Home Secretary Alan Johnson has said he is considering granting computer hacker Gary McKinnon extra time to apply for a judicial review of his case.
Mr McKinnon, who has Asperger's syndrome, faces up to 60 years in jail for breaking into American government systems after the September 11 terror attacks.
Mr Johnson, who decided the Government will not intervene in the case last week, told the Commons he was considering a request from Mr McKinnon's legal team to extend the seven-day period they have to apply for a judicial review until December 17.
He conceded there were legitimate concerns over Mr McKinnon's mental health, but said this did not prevent him from being extradited to the US to face the charges.
Mr Johnson said: "I am currently considering a request from Mr McKinnon's lawyers for an extension of the seven-day time limit."
He went on: "There are legitimate concerns over Mr McKinnon's health and the United States authorities have provided assurances, which were before the High Court in July, that his needs will be met."
He added it was clear there was "no real risk" that, if convicted, Mr McKinnon would serve any of his sentence in a "supermax" prison. Referring to the "perceived imbalance in UK/US extradition arrangements in respect of probable causes versus reasonable suspicion", Mr Johnson added: "I am clear that no such imbalance exists."
He also said that this issue was "academic" in Mr McKinnon's case as he had already admitted much of the conduct of which he was accused.
Glasgow-born Mr McKinnon's legal team have warned that if they are not granted a judicial review, then he could be extradited by Christmas.
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