CSPA age-out calculator: is the child still under 21?
Four dates from the approval notice and the Visa Bulletin give the child’s CSPA age, the protected or aged-out verdict and the date to seek residence by.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and past error
Child Status Protection Act
Protected: under 21
CSPA age 20.33
| Visa available on | September 1, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Age that day | 21.25 years |
| Petition pending | 337 days |
| CSPA age | 20.33 years |
| Seek to acquire by | September 1, 2026 |
How this was calculated
- Visa availability is the later of the petition approval and the first day of the bulletin month in which your priority date is current on the Final Action Dates chart (USCIS Policy Manual, Vol. 7, Part A, Ch. 7).
- CSPA age = age on that date minus the days the petition was pending (approval date minus filing date). Under 21: still a child, if unmarried and if you file within one year.
Estimate from public data, not legal advice. Your case may differ (cross-chargeability, CSPA, waivers). For advice, see a licensed immigration attorney or a DOJ-accredited representative. Not affiliated with USCIS or the Department of State. Method and past error
The Child Status Protection Act does not freeze a child’s age in the preference categories; it subtracts time. USCIS takes the child’s age on the date a visa becomes available, which is the later of the petition approval and the first day of the month whose Visa Bulletin shows the priority date current on the Final Action Dates chart, then removes the number of days the I-130 or I-140 was pending between its filing date and its approval date. If the result is under 21, the unmarried son or daughter keeps the child category, provided the family seeks to acquire permanent residence within 1 year of that availability date. A child who was 21.25 years old when the date went current but whose parent’s petition sat 337 days at USCIS has a CSPA age of 20.33 and stays protected. The years spent waiting in the queue after approval are never subtracted, which is why long family lines still produce age-outs.
Four dates and one subtraction
The form on this page asks for exactly what the Policy Manual chapter on CSPA uses. From the birth date and the bulletin month it works out the child’s age on the availability date, choosing the approval date instead when approval came later. From the filing and approval dates it counts the pending days. The headline then says “Protected: under 21” or “Ages out”, with the CSPA age to two decimals, followed by the date by which the child must seek to acquire residence. Nothing leaves your browser, and a filing date later than the approval date is refused rather than computed.
Why a slow approval can help
The rule rewards time spent at USCIS, not time spent in line. Take the dates the calculator opens with: a child born in June 2004, a petition filed in March 2019 and approved in February 2020, a priority date that went current in September 2025. The child was 21.25 on the availability date, 337 days come off, and the CSPA age is 20.33. Had the same petition been approved after 61 days, the CSPA age would be 21.08 and the child would have aged out. Same family, same queue, a different answer.
The deadline under the verdict
A protected result is conditional. The one-year date shown in the result is when the window closes; the Policy Manual accepts a properly filed I-485 or Part I of the DS-260 as seeking to acquire, among other acts. Marriage ends child status whatever the CSPA age.
Where the calculator stops
It does not check whether the child is unmarried, whether an aged-out F2A case converts to another category, or whether extraordinary circumstances excuse a late filing. Those questions are covered on the CSPA guide and the USCIS CSPA page; for a child close to the line, a licensed immigration attorney or a DOJ-accredited representative should read the actual notices.