Is US Citizenship and Immigration Services delaying your visa or other filing beyond the normal processing time? It might be time to file a Writ of Mandamus!
In these instances, there is essentially only one action that the applicant can take to force the agency to act — file a lawsuit. This type of lawsuit, known as a “writ of mandamus”, is to compel the government to perform a duty owed to the plaintiff, namely, take action on the pending application. There is no law or strict rule on how long a person must wait before filing a lawsuit. However, if your application is pending for more than a year, it may be time to consider such action.
Filing a suit against the USCIS or appropriate US Consulate may be the only way to get your case processed because the Federal Court can oblige the USCIS or US Consulate to review your application/petition and make a final decision within a short period of time (usually within sixty days). Upon receiving a complaint filed with the Federal Court, the government must answer within sixty days of the complaint. These lawsuits force the government to finally take action. It is important to remember that the court cannot force the USCIS or the consulate to make a decision in your favor.