Guidance on Expedited Re-entry Permits (Form I-131)

The National Service Center has provided some guidance on requesting expedited processing of re-entry permits (Form I-131) to clarify the reasons for requesting expedited processing.  According to NSC, valid expedited reasons are humanitarian reasons, financial loss, medical need, etc.

We have received many re-entry permits inquiries by permanent legal residents who are about to accept a job opportunity abroad and are interested in obtaining their re-entry permit using the expedited procedure.  In the recent guidance, NSC has confirmed that working and residing overseas is sufficient reason for requesting an expedited biometric processing.  We have been successful in obtaining a number of expedited processing re-entry permit applications and the NSC guidance confirms our experience.

There are approximately 200 expedite requests per day received by USCIS and most of the biometric appointments are scheduled within a few days to a week after receipt of the application.  For comparison, regular processing re-entry permits have biometric appointments scheduled  within 4 to 6 weeks.