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I am facing a very critical decision regarding my parent's recent visit to the United States. My parents generally come and visit me every year. They stay here with me for 3-4 months and then leave to go back to India.

However, 2020 is not a usual year and COVID has forced them to stay longer than then need/want to. Given the situation, I had already applied for their stay extension in June for a visa expiring in July 2020. From what I researched, my understanding is that as far as an extension has been filed, it is OK not to wait for the response and assume approval. Which is what I assumed and they are still staying with me.

Now, the COVID situation is still not resolved and I feel like, IF Possible, I would like to extend their stay for another 6 months. However, though, I am a little skeptical on if it is strictly allowed. I have already filed for one extension and assumed its approval. I do not want to put their visual in a situation where their immigration status comes under scrutiny for unnecessary means.

So I do have two specific questions:

  1. Is it possible to file for two visa extensions back to back? Especially in these circumstances?
  2. How safe is is it for me to assume that the first one was in fact accepted even before I file for the second one since I have not got any official correspondence from USCIS on this yet?

I also understand that lately USCIS is understaffed and their website says that I should expect a delayed response. What I am worried about is what would happen if what I am assuming to be a delayed response turns out to be a delayed rejection?

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    The visa expiration date doesn't matter for one's stay in the US. You mean that their status as given on their I-94 expired in June, right? And they applied for Extension of Stay before their I-94 expired, right?
    – user102008
    Commented Aug 24, 2020 at 6:15
  • Sorry my bad, Yes, you are right their I-94 was expiring in June and I filed for extension in March.
    – Lost
    Commented Aug 24, 2020 at 6:17

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  1. Yes. 8 CFR 214.2(b)(1) says:

(1) General. Any B-1 visitor for business or B-2 visitor for pleasure may be admitted for not more than one year and may be granted extensions of temporary stay in increments of not more than six months each, [...]

It is clear from the fact that this says "extensions" and talks about it in "increments" that it is possible for more than one extension in a row. As to how likely it would be to be approved, I cannot speak to that.

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  • Thank you so much for your response. It was really helpful.
    – Lost
    Commented Aug 24, 2020 at 15:39
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A pretty ancient answer but my now-wife had IIRC two extensions back in the 1980s. (There was no need to try for more, at that point we married and the next paperwork wasn't an extension. This wasn't being deceptive, at the time she came to the US she had no plans to stay and didn't even know of my existence.)

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