Central Iowa couple sues over years-long delays in immigration cases

A Carlisle couple is suing the federal government over delays in processing the immigration papers for people married to American citizens.

Jordan Sarae Pastrana Bates and her husband, Olman Javie Pastrana Linarez, are suing U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin, U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.

The couple, who married in March 2026 and have a child together, alleges that Bates, a U.S. citizen by birth, filed a Petition for Alien Relative, also known as an I-130 application form, with CIS in May 2026 on behalf of her husband, who is a citizen of Honduras.

That application seeks to establish a valid family relationship that would represent the first step in Linarez’s family-based immigration process. Typically, after CIS approves the application, the beneficiary can either apply for an immigrant visa or an adjustment of their residency status.

The lawsuit alleges CIS now takes an average of 80 months, or six and half years, to process I-130 applications, placing the applicants at risk of being deported from the United States.

According to the lawsuit, federal data shows the length of time the federal government takes to process such applications has increased by 420% over the past year, and by 635% in the past five years.

“This is not a marginal delay or a temporary fluctuation,” the couple’s attorney, Jessica Donels, has told the court. “It reflects a systemic failure to process applications in a timely manner.”

The lawsuit seeks a court order that will compel CIS and the other defendants to “perform their duties” as required by law.

The U.S. Department of Justice has yet to file a response to the lawsuit.