immigration-deadlines · v0.1.0 · 2026-05-29 · sha256 c36378d9122dc321
immigration-deadlines v0.1.0A
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--- name: immigration-deadlines description: > Use this skill to identify, catalog, and compute the controlling deadline in any U.S. immigration matter, and to produce a deadline-triage worksheet before a single filing goes out. It is the immigration analog of the state *-deadlines skills. Triggers include "what's my deadline", "how long do I have to appeal", "30 days to appeal the immigration judge", "BIA appeal deadline", "EOIR-26 deadline", "petition for review deadline", "30 days to the circuit", "motion to reopen deadline", "90 days to reopen", "motion to reconsider", "in absentia order deadline", "missed my hearing", "1-year asylum deadline", "one year filing deadline asylum", "changed circumstances asylum", "voluntary departure period", "how long is my voluntary departure", "overstayed voluntary departure", "RFE due date", "NOID response time", "respond to RFE", "10 days before hearing", "continuous physical presence", "stop-time rule", "10 years cancellation", "continuous residence naturalization", "physical presence naturalization", "is my deadline jurisdictional", "can I still file". The skill warns that immigration has NO universal mailbox rule, that each forum sets its own receipt/filing rules, and that several immigration deadlines are jurisdictional and uncurable. It PRODUCES a deadline worksheet — not advice. version: 0.1.0 --- # Immigration — Deadline Catalog & Computation > **NOT LEGAL ADVICE.** This skill produces a deadline-triage worksheet and computation > notes — **not legal advice**, and no attorney-client relationship is created. Immigration > deadlines are short, vary by forum, and are frequently **jurisdictional and uncurable**: > a missed BIA-appeal or petition-for-review deadline usually cannot be fixed by any later > motion. Verify every date, form edition, and citation against current law and the actual > notice in hand, and **strongly consider consulting a licensed immigration attorney or an > EOIR-accredited representative** before relying on any computed date. ## What this skill does It maps a matter's posture to the clock(s) that control it, ties each clock to its statutory or regulatory authority, and computes candidate dates. Run it immediately after `immigration-pro-se` identifies the forum — the deadline often decides which downstream skill even matters. Cite from the **INA → 8 U.S.C. crosswalk** in [`../../references/immigration-statutes/`](../../references/immigration-statutes/), not from memory. ## Deadline catalog | Clock | Length | Authority | Notes | |---|---|---|---| | **Asylum one-year filing bar** | 1 year from arrival | INA § 208(a)(2)(B) / 8 U.S.C. § 1158 | Exceptions for **changed circumstances** materially affecting eligibility or **extraordinary circumstances** explaining the delay (§ 1158(a)(2)(D)). | | **Appeal IJ → BIA** | **30 days** from the IJ decision | 8 CFR § 1003.38 (filing) / § 1003.3 | Form **EOIR-26**, received (not mailed) at the Board. **Not extendable.** | | **Petition for review → U.S. Court of Appeals** | **30 days** from the final order of removal | INA § 242(b)(1) / 8 U.S.C. § 1252 | **Jurisdictional; no tolling, no extension.** Filed in the circuit where the IJ completed proceedings. | | **Motion to reopen** | **90 days** from the final administrative decision | 8 CFR § 1003.23(b) (before IJ) / § 1003.2(c) (before BIA) | Generally **one** motion; number/time limits. Exceptions below. | | **Motion to reconsider** | **30 days** from the final administrative decision | 8 CFR § 1003.23(b) (before IJ) / § 1003.2(b) (before BIA) | Generally **one** motion; states an error of law or fact in the prior decision. | | **Reopen in-absentia (exceptional circumstances)** | **180 days** from the in-absentia order | INA § 240(b)(5)(C) / 8 U.S.C. § 1229a | Time-limited motion to reopen the in-absentia removal order. | | **Reopen in-absentia (lack of notice)** | **No time limit** | INA § 240(b)(5)(C) / 8 U.S.C. § 1229a | Filed "at any time" if the NTA / hearing notice was not received. | | **Reopen — changed country conditions (asylum)** | **No time / number limit** | 8 CFR § 1003.23(b)(4) / § 1003.2(c)(3) | Materially changed conditions in the country of removal; evidence must be previously unavailable. | | **Voluntary departure — post-conclusion** | up to **60 days** | INA § 240B(b) / 8 U.S.C. § 1229c | Granted at the conclusion of proceedings; bond required. | | **Voluntary departure — pre-conclusion** | up to **120 days** | INA § 240B(a) / 8 U.S.C. § 1229c | Granted before/at master calendar, before merits. | | **NTA → first hearing** | **at least 10 days** notice | INA § 239 / 8 U.S.C. § 1229 | Minimum time between NTA service and the first removal hearing (waivable by the respondent). | | **Cancellation — continuous presence** | **10 years** (non-LPR) / **7 years** continuous residence + **5 years** LPR | INA § 240A / 8 U.S.C. § 1229b | Subject to the **stop-time rule**: presence ends at NTA service or certain offenses (§ 1229b(d)). | | **USCIS RFE response** | set on the notice (commonly up to **~87 days**) | 8 CFR § 103.2(b)(8) | **Read the notice** — the date printed there controls, not this estimate. | | **USCIS NOID response** | set on the notice (commonly **~33 days**) | 8 CFR § 103.2(b)(8) | **Read the notice** — the printed date controls. | | **Naturalization — continuous residence / physical presence** | **5 yr** residence + **30 mo** physical presence (3 yr / 18 mo for § 319 spouses) | INA §§ 316 / 319 — 8 U.S.C. §§ 1427 / 1430 | Continuous-residence and physical-presence are distinct tests; long absences may break continuity. | ## How to compute (read this before computing anything) - **There is NO universal mailbox rule in immigration.** Do not assume a filing is "timely if mailed." **Each forum sets its own receipt/filing rules:** the BIA and immigration courts generally count the day the filing is **received** (8 CFR § 1003.38 / § 1003.3); a circuit petition for review must be **filed** with the court within 30 days; USCIS counts receipt of the response. Confirm the rule for the specific forum before you compute. - **Jurisdictional vs. curable.** Treat the **petition-for-review** (INA § 242(b)(1)) and the **30-day BIA appeal** (8 CFR § 1003.38) as hard, uncurable deadlines — there is no tolling and no "good cause" extension. Statutory filing bars (the asylum one-year bar) have narrow, enumerated exceptions only. Flag any near-miss loudly in the worksheet. - **Anchor to the right trigger date.** Identify what starts the clock — date of the IJ oral decision, date the written decision was served, date of the final order, date the notice was *issued* vs. *received*. The trigger, not "today," controls. - **Count carefully and conservatively.** When a forum's day-counting rule is unclear, compute the **earliest** plausible due date and treat it as the deadline. Never round in the filer's favor on a jurisdictional clock. - **Always reconcile against the actual notice.** RFE/NOID windows, hearing dates, and voluntary- departure periods are stated on the paper the person holds; the catalog above gives only typical ranges. The notice wins. ## Artifacts this skill drafts - A **deadline-triage worksheet**: each applicable clock, its trigger date, its authority, the computed due date, and a **jurisdictional / curable** flag. - A **forum-rule note** stating how the controlling forum counts time (receipt vs. filing; no mailbox rule) for the specific filing contemplated. - A **near-miss alert** when any computed date is within a short window or already passed, routing to the appropriate motion or review skill. ## Related authority - Asylum one-year bar + exceptions: INA § 208(a)(2) / 8 U.S.C. § 1158; removal proceedings and in-absentia reopening: INA § 240 / 8 U.S.C. § 1229a; voluntary departure: INA § 240B / 8 U.S.C. § 1229c; cancellation + stop-time: INA § 240A / 8 U.S.C. § 1229b; judicial review: INA § 242 / 8 U.S.C. § 1252 — all in [`../../references/immigration-statutes/INA-II-immigration.md`](../../references/immigration-statutes/INA-II-immigration.md), with the INA ↔ 8 U.S.C. crosswalk in [`../../references/immigration-statutes/`](../../references/immigration-statutes/) (README). - Naturalization residence / physical-presence: INA §§ 316 / 319 / 8 U.S.C. §§ 1427 / 1430 — [`../../references/immigration-statutes/INA-III-nationality.md`](../../references/immigration-statutes/INA-III-nationality.md). - BIA appeals (§ 1003.38), reopening/reconsideration before the BIA (§ 1003.2) and before the immigration court (§ 1003.23) — [`../../references/immigration-regulations/8CFR-1003-eoir-bia.md`](../../references/immigration-regulations/8CFR-1003-eoir-bia.md). - USCIS RFE/NOID windows (§ 103.2(b)(8)) — [`../../references/immigration-regulations/8CFR-103-powers-fees.md`](../../references/immigration-regulations/8CFR-103-powers-fees.md). ## Composition Runs right after `immigration-pro-se` and feeds every drafting skill. Hands off to `eoir-removal-defense` (hearing and relief deadlines, voluntary departure), `bia-appeals` (the 30-day EOIR-26 clock), `circuit-petition-for-review` (the jurisdictional 30-day § 1252(b)(1) clock), and `eoir-motions-to-reopen-reconsider` (the 90-/30-day motion clocks and the in-absentia and changed-country-conditions exceptions). Verify any computed date with `immigration-fact-check` before filing.