Visa Stuck in Admin Processing? Court Says 6 Months Isn't Enough

Ivan Drokin, his spouse Elena Ericheva, and their minor child applied for employment-based immigrant visas as a family unit. Drokin filed Form I-140 (the immigrant visa petition for a priority worker) with USCIS in June 2024. USCIS approved it and forwarded the case to the National Visa Center (NVC) in July 2024. The family was interviewed at the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade, Serbia on December 17, 2024. At the end of that interview, the consular officer told them their applications needed "administrative processing" — a common hold that can last weeks, months, or longer. The State Department website listed their applications as "refused," but added a note saying a second adjudication would follow once processing was complete.

Why the court dismissed the case — and what it got right for applicants

Six months after the interview, with no update, the family sued Secretary of State Marco Rubio and two other officials in July 2025, asking the court to order the government to act. The government tried to get the case thrown out on several grounds. Two of those arguments failed. Judge JMC of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia rejected the government's claim that the "consular nonreviewability" doctrine — which normally shields a consular officer's visa decision from judicial review — blocked the lawsuit entirely. The court found that doctrine only applies to final decisions, not to cases where applicants are still waiting for a final decision. The court also rejected the argument that no legal duty to act existed. Those are meaningful wins for applicants in similar situations: courts can hear these delay cases, and the government does have a duty to issue a final decision.

But the family still lost. The court ruled that six months of waiting — measured from the December 2024 interview to the July 2025 complaint — was not enough to show the delay was unreasonable under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and the Mandamus Act (the law that allows courts to order federal officials to perform a legal duty). The complaint was dismissed under Rule 12(b)(6), meaning the facts as stated simply did not support a viable legal claim. The court did not say the government acted properly — only that the family had not yet made a strong enough case that the wait crossed the line into unlawful delay.

What this means if your visa is stuck in administrative processing

This ruling does not close the door on delay lawsuits. It signals that courts in the D.C. district are willing to hear them — but that applicants need to show more than a few months of waiting. How long is long enough? The court did not set a specific number. Other cases in the same district have involved waits of one to several years before courts found delays unreasonable. If your visa application is in administrative processing after a consular interview, the clock matters. Document every communication with the embassy, every status check, and every response (or non-response) you receive.

What to do

• Check your visa status regularly on the State Department's Consular Electronic Application Center (CEAC) website and save screenshots with dates.
• If the consular officer asked for additional documents — like a CV or a supplemental questionnaire — submit them promptly and keep proof of submission.
• If more than a year has passed since your interview with no final decision, consult an immigration attorney about whether a mandamus lawsuit (a court order forcing the government to act) may be viable in your situation.
• Do not assume a "refused" status on the CEAC website means your case is over — if you were told administrative processing is ongoing, a second adjudication is still possible.

What to do, step by step — see our guide “Immigration Court Rulings”.