For many employment-based derivative children, CSPA age is generally the biological age when a visa becomes available minus the time the I-140 petition was pending. The child must remain unmarried and generally seek to acquire permanent residence within one year of visa availability.
Family
What If My Child Is Approaching Age 21?
Turning 21 does not always end a child's eligibility, because the Child Status Protection Act can calculate a different immigration age. But CSPA is technical: visa availability, I-140 pending time, marital status, and timely action after visa availability all matter.
Reviewed August 21, 2026
The calculation cannot be completed responsibly from the child's birth date alone. It requires petition dates, priority-date and Visa Bulletin information, processing route, and evidence of the action taken after visa availability.
EB3WFS can collect the dates and documents needed for review, identify a possible age-out risk, and escalate the issue promptly to the licensed legal professionals working on the case.
The basic CSPA arithmetic
A simplified employment-based calculation is: the child's biological age on the applicable visa-availability date, minus the number of days the I-140 petition was pending. The filing and approval dates of the I-140 therefore matter.
USCIS guidance effective August 15, 2025 explains that visa availability for this calculation is tied to the Final Action Dates chart. Consular and adjustment cases also involve procedural details that must be reviewed in context.
Why the one-year rule matters
A child who appears protected by the age calculation generally must also seek to acquire lawful permanent resident status within one year after a visa becomes available. Certain actions can satisfy that requirement, and extraordinary-circumstance rules may apply in limited situations.
Do not wait for a birthday or an interview notice to raise the issue. A legal review should identify what action is required and when.
What to gather for an age-out review
Collect the child's date of birth and marital status; the principal applicant's priority date; the I-140 filing and approval dates; the applicable country of chargeability; the relevant Visa Bulletin; the processing route; and proof of any fee payment, form submission, or other qualifying action after visa availability.
A worksheet can identify a possible problem. It cannot determine final eligibility, predict future Visa Bulletin movement, or replace a case-specific legal analysis.
Preliminary CSPA Worksheet
Estimate the arithmetic before legal review
This worksheet runs only in your browser. It does not send or save the dates you enter.
Enter all four dates to view the preliminary arithmetic.
Important: This is not an official government calculator or a legal determination. It does not determine the correct Visa Bulletin date, country of chargeability, sought-to-acquire compliance, marital-status eligibility, extraordinary circumstances, or final CSPA protection.
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions applicants ask about this topic
Does filing PERM freeze my child's age?
Not by itself. Employment-based CSPA calculations generally use petition pending time and visa availability; the precise facts require legal review.
Does CSPA protect a married child?
No. CSPA does not remove the requirement that the derivative child remain unmarried.
Is the worksheet a legal determination?
No. It is a preliminary arithmetic aid using dates entered by the user. The legal team must confirm the applicable dates, chart, action, and eligibility.
Official and primary sources
Rules and agency procedures can change. Use these sources for the current government position.
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