Immigration Lawyer: Get DACA Renewal Applications In Early

October 02, 2017
Stephanie Corcoran
Stephanie Corcoran, chair of the Arizona chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

The deadline for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals renewal applications is Thursday, Oct. 5, but recipients of the program have been strongly encouraged to have theirs in the mail no later than Monday, Oct. 2.

Renewal applications have to be “properly filed and physically received” no later than Thursday to be considered, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, or USCIS.

“Postmarking it on the 5th, they will reject your application,” said Stephanie Corcoran, chair of the Arizona chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

Corcoran has told clients to send their applications via Certified or Priority mail.

“There are ways to send it possibly on the 4th, Express Mail,” she said. “But I would not push my luck. Send it Monday.”

The government’s normal processing time is four to five months, Corcoran said.

To be eligible for a two-year renewal, a person’s DACA status has to expire between Sept. 5 of this year and March 5, 2018, according to USCIS. People whose DACA status expired on or before Sept. 4 can no longer request a renewal. The government will also no longer process first-time DACA applications.