File your DACA renewal between 150 and 120 days before the expiration date printed on your current Form I-797 approval notice. That is the DACA renewal timeline USCIS recommends, and it lines up with the roughly three-and-a-half-month processing time most renewals take. DACA is granted in two-year increments, so you will run this cycle again every two years for as long as you hold the status.
Why the 150-to-120-Day Window
USCIS strongly encourages renewal filings inside this five-to-four-month window before expiration.1U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-821D, Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals The window exists because filing too early and filing too late both create problems.
Filing before the 150-day mark does not speed anything up. USCIS has said outright that early submission does not result in faster processing, and packages received too far in advance have been rejected and returned.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) On the other side, waiting until fewer than 120 days remain compresses the margin. If USCIS needs more time or issues a request for evidence, your current Employment Authorization Document can expire while the renewal is still pending.
The practical habit: the day a new DACA approval arrives, mark two dates on your calendar. The date 150 days before expiration is the earliest you should file. The date 120 days before expiration is the latest you should file comfortably. Filing at the 150-day mark aligns with the typical processing time, so your new EAD should arrive before the old one lapses.
What to File
Every DACA renewal requires three forms submitted together:
- Form I-821D, the request for renewed deferred action
- Form I-765, the application for a new Employment Authorization Document
- Form I-765WS, the worksheet accompanying the employment authorization application3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Instructions for Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
Use the current edition of each form. A missing or outdated form gets the whole package rejected. A filing fee is required, and the amount depends on whether you file online or by mail. USCIS does not offer fee waivers for DACA. Very limited fee exemptions exist, but you must apply for and receive a favorable exemption decision before you file the renewal without payment.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Check the current fee amounts on the Form I-821D page before you send anything, because USCIS adjusts its fee schedule periodically.
Include a complete residential address history since your last DACA approval, dates of any advance parole travel during your current grant period, and disclosure of any law enforcement interaction or change in criminal history since your last filing. Cross-check names, dates, and A-numbers against your prior application. Inconsistencies between filings are one of the fastest ways to trigger a request for additional evidence.
Online or By Mail
You can file through a USCIS online account or on paper. Online filing gives you instant confirmation, electronic payment, and a dashboard for tracking.1U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-821D, Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Paper filings go to one of three USCIS Lockbox facilities based on where you live: Phoenix for Arizona and California; Dallas for Texas, Florida, and most southern and central states; Chicago for the Northeast, Midwest, Pacific Northwest, and several other states.4U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Direct Filing Addresses for Form I-821D, Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals The exact street address differs for USPS versus private carriers like FedEx or UPS, so confirm on the USCIS filing addresses page before mailing.
After You File
Once USCIS accepts the forms and fee, you receive a Form I-797C, Notice of Action. This receipt notice includes your 13-character case number and confirms the renewal is in the system.5U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Form I-797C, Notice of Action Keep it. You need the receipt number for every future inquiry.
Biometrics
DACA renewals require biometrics on file, but USCIS often reuses biometrics from a prior appointment. Under current policy, a photograph can be reused if it was captured within 36 months of your new filing. If your last biometrics appointment was more than three years ago, expect a notice scheduling you at an Application Support Center. USCIS keeps the discretion to require a new appointment even within that 36-month window.
Processing Time
Most DACA renewals are decided within roughly three and a half months. That figure moves with agency workload, and cases involving requests for evidence or background check delays run longer. Filing at 150 days out generally lands the new EAD before the old one expires. Filing at 120 days tightens the margin. Filing later than that risks a gap.
Tracking Your Case
Enter the 13-character receipt number from your I-797C into the USCIS Check Case Status Online tool for a high-level update.6U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Checking Your Case Status Online For more detail, log into your USCIS online account, where communications and document history sit in one place. The USCIS processing times page shows estimated turnaround at each service center so you can gauge whether your case is on track.
If your renewal has been pending more than 105 days without a decision, call USCIS at 1-800-375-5283 or submit an online inquiry through e-Request.7U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. e-Request – Check Case Processing Do this at the 105-day mark rather than waiting. It surfaces missing documents or administrative holds before they turn into a gap in your status.
What Can Derail a Renewal
Approval is not automatic. USCIS reevaluates eligibility each cycle, and criminal history is where renewals most often run into trouble. You are ineligible if you have been convicted of:2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
- A felony (any federal, state, or local offense punishable by more than one year of imprisonment)
- A significant misdemeanor, which automatically includes domestic violence, sexual abuse or exploitation, burglary, unlawful possession or use of a firearm, drug distribution or trafficking, and driving under the influence, regardless of sentence; other misdemeanors can also be classified as significant if the sentence imposed was more than 90 days of actual custody (not counting suspended sentences or pre-trial detention)
- Three or more other misdemeanors not arising from the same act or incident
You also must not pose a threat to national security or public safety, a discretionary call USCIS makes. Disclose every citation, arrest, and charge, even minor ones. Providing false information on Form I-821D is a federal crime, and a nondisclosure typically causes more damage than the underlying offense would have.
Continuous residence matters too. Travel outside the United States without advance parole, followed by reentry without inspection, can lead USCIS to terminate your DACA after a notice of intent to terminate.8U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Frequently Asked Questions If you need to travel internationally, first get advance parole by filing Form I-131.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) One thing that does not affect renewal: current school enrollment. The educational requirement applies only to the initial DACA request.
If Your DACA Lapses
A gap is not just inconvenient. When your EAD expires, your employer will likely end your employment, because continuing to employ you creates legal liability for the company. Nothing in federal law requires your employer to hold your position or grant leave while you wait on a renewed permit. Returning to the job depends on the employer’s willingness.
You may also begin accruing unlawful presence once your DACA period ends. More than 180 days of unlawful presence followed by a voluntary departure makes you inadmissible for three years. One year or more followed by departure triggers a ten-year bar.9U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Unlawful Presence and Inadmissibility Those bars matter if any future pathway to permanent status opens up. State documents tied to DACA status, such as driver’s licenses, may also become invalid.
If your DACA has already expired, you can still file as a renewal, but only within one year of the expiration date. Past that year, USCIS treats the filing as a new initial request.10U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Renew Your DACA That matters because of where the program stands legally: under the Fifth Circuit’s January 17, 2025 decision on the DACA Final Rule, USCIS continues to process renewals for people who already have DACA, but it will accept and hold, not process, new initial requests.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Letting your DACA lapse for more than a year could effectively lock you out until the courts resolve the initial-request question. That is the single strongest reason to hit the 150-to-120-day window on time.