USCIS Tightens Visa and Green Card Filing Deadlines Effective Oct. 23

On Oct 23, USCIS will enforce a new definition of filing days that removes the automatic next-business-day extension for most immigration deadlines. While paper petitions submitted after a weekend or federal holiday can still be considered timely if received by the following business day, electronic filings are treated as received instantly and must meet the stated deadline. The policy particularly affects green-card cases with age thresholds, such as children under 21 and Special Immigrant Juvenile petitions, where a birthday falling on a non-working day will not shift the deadline.

H-1B employees and their employers must also ensure extension petitions are filed before the I-94 expiration date, even if that date lands on a weekend. USCIS issued the guidance in a September 23, 2026 policy alert titled “Definition of Day for Purposes of Filing Deadlines,” replacing the more flexible 2023 approach.