UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA UMAIR KHUSHNOOD, Plaintiff, v. Civil Action No. 21-2166 (FYP) UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES, et al., Defendants. MEMORANDUM OPINION Plaintiff Umair Khushnood is a citizen of Pakistan and resident of Vancouver, Canada. See ECF No. 1 (Complaint), ¶¶ 2–3. On January 8, 2020, Plaintiff’s employer filed an I-140 form with the United States Citizen and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) to initiate the process of obtaining a worker’s visa for Khushnood. Id., ¶ 12. The application process, however, has been stalled for over two years, prompting Khushnood to file this lawsuit to obtain his visa. He alleges that the delayed processing of his visa application constitutes a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), 5 U.S.C. §§ 555(b), 706(1), and the Due Process Clause of the United States Constitution. Id., ¶¶ 22–24, 31–32. Khushnood seeks a writ of mandamus compelling Defendants to process and approve his visa. Id. at 7. Defendants now move to dismiss for failure to state a claim under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). See generally ECF No. 5 (Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss).1 The Court agrees that Khushnood fails to state a claim and will therefore grant Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss. 1 Plaintiff filed an Opposition, see ECF No. 7 (Plaintiff’s Opposition), and Defendants filed a Reply, see ECF No. 8 (Defendants’ Reply). BACKGROUND Khushnood’s employer filed a petition with USCIS for Khushnood’s I-140 worker’s visa on January 8, 2020, after obtaining a required certification from the U.S. Department of Labor.2 See Compl., ¶¶ 12, 15. USCIS approved Khushnood’s petition on February 4, 2020, and sent it to the National Visa Center (“NVC”) for further processing. Id., ¶¶ 17–18. The NVC forwarded the petition to the U.S. Consulate in Montreal, Canada, which must schedule an interview with Khushnood before his visa petition can be approved. Id., ¶¶ 18–19. During the pendency of Khushnood’s visa petition, the COVID-19 global pandemic “significantly disrupted the State Department’s ability to interview applications and issue visas.” See Def. Mot. at 3. In March 2020, the State Department suspended visa services around the world. Id. The agency has since resumed some activities, but the disruption caused by the pandemic has resulted in “substantial backlogs” and “increased wait times for all services.” Id. (citing Consular Operations Update, https://ca.usembassy.gov/embassy-consulates/consular- operations/updates); see also id. at 4 (noting that before the full onset of the pandemic, the State Department issued 43,136 visas in January 2020; but that the State Department issued only 11,880 visas in January 2021). Although the U.S. Consulate in Montreal is processing visa petitions based on a tiered immigrant-prioritization system, Khushnood’s interview has not yet been scheduled, and his visa therefore cannot be approved. See Compl., ¶ 19; see Def. Mot. at 3 (first citing Consular Operations Update, https://ca.usembassy.gov/embassy-consulates/consular-operations-updates/; 2 To obtain a worker’s visa, a sponsoring employer must first apply to the Department of Labor for labor certification approval, attesting to the availability and compensation of the prospective employee’s job. See 20 C.F.R. § …
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