I Missed My USCIS Biometrics Appointment at ASC. What Do I Do?

If you are applying for a U.S. immigration benefit such as a green card or citizenship, and you are over the age of 14 and live in the United States, you will probably need to attend a biometrics appointment at a local Application Support Center (ASC). This is required for a variety of immigration applications, including naturalized citizenship, green card renewals, adjustments of status, asylum, and more. Its purpose is to provide U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) with your fingerprints, photograph, and/or signature. This appointment is not an interview; it is an identity check. Without this information, your application can't move forward; USCIS will need it to run security checks, produce an identity document for you, and more.

But what happens if you never hear about the biometrics appointment, or you miss it for some other reason? This article will address the possible consequences, and how to avoid them. Failing to attend a biometrics appointment can, after all, cause big delays in one's immigration application. USCIS could decide to assume that your application was abandoned, and reject it accordingly. This can happen even if you never received the biometrics letter from USCIS. Once an immigration application is marked as abandoned and rejected, the only option is to refile (assuming you are still eligible) and pay new filing fees.

With careful monitoring of the progress of your immigration application and your appointment dates, you can take steps to get a new biometrics appointment and quickly get your application back on track. as further described below.

How Will I Find Out a Biometrics Appointment Has Been Scheduled?

Sometime after filing your immigrant application, USCIS will send you a form letter, Form I-797C, Notice of Action. This letter is sent to inform you that your biometrics appointment has been scheduled, and it will provide a time, date, and location.

If you are unsure whether you have received this letter or are worried you have missed or lost it, there are a few ways you can check on your case.

First, you can check the status of your case on the USCIS website. This will require the receipt number from the receipt notice USCIS hopefully sent you immediately after receiving your application. If an appointment has been scheduled, you should be able to access details about it by making an account with myUSCIS. A mobile app is also available.

How Long Does It Usually Take to Receive a USCIS Biometrics Appointment Notice?

USCIS normally sends out biometrics notices within three to eight weeks of receiving an application. However, longer wait times to receive biometrics letters (not to mention eventual interviews or decisions from USCIS) are common.

The length of the wait also depends in part on what type of application you filed and the office where you filed it, since some USCIS offices are more backed up than others (particularly in highly populated areas of the United States).

The bottom line is that you should expect to wait at least several weeks, if not months, to be called in to the ASC for biometrics. Local attorneys or immigration-service-providing nonprofits in your area should be able to give you a more precise estimate for your type of case.

What Should I Do If I Never Receive My Biometrics Notice?

Some applicants for immigration benefits never receive a biometrics notice from USCIS at all.

If you have not received either a receipt notice for your application or a biometrics notice, and you filed your application more than three months ago, USCIS might have the wrong address on file. The best way to check—and change—your address with USCIS is to create a myUSCIS account.

What if you received your USCIS application receipt notice but never received a biometrics notice? In that case, it seems clear USCIS has the correct address for you; but perhaps the biometrics notice got lost in the mail. You can log into your account to check whether an appointment has been scheduled, as discussed above. Or, you can submit an e-request using the case number on your receipt with an online case inquiry.

It's also possible that you did not receive a biometrics notice because USCIS already has your biometric data on file. This could occur, for example, if you already went to a biometrics appointment within the last year, for example for renewing a green card, and then later filed for naturalized U.S. citizenship. If you are not sure whether USCIS already has your biometrics on file, contact the agency at 800-375-5283 for clarification.

If you need to reschedule your biometrics appointment, you can submit a request to do so online through your myUSCIS account. USCIS will want to hear a good reason for rescheduling, such as:

• medical reasons
• planned travel
• special occasions such as a wedding or funeral
• inability to get to the appointment location
• trouble getting time off of work
• responsibilities as a caregiver, or
• some other compelling reason.

If you can prove your biometrics notice letter was delivered late or never delivered, that might provide a sufficient reason as well.

What Do I Do If I Received a Biometrics Notice But Missed My ASC Appointment?

Now let's look at a situation where you received a biometrics appointment notice from USCIS but missed the ASC appointment itself, perhaps because you were ill, forgot, or had transportation issues. If at all possible, try to reschedule your appointment before the appointment date passes. USCIS typically does not grant requests to reschedule made after a missed appointment.

However, USCIS has the ability to grant an exception in cases of "undue hardship or expense." You should provide a compelling reason and ideally evidence to support it. You can submit such a request to reschedule through the USCIS Contact Center by calling 800-375-5283. Note that this is the only way USCIS will accept a request to reschedule after the appointment date has passed; you cannot do it online, by mail, or by showing up in person.

What If I Received a Biometrics Notice But the ASC Office Was Closed That Day?

Occasionally, USCIS will have to temporarily close an office to the public due to a weather disaster, public health situation, maintenance, or other facilities issues. Because there is always a possibility that an office will be closed unexpectedly, you should check its information page on closures before setting out for an appointment, just in case.

If you can't attend your biometrics appointment because the ASC was closed that day, you don't need to do anything to follow up. USCIS will automatically send you a letter rescheduling. (Of course, if months go by with no new appointment letter, you will want to follow up as described elsewhere in this article.)

What If I Receive a Second Biometrics Appointment Notice But Have Already Attended One?

Do not ignore a second biometrics appointment notice from USCIS! It probably wasn't a mistake (though even if it was, skipping the appointment won't help matters). Most likely, USCIS is so backed up with applications that your fingerprints expired and you'll need new ones taken. According to USCIS policy, fingerprints are normally considered valid for 15 months after processing by the FBI.

What If I Need a Biometrics Appointment Outside the United States?

If you live outside the United States and need to have your biometrics taken, the process is different. If you are applying for naturalization, you do not attend a biometrics appointment. Instead, you must submit two passport-style photos of yourself and, in some cases, a Form FD-258 fingerprints card with your application. Contact your local U.S. consulate or embassy and go to the Ink Fingerprinting Overseas page of the State Department website for more information.

For applications besides naturalization, USCIS overseas field offices will take biometrics only in rare and exceptional circumstances. Plan any international travel accordingly.