The Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) lets some applicants keep treatment as a child after their 21st birthday. For preference and diversity cases, USCIS computes CSPA age as the age on the visa availability date minus the time the petition was pending, and a result under 21 means the person is treated as a child, provided the person stays unmarried.
Quick answer
| Item | Rule in the USCIS Policy Manual |
|---|---|
| Who is a child | An unmarried person under 21 |
| Formula (preference and diversity) | Age on the visa availability date minus the time the petition was pending |
| Result under 21 | Treated as a child |
| Result 21 or older | Aged out |
| Extra condition | Seek permanent residence within one year of visa availability, unless an exception applies |
| Immediate relatives | Age frozen on the filing date; the one-year rule does not apply |
These points come from the USCIS Policy Manual chapter on the Child Status Protection Act. The CSPA age calculator applies the arithmetic described below, and the Green Card calculator hub lists the other date tools.
The problem CSPA addresses
For immigration purposes, a child is unmarried and under 21. Many family and employment cases involve a long wait in a visa queue, and a son or daughter listed on a petition could turn 21 while the case waits. Without CSPA, that birthday would end the child classification. CSPA changes only how age is computed. It does not remove the unmarried requirement, so a marriage before the green card is granted ends the benefit.
The formula
For family preference, employment preference, and diversity cases, CSPA age equals the person’s age on the visa availability date, reduced by the time the petition was pending. If the result is under 21, the person is treated as a child. If the result is 21 or older, the person has aged out. The calculation therefore needs three dates: the birth date, the visa availability date, and the pending period.
What counts as pending time
For a petition, the pending period runs from the filing date to the approval date. According to the Policy Manual, time spent on administrative motions or appeals counts, while time a case was returned to a consulate does not. For diversity cases, the period runs from the start of the registration period to the date of the selection letter. The guide to priority dates and the Visa Bulletin explains how the filing date relates to the queue.
The visa availability date
For family and employment preference cases, the visa availability date is the later of two dates: the approval of the petition, or the first day of the month in which the Final Action Dates chart shows the visa as available. For diversity cases, it is the first day the principal applicant’s rank number is current. USCIS explains the chart system on its visa availability and priority dates page.
A person may be allowed to file using the Dates for Filing chart, but the Policy Manual says CSPA age is computed with the Final Action Dates chart. That policy applies to Form I-485 applications filed on or after August 15, 2025. Applications filed before that date follow the policy announced on February 14, 2023, under which the Dates for Filing chart could set availability. The manual also describes transition relief for applicants who show extraordinary circumstances for not filing between February 14, 2023 and August 14, 2025.
The sought-to-acquire rule
For family preference, employment preference, and diversity cases, the person must seek to acquire permanent residence within one year of visa availability. According to the Policy Manual, filing Form I-485, paying the immigrant visa fee, or completing Part I of the DS-260 counts as seeking to acquire status.
- If the visa becomes unavailable before a continuous year has passed, such as through retrogression, a new one-year period starts when the visa is available again.
- Availability is continuous only if the priority date is earlier than the Final Action cutoff in every month.
- Extraordinary circumstances may excuse a missed deadline. The circumstances must be beyond the applicant’s control, not self-created, directly responsible for the delay, and the delay must be reasonable. Ordinary hardship, such as lack of money, does not qualify.
Immediate relatives and derivative asylees
For immediate relatives, including self-petitioners under the Violence Against Women Act, the CSPA age is frozen on the date Form I-130 was filed (Form I-360 for VAWA). The sought-to-acquire rule does not apply to them. VAWA cases in a preference category remain subject to it. Derivative asylees and refugees have their age frozen on the date the principal filed Form I-589 or Form I-590, and the one-year rule does not apply. For widow(er) derivatives, the age is frozen on the I-360 filing date, or the I-130 conversion date.
F2A cases
The Policy Manual page read for this guide gives no separate formula for the F2A category, so the general preference rule applies as described above. It does state that if an F2A beneficiary ages out, the petition can convert automatically to F2B or F1 under INA 203(h)(3). A footnote also quotes a Supreme Court decision recognizing that principal beneficiaries of F2A petitions can still age out. The family preference categories guide describes these groups. This guide does not cover the statutory wording of INA 203(h)(2) for F2A.
Illustrative example: protected
Illustrative example. A petition is filed on January 15, 2019 and approved on September 15, 2019, a pending period of 243 days. The Final Action Dates chart shows the visa as available from March 1, 2021, which is later than the approval, so that is the visa availability date. The child was born on September 1, 1999 and is 21 years and six months old on March 1, 2021. Subtracting 243 days from March 1, 2021 gives July 1, 2020, and on that date the child was 20 years and 10 months old. The CSPA age is under 21, so the child is treated as a child if still unmarried and if permanent residence is sought within one year of March 1, 2021.
Illustrative example: aged out
Illustrative example. The dates are the same, but the child was born on March 1, 1999. On July 1, 2020, the child was 21 years and four months old. The CSPA age is not under 21, so the child has aged out of the child classification in that category.
Frequently asked questions
Does CSPA stop a child from aging?
No. It changes how age is computed for certain cases. The person must still be unmarried.
Which chart sets the visa availability date?
The Policy Manual says the Final Action Dates chart is used for CSPA age, for Form I-485 filings on or after August 15, 2025.
Does the one-year rule apply to every case?
No. It applies to family preference, employment preference, and diversity cases. It does not apply to immediate relatives or derivative asylees and refugees.
Does a married beneficiary keep CSPA protection?
The manual says the person must remain unmarried, so marriage before the grant ends the child classification.
Related reading
- Priority dates and the Visa Bulletin
- Family preference categories
- Green Card eligibility categories
- Green Card FAQ
About this guide
This website is for information only. It is not affiliated with the U.S. government, does not give legal advice or consultations, and does not offer application services. A personal case belongs with USCIS or a licensed immigration attorney, and the current official pages control.
Last verified: October 2026. Sources: USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 7; USCIS visa availability and priority dates.