Biden Administration Action: Modified

2021.05.11 Rescheduling Biometric Services Appointments by Phone

This Biden administration policy modifies the Trump-era policy identified in this entry.

On May 11, 2021, USCIS issued an update to announce that applicants, petitioners, requestors and beneficiaries may now call the USCIS Contact Center to reschedule their biometric services appointments scheduled at a USCIS Application Support Center. Previously, applicants had to submit requests in writing to reschedule their biometrics appointments.

Biden Administration Action: Modified

USCIS Launches Online Rescheduling of Biometrics Appointments

This Biden administration policy modifies the Trump-era policy identified in this entry.

On June 28, 2023, USCIS issued an update announcing a new self-service tool allowing benefit requestors, and their attorneys and accredited representatives, to reschedule most biometric services appointments before the date of the appointment. The biometric services appointment rescheduling tool can be accessed via a USCIS online account regardless of whether the pending case was submitted online or by mail. Benefit requestors and accredited representatives will still have the option to call the USCIS Contact Center to reschedule an appointment, but are encouraged to use the new tool instead. Untimely reschedule requests, however, must still be made via the USCIS Contact Center and cannot be processed via the online rescheduling tool.

USCIS also issued policy guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual to explain that the agency may consider an untimely request to reschedule a biometric services appointment and the effect of failing to appear for an appointment, and to explain how the agency considers a timely request to reschedule a biometric services appointment for “good cause.” Good cause exists when the reschedule request provides sufficient reason for the benefit requestor’s inability to appear on the scheduled date.