On September 17, 2019, a class action lawsuit was filed in the Eastern District of New York on behalf of thousands of U-visa petitioners whose requests for work permits known as Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) have never been adjudicated, and who have been forced to wait unreasonable periods of time for the benefits Congress provided in the U-visa program.
The class includes anyone who
(1) submitted a U-visa petition on or before March 17, 2019;
(2) requested employment authorization in connection with the U-visa petition; and
(3) has not received a waiting-list determination or an EAD from USCIS.
If the suit is successful, USCIS will be required to make EAD determinations for everyone in the class and to make waiting-list determinations for a subset of the class.
There are three primary claims.
First, USCIS has violated the law by failing to timely adjudicate U-visa petitions for placement on the regulatory waiting list. The current processing time just to be placed on the waiting list is more than four years, leaving petitioners in limbo without work authorization or protection from deportation for that time. This claim applies to the subset of class members who filed U-visa petitions on or before September 17, 2017.
Second, USCIS violated its own regulations by failing to issue automatic interim EADs when it failed to adjudicate EAD requests within 90 days. This claim applies to the subset of class members who filed U-visa petitions on or before January 17, 2017.
Third, USCIS has unlawfully failed to adjudicate EAD applications submitted by U-visa petitioners whose petitions are bona fide. This claim is brought on behalf of all class members.
