On May 28, 2021, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published clarifying guidance for veterans who live outside of the United States seeking to naturalize. The Immigration and Naturalization Act allows for veterans that were honorably discharged to …
Preserving Continuous Residence and Physical Presence for Religious Duties Abroad
On May 25, 2021, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a change pertaining to how it counts continuous residence for certain individuals. To qualify for naturalization a person must have continuously resided in the United States with …
Inadvertently Registering to Vote and Good Moral Character for Naturalization
The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA) requires the states to offer eligible citizens the possibility of registering to vote when applying for a driver’s license or identification (ID) card at the state’s motor vehicle agency. As a result, …
Interagency Strategy for Promoting Naturalization
On July 2, 2021, the Naturalization Working Group (NWG) released a report on how they will seek to promote and expand citizenship for noncitizens and immigrants. This report is in response to President Biden’s Executive Order on Restoring Faith in …
USCIS Extends Deadline to Response to Agency Requests Again Due to Pandemic
On March 30, 2020, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that as a response to the Coronavirus pandemic, USCIS will be more flexible in accepting requests for information from applicants and petitioners. This flexibility included a 60 …
USCIS Announces Possibility of Early Work Authorization and Deferred Action for U Visa Applicants
On June 14, 2021, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced new guidelines for certain U Visa Petitioners. USCIS used this announcement to introduce the new Bona Fide Determination (BFD) process for adjudicating Form I-918, Petition for U Nonimmigrant …
USCIS Announces Date Flexibility in Certain Circumstances
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a 60 day window, between June 10 and August 9, 2021, in which certain petitioners and applicants affected by mailing delays will have relief in the form of filing flexibilities. The …
USCIS Updates Expediting Criteria and Circumstances
On June 9, 2021, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued new guidelines for its Officers in determining whether an application should be expedited. These new guidelines expanded the criteria for requesting expedited service and clarified expedited services …
USCIS Updates Guidance on Issuing Request for Evidence and Notice of Intent to Deny
On June 9, 2021, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued an update to the guidelines for processing immigration requests with insufficient evidence. In 2018 USCIS issued new guidance allowing officers to deny immigration applications and petitions for …
Certain Employment Authorization Documents Extended to 2 Years
On June 9, 2021, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a decision extending the validity of certain Employment Authorization Documents (EADs). When nonimmigrants file a request to adjust their status to that of a Legal Permanent Resident …