WRIT OF MANDAMUS: Remedy for Unreasonable Delay in Visa Processing
What is a writ of mandamus?
Mandamus is a judicial remedy in the form of an order from a court to any government, subordinate court, corporation, or public authority, to do some specific act which that body is obliged under law to do, and which is in the nature of public duty, and in certain cases one of a statutory duty. In simple terms, Writ of Mandamus is a type of suit or case to compel the Government agencies to do their duties, which they are supposed to do under law.
In simpler terms, a writ of mandamus is a remedy for visa applicants, using which they can effectively address and resolve the unreasonable delay in their visa processing.
Who can file a writ of mandamus?
Anyone whose visa processing has been stuck for an unreasonable amount of time can file a writ of mandamus. It can vary from case to case; however, we can usually proceed with a writ of mandamus if the administrative processing has been ongoing for more than two months for student visa and six months or more for visa of other categories.
Where to file a writ of mandamus?
A writ of mandamus is filed at the designated U.S. District court, depending on the petitioner’s residence and defendants’ office location.
How to file a writ of mandamus?
If you want to file a writ of mandamus with Raju Law, we have a specific method for that. All you need to do is to provide us with the necessary documents, and we will take care of everything else.
You have to send us an email at raju@rajulaw.com or info@rajulaw.com expressing your interest to file a writ of mandamus. After that our Admin Team will contact you and initiate the process of retaining you as our client. After retaining you as our client, the Admin Team will forward the matter to the Litigation Team and a case manager will be assigned for your case. The Litigation Team will take over the case and prepare the writ and submit it before the Court accordingly. The Litigation Team usually takes 14-18 days to prepare and submit your writ before the Court. The Court may take 3-4 days to issue summons and our Business Support and Services Team will send those summons physically to the defendants. It usually takes around 6-8 weeks to get a response from the concerned agency (USCIS, Embassies, Consulates, etc.) regarding your case from the date of filing the writ.
Why should you file a writ of Mandamus?
The implication of filing a writ of mandamus in an immigration matter is that by filing a writ of mandamus, you can request the Court to ask the concerned Government agencies to perform their duties in a timely manner. For example, if your visa application is stuck in an administrative process, you may file a writ of mandamus requesting the Court to ask the concerned Embassy or consulate to adjudicate your visa application within a reasonable time.
