Anyone who got their biometrics done in the US at a USCIS ASC, do we need appointments or can we just walk-in? The earliest appointment on their online scheduler is showing 2 weeks from now but would be nice to have it done this week.
When I had my biometrics appointment last week, the security guard started talking to the employee who was helping me and asking him if walk-ins were possible with people submitting biometrics to Canada (I had an appointment so the question wasn't related to me being there). Just based on what I heard them discuss, there was confusion among staff at this site as to whether appointments were mandatory for people submitting biometrics to Canada because IRCC had sent out an email informing USCIS that appointments should be required for these applicants. But the confusing aspect for the USCIS employees (at least at this site) was that the biometrics collection letter only gives applicants 30 days to submit biometrics, so I had heard them say that just a few days earlier they had allowed a walk-in to submit her biometrics without an appointment in order to meet the collection deadline.
Anyway, point of the story is that IRCC is telling staff at USCIS centers to require appointments to submit biometrics for Canada, but you
may get lucky and be allowed in without an appointment, though again, they are being explicitly told by IRCC to require appointments. It honestly just depends on the staff at your specific location. I would only suggest attempting a walk-in if you have a USCIS center nearby, but if it's hours away, then wait for your appointment.