1-131 Renewal - and/or 2nd application

[pinetime 0]

Hello, 

 

Was wondering if anyone had any advice when applying for a *new* I-131. Some background info; Our current I-131 travel document is set to Expire end of February 2025. We have not needed to use the I-131 as intended, we were planning to be in Japan for a lot longer, but that just did not end up happening. Because the I-131's are still taking a very long time to process, we are wondering if we can/should apply right now for new one right now. We have read many pieces of conflicting advice online on when to apply for the second I-131, I'm hoping someone could help us with this problem. 

 

Thank you for any and all advice!

[ordjnb 40]

Bit late to respond, but the language seems to be that you can’t apply while one is still valid unless it is lost or stolen. 

[pinetime 0]

We messaged USCIS through the chat and they said to go ahead and apply. The instructions say we can apply if we send the current re-entry permit. (see attachment) We read different accounts ranging from 180 days to not being able to apply until the current one is not valid. However, it seems like all of the information is outdated as much of the material is written when the re-entry permits were taking 3 months, not 15+. We have gone ahead and sent in our information as well as the current re-entry document. It's extremely unfortunate how little guidance USCIS has on this subject, 15+ months for a re-entry permit is ridiculous. Very much appreciate the reply! Will try to post updates if anyone has this question in the future as we found almost zero guidance on the subject. 

[TBoneTX 45,659]

A noncontributory post has been removed.  Please avoid flippant language.

[pinetime 0]

08/19/24 - Mailed I-131 paperwork to USCIS

08/22/24 - USCIS received I-131 request

08/28/24 - I-131 Approved

09/03/24 - 2 Letters received in the mail via USCIS. One stating the approval, the 2nd stating they would use the biometrics from the previous I-131, so no need to take them again. 

 

We were approved and USCIS used biometrics from 31 months ago. Just waiting for the new document now. Thought I would post an update in case anyone is in a similar position trying to apply for a 2nd I-131 while the current one is not expired. And just to re-iterate, we sent in the current travel document that did not expire for an additional 6 months. As stated in the instructions, this is a requirement and likely helped with the quick approval. 

Edited September 4 by pinetime