How to renew your DACA
A DACA renewal is a three-form package on a clock: USCIS encourages filing in a specific window before the current grant expires, and the work permit renews with it. Under ongoing federal court orders described by USCIS, initial requests are accepted but not adjudicated — renewals continue to be processed, and this page covers renewals only. Every factual claim is cited; this is general process description, not advice about any individual case.
Renewal only — the current posture
USCIS's DACA litigation page describes the court-ordered state: initial requests accepted but not adjudicated, renewals processed. Because that posture comes from active litigation, USCIS's page is the reference for the current state, and everything below is about renewing an existing grant.
The window USCIS encourages
USCIS encourages filing a renewal between 120 and 150 days before the expiration date on the current approval notice. Earlier is not faster — a request filed more than 150 days out may be rejected and returned. The window is the organizing fact of a renewal: the three forms, the evidence copies, and the fees all need to be ready inside it.
The package and the fees
A renewal is three forms filed together: Form I-821D, Form I-765 for the employment authorization document, and the I-765WS worksheet. Under the current G-1055 schedule the fees are $85 for the I-821D plus $520 for the I-765 on paper ($470 online) — $605 total for a paper package.
The employment authorization document renews through that concurrently filed I-765, and the card carries its own printed expiration date.
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What an approved renewal is — and is not
An approved renewal continues deferred action and employment authorization. DACA is deferred action: USCIS describes it as not conferring lawful immigration status. Receipts arrive as Form I-797C, status is trackable online, and USCIS publishes processing-time estimates — this page does not claim any timeframe.
Because a renewal is the same three forms and the same window every cycle, it is exactly the kind of filing a checklist-and-audit system handles well: Pop Immigration prepares the package from plain-English answers, audits each uploaded document, and tracks the deadline — the same discipline this page describes, automated.
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When should a DACA renewal be filed?
USCIS encourages filing between 120 and 150 days before the current expiration date. More than 150 days early may be rejected as premature; this page claims no processing timeframe.
What forms make up a renewal?
Three, filed together: I-821D, I-765, and the I-765WS worksheet.
How much does a renewal cost?
$85 (I-821D) plus $520 paper / $470 online (I-765) under the current G-1055 schedule — $605 for a paper package.
Can a first-time DACA request be filed?
USCIS states that under ongoing court orders, initial requests are accepted but not adjudicated. This page covers renewals of existing grants only.
Does renewing extend the work permit?
The employment authorization document renews through the I-765 filed with the package, and the card carries its own expiration date.