Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA): From Submission to Approval

The following are the stages an applicant to receive a result for case type I-821D (consideration of deferred action for childhood arrivals) with I-765 (work authorization) for approved cases with no request for evidence (RFE).

[In chronological order]

1. Applicant receives Form I797C - Notice of Action as a receipt for Form I821D - Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and for Form I765 - Application for Employment Authorization with INFO 1, INFO 2 and PAY 2, respectively. 
2. Applicant receives Form I797C - Notice of Action as an ASC* Appointment Notice for I821D and I765 with INFO 3.
3. Applicant appears at ASC and provides fingerprints. Applicant's Form I797C - Notice of Action as an ASC Appointment Notice is stamped with Biometrics Processing Stamp with INFO 4. 
4. Applicant receives Form I797C - Notice of Action as an approval notice for both case I-821D and I-765. 
5. Applicant receives Employment Authorization Document (EAD), a card. 

Glossary: 

INFO 1,2 - Information in addition to that provided by the applicant - Notice date, case type, USCIS Alien Number, receipt number, received date.

PAY 2 - Information about payment received including application/petition fee, biometrics fee, total amount received and total balance due.

INFO 3 - Information about ASC, date and time of appointment.

INFO 4 - Biometrics processing stamp consists of ASC site code, Biometrics QA review by and on:, tenprints QA review by and on:.

*ASC - Application Service Center

Important:

• Many people "walk-in" for fingerprints prior to their actual appointment date in hopes of expediting the process.  ASC is not obligated to accept any walk-ins but more often than not applicants have been successful. Whether walk-ins facilitate processing time is open for debate. 
• Online case status is not prompt and in perfect sync with actual events. Applicants are advised to check updates only for a general idea and not a specific stage of their file. 
• Once, USPS has received EAD card, applicants can call USCIS for a tracking number.  Generally, EAD cards are sent via USPS Priority Mail with most deliveries in 2-3 business days (including Saturdays). 

Next step:

For most applicants, deferral is not the end of the story.  Once you have EAD, you can apply for Social Security Card and then for a Driver's license in most states (in that order).  To travel abroad, an applicant MUST apply for Advanced Parole document only after their case has been deferred and pay separate fee expecting 40-70 days processing time in most cases. 

For any question, please feel free to comment. 

Other important links:
DACA: Find your approval date! 
DACA: Frequently Asked Questions