms like Naturalization (N-400) seeing faster processing, while others, particularly Adjustment of Status (I-485) for green cards, are experiencing significant backlogs and longer waits, though receipt notices for new forms are faster, and premium processing remains an option for some employment-based cases. Overall, it's a dynamic period with improvements in some areas but continued challenges, especially for complex family-based and adjustment cases. 

What is a good hardship reason?

People do this for many reasons, including: Unexpected medical expenses or treatments that are not covered by insurance. Costs related to the purchase or repair of a home, or eviction prevention. Tuition, educational fees and related expenses.

What's the number one reason people get deported?

The most common reasons for deportation are immigration violations like visa overstays or illegal entry, rather than criminal activity, though crimes (especially drug offenses, aggravated felonies, or crimes of moral turpitude) are significant triggers for removal, alongside falsifying documents or making false claims of citizenship. Essentially, failing to maintain lawful status or breaking immigration law (even civilly) is the leading cause for being deported from the U.S. 

What proof do I need for humanitarian and compassionate?

You must show that you have created a life in Canada. This includes: the amount of time you have lived in Canada, your language skills, your efforts to improve education and skills, your ties to family members living in Canada, and any volunteer, education, employment and financial contributions.

How do I make USCIS hurry up?

If you have a USCIS online account and have access to secure messaging, you may select “expedite” as the reason for your inquiry and submit your request there. You generally need to justify your expedite request with evidence.

What affects USCIS case processing times?

Many factors may affect how long it takes USCIS to complete an application, petition or request, such as the number of applications, petitions, or requests we receive, workload and staffing allocations, the time a benefit requestor takes responding to a request for more information, as well as policy and operational ...

How does USCIS count 180 days?

The calculation is strictly based on the counting of the total days you spent out of the country. The basic counting starts from the day you leave the country and when you come back. For instance, if you spent 180 days, that would translate to six months based on the presumption that every 30 days add up to a month.

What is strong evidence for USCIS?

Stronger versus weaker evidence

USCIS considers some documents as more convincing proof of a real relationship. Here are examples of strongest evidence and weaker evidence, ranked, to serve as a guide: Strong evidence: Joint bank account, life insurance, wills, joint leases, joint utilities.

What are examples of extreme hardship?

These factors include: economic disadvantage, loss of current employment, inability to maintain one's present standard of living, inability to pursue a chosen profession, separation from family members, severing community ties, cultural readjustment after living in the United States for many years, cultural adjustment ...

Can an embassy help with immigration?

What the U.S. Embassy Can't Do: While we continue to work towards assisting any American citizen in need, there are a number of frequently requested services that we are unable to provide: Assist with Thai or U.S. residency or immigration issues, including Green Cards or acquisition of U.S. citizenship.

Who is at the highest risk of being deported?

Those at the highest risk of deportation are non-citizens with criminal convictions, especially for serious offenses, but also undocumented individuals, visa overstayers, and those who violate immigration laws; however, recent trends show many facing removal for minor infractions or civil violations like illegal entry, with authorities prioritizing public safety threats but also enforcing broader rules.
 

What can a U.S. citizen be deported for?

The short, practical answer is no—U.S. citizens generally cannot be deported. Once someone becomes a U.S. citizen, they have full constitutional protections and the right to remain in the country.

How to avoid being deported?

You can apply for asylum affirmatively or defensively. In other words, you can proactively use it, or you can raise it as a defense to deportation or removal proceedings. Like many other defenses to deportation, asylum is considered discretionary relief and is not guaranteed.

How do you prove hardship to immigration?

The hardship must be more than the usual inconvenience or emotional strain associated with family separation; it must be extreme and demonstrate that the family member would suffer significantly if the applicant were deported.

What is considered an unforeseeable emergency?

An unforeseeable emergency is a severe financial hardship resulting from an illness or accident, loss of property due to casualty, or other similar extraordinary and unforeseeable circumstances arising as a result of events beyond the control of the participant or (if permitted under the plan) beneficiary.

What is an example of proof of hardship?

Increased healthcare expenses (submit a bill or receipt for COVID-19-related treatment) Funeral expenses (submit a bill or receipt) Reduction in self-employment income (provide cancellations from clients, year-over-year financial statements or other documentation)

Is USCIS waiving interviews in 2025?

Yes, USCIS still waives interviews in 2025 for certain green card (Adjustment of Status) cases, particularly straightforward family-based applications like parents of U.S. citizens or certain children, aiming to expedite approvals, but in-person interviews are now the standard for most other cases, with exceptions for renewals or specific low-risk categories, while the State Department tightened nonimmigrant (temporary visa) interview waivers significantly in late 2025, requiring most applicants to interview in-person. 

Can I-130 be approved in 3 months?

It's highly unlikely an I-130 petition gets approved in just 3 months, as current typical processing times for immediate relatives (spouse, parent, unmarried child under 21) of U.S. citizens average around 14-18 months, and even longer for other family preference categories, though some very fast or concurrent filings (I-130 & I-485) can be quicker. While some lucky cases or specific circumstances might see approvals in a few months (like under 4 months), it's very rare, with most seeing waits of a year or more.
 

Is green card 2026 open?

DV-2026 visa availability is for selected lottery winners through September 30, 2026, with results available since May 2025 on the official U.S. Department of State portal, where applicants check their status using a confirmation number, as no direct notifications are sent, and numbers can run out before the fiscal year ends. The total number of available visas for the DV-2026 program is reduced to around 52,000 due to other programs, with allocations divided by region.