U.S. immigration authorities will revise how they determine a child’s eligibility under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) starting August 15, 2025.
According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the policy change will impact applicants seeking green cards through their parents and parents aiming to secure permanent residency for their children before they “age out.”
The Child Status Protection Act (CSPA), passed in 2002, aims to stop children from “aging out” of green card eligibility during lengthy immigration backlogs.
Under U.S. immigration law, a person must be under 21 to qualify as a “child.” But visa wait times and processing delays can push applicants past that age before their cases are resolved, causing them to lose eligibility.
The CSPA addresses this by “freezing” a child’s age under certain conditions, allowing them to remain eligible for a green card even after turning 21, provided a visa was “available” at the right time.
The definition of that “availability” is at the heart of the latest policy change.
The Problem: Different standards between agencies
Since February 2023, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Department of State have applied different standards for determining when a visa is considered “available” under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA).
USCIS used the more lenient Dates for Filing chart, while the State Department relied on the stricter Final Action Dates chart.
The inconsistency created uneven outcomes, with children applying for adjustment of status inside the United States enjoying a better chance of retaining eligibility than those applying from abroad.
Immigration lawyers and affected families widely criticized the split approach.
New rule aligns USCIS with state department
Beginning August 15, 2025, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will align with the Department of State by using the stricter Final Action Dates chart to determine when a visa is “available” under the CSPA.
Under the change, the Final Action Date will officially mark when a visa becomes available for CSPA purposes, ensuring the same standard applies to applicants both inside and outside the United States.
In effect, USCIS will stop using the more lenient Dates for Filing chart to calculate CSPA age after August 15.
USCIS says it will continue applying its more flexible February 14, 2023, policy to adjustment of status cases that were pending before that date.
This means that if your child’s CSPA age depended on the more lenient Dates for Filing chart, your application may still be protected.
The agency also notes that if a child missed the one-year deadline to apply for adjustment of status after a visa became available, but can show extraordinary circumstances, it will treat them as having met the “sought to acquire” requirement.
Impact on families and the need for urgent action
The new rule closes the gap between USCIS and State Department policy, aiming for fairness.
However, a side effect is that some children who qualified under the old system may now age out under the stricter standard.
For parents sponsoring children, especially those nearing age 21, timing is now more critical than ever.
If you’re already in the process, immigration lawyers advise submitting your application before August 15, 2025, to secure the benefits of the older, more favorable policy.
