Renewing DACA: when to file and what changes
File too late and your work permit can lapse; file too early and you may lose months of the permit you already have. Here’s the window we plan around.
The window
USCIS suggests filing a renewal between 120 and 150 days before your current DACA expires. Your new two years start when the renewal is approved, not when the old period ends, so filing far earlier can cut into the time you already have.
Why we start at six months
We write to you about 180 days before your expiration date. That leaves a month to collect your updates, check them, and file inside the window without rushing.
What to tell us
- Any new address since your last renewal
- Any trip outside the U.S., with the advance parole you used
- Any arrest, ticket or court date, even if nothing came of it
- A new name, if you married or changed it
A change isn’t always a problem, but it has to be explained the right way. That’s why a lawyer reads each renewal before it’s filed.
If your renewal is late
If your DACA expired less than a year ago, you can usually still file it as a renewal. Your work permit stays expired until the new one is approved, so tell your employer early. After a year, the request is treated as a new one, which follows different rules right now; call us before you file.