On October 2, 2020, USCIS will change the premium processing timeframe from 15 calendar days to 15 business days. USCIS may adjust the additional fee for this service for inflation according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) by notice in the Federal Register.
USCIS announced on September 4, 2020 that submissions postmarked on or after October 2, 2020 must comply with the 10/02/20 edition of the following new or existing forms: • Form I-129H1 • Forms I-129H2A and I-129H2B • Form I-129L • Form I-129O • Form I-129E&TN • Form I-129MISC •Form I-600/I-600A, Supplement 3 •Form I-765 • Form I-912 For applications and petitions that are sent by commercial courier (for example, UPS, FedEx, or DHL), USCIS considers the date on the courier receipt as the postmark date for purposes of filing.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced Tuesday, September 1, 2020, that more than 2,000 individuals have been arrested during the period of July 13 to Aug. 20, 2020. About 85 percent of those arrested by ICE on immigration charges also had criminal convictions or pending criminal charges.
On August 25, 2020 Secretary Pompeo, in consultation with the Department of Homeland Security, has temporarily expanded the ability of consular officers to waive the in-person interview requirement for individuals applying for a nonimmigrant visa in the same classification. Previously, only those applicants whose nonimmigrant visa expired within 12 months were eligible for an interview waiver. The Secretary has temporarily extended the expiration period to 24 months. This policy is in effect until December 31, 2020. This change will allow consular officers to continue processing certain nonimmigrant visa applications while limiting the number of applicants who must appear at a...
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today (08/25/2020) announced that the agency will avert an administrative furlough of more than 13,000 employees. USCIS expects to be able to maintain operations through the end of fiscal year 2020 based on “unprecedented spending cuts and a steady increase in daily incoming revenue and receipts”. USCIS claims that the aggressive spending reduction measures will impact all agency operations and will drastically increase wait times for pending case inquiries with the USCIS Contact Center, cause longer case processing times, and increase the adjudication time for aliens adjusting status or naturalizing. USCIS is asking Congress to...
USCIS/DHS extends the flexibility policy of Form I-9 requirements to September 17, 2020. The provision applies only to employees and workplaces that are operating remotely.
The Houston immigration court in Houston, Texas will continue to be closed until September 04, 2020.
USCIS plans to furlough 13,000 employees on August 30, 2020 unless it receives 1.2 billion bailout from Congress, It is estimated that USCIS will end the fiscal year on September 30, 2020 with a sizeable carryover balance.
Non-essential travel across the borders of Mexico and Canada will continue to be limited until September 21, 2020.
According to a legal decision by the Government Accountability Office issued on Friday August 14, 2020, both acting Secretary Chad Wolf and Senior Official Performing the Duties of Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli are ineligible for their posts under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act and the Homeland Security Act, and are serving illegally. Wolf and Cuccinelli were named to their positions “by reference to an invalid order of succession,” GAO said. The auditors, who have authority to review the propriety of appointments under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, did not rule on the fallout of their invalid service, instead deferring to...
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