Recap of Child Status Protection Act (from USCIS webpage)The CSPA was enacted on August 6, 2002, to provide a remedy for applicants who would have otherwise aged out (turned 21) and lost the possibility of gaining an immigration benefit. The CSPA addresses problems with USCIS processing delays that are not within the control of children beneficiaries, which inevitably caused the beneficiaries to lose their status. The law has different formulas for how the CSPA age should be calculated depending on whether the person is the child of a U.S. citizen, the child of a green card holder, a derivative in the family- or employment-based categories, an asylee/refugee derivative, or a derivative based on the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Although it does not protect all applicants, the CSPA ensures that certain family members who turn 21 will not be penalized due to USCIS processing delays.
