Ask the Consul
My immigrant visa application has not come through and my child will turn 21 years old soon. What do I do?
An all too common worry for Immigrant Visa applicants is that a dependent child, nearing 21 years of age, may not get a visa interview before he/she "ages out". If visa numbers are available for you (or your visa case becomes current for processing) and your child is "aging out" (or turning 21), we are prepared to expedite the processing of the application. It is still the applicant's responsibility, however, to complete the application requirements in a timely manner. The time and cost burdens resulting from failing to pay careful attention to documentation being submitted will fall solely on you the applicant.
While not required, we encourage all members of a family to immigrate to the United States at the same time as opposed to one member going on ahead of the others and sending for the children later. This will greatly help decrease the worry associated with younger family members being "stranded" back home without chance of a visa.
U.S. immigration law requires that visa applications be strictly processed according to priority date because of the limited number of visas available worldwide. This means the Embassy will not process visa applications with priority dates that are not current. The Visa Section is normally notified by the National Visa Center of the possibility of a case "aging out" but inquiries can be made for a fee by purchasing a personal identification number (PIN) and contacting our call center. You can also contact the National Visa Center via e-mail: NVCInquiry@state.gov or by telephone calling (603)334-0818. Information regarding the methods through which the Immigrant Visa Section can be contacted is available at our website, santodomingo.usembassy.gov.