Questions & Answers

How long does it take to process the I-131 travel document?

I am a lawful permanent resident and I do not have a real passport; I have "Syrian travel document for Palestinian refugees," which most countries do not recognize. I plan to apply for an I-131 so I can travel. My question is: How long does it take to get the travel document and am I eligible to expedite this process?

Answers

• Ed Beshara

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on January 2, 2018

  Your experienced EB-5 Immigration attorney will be able to advise you on your travel plans. The main question is whether the new Executive Order effects your travel for re-entry into the U.S. The question will be: are you considered to be Syrian under the Executive Order? If not, the process for obtaining Advanced Parole for re-entry into the U.S. should only take a few months of USCIS processing.

• Barbara Suri

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 27, 2017

  It generally takes about 90 days after filing. You must file for the travel document while you are present in the U.S. However, you do not have to wait for its issuance before traveling. You may ask to have it delivered to the Embassy/Consulate in the country that you are visiting for your pickup. You may need to return for fingerprinting.

• A Olusanjo Omoniyi

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 19, 2017

  Typically, the request for an I-131 Travel document is not supposed to be more than 90 days. If you have an emergency circumstance, go ahead and do an InfoPass, by which you show up at the nearest office of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) as part of efforts to speed up the process.

• Julia Roussinova

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 14, 2017

  It takes, on average, 90 days. An application may be expedited if you meet expedite criteria that are listed on USCIS website.

• Charles Foster

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 13, 2017

  The length of time it takes to process an I-131 travel document for a refugee can take many months; so, the sooner you file, the better. The timing will go up and down, but it will likely take as long as 6 months.

• Fredrick W Voigtmann

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 13, 2017

  The processing time for an I-131 usually is about 90 days. USCIS has certain expedite criteria.

• Raymond Lahoud

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 13, 2017

  Given that you are a lawful permanent resident, it does not appear that you need a travel document to re-enter the United States unless your time away from the United States is going to be prolonged. As an LPR, you are free to travel in and out of the United States.

• Lynne Feldman

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 13, 2017

  6-9 months.

• Jinhee Wilde

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 12, 2017

  Usually, I-131 travel permit applications take about 3 months. However, with the current travel ban and extreme vetting process put in place by the Trump Administration, not having a real passport may pose some problems when trying to enter back even with the travel permit. We are even seeing permanent residents having difficulties from certain countries.

• Bernard P Wolfsdorf

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 12, 2017

  Presently a reentry permit is taking about 4-5 months. Any application can be expedited if you meet the expedite criteria.