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As of September 4, 2018, USCIS transferred some of the following cases from the Vermont Service Center to the Potomac Service Center and the Nebraska Service Center:

• Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status, for F, M, J or B nonimmigrants 

For more information, see  Workload Transfer Updates page.

On Sep. 10, USCIS changed the filing location for Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence. This form was previously filed at the California and Vermont service centers. Now, petitioners must send Form I-751 to a USCIS Lockbox facility. However, the California, Nebraska, Vermont, and Texas service centers will be the adjudicating offices. When filing at a Lockbox facility, petitioners have the option to pay the fee with a money order, personal check, cashier’s check, or credit card.

On Sept. 6, 2018, the CIS Ombudsman (CISOMB)1 held a stakeholder teleconference to discuss the USCIS “Issuance of Certain RFEs and NOIDs” policy memorandum (PM) that was issued on July 13, 2018. USCIS representatives provided an overview of the memorandum and addressed many questions submitted in advance by the CISOMB. The updated policy went into effect on September 11, 2018. Below is the link of the summary of the PM and the advance questions and answers from the teleconference. 

USCIS Case Status Online09/13/2018 12:00 AM EDTAgency Information Collection Activities; Extension, Without Change, of a Currently Approved Collection: USCIS Case Status OnlineMedical Certification for Disability Exception09/13/2018 12:00 AM EDTAgency Information Collection Activities; Extension, Without Change, of a Currently Approved Collection: Medical Certification for Disability Exception

Effective immediately, USCIS will begin accepting copies of negative consultation letters directly from labor unions relating to a current or future O nonimmigrant visa petition request. O-1 and O-2 nonimmigrant visas are available to individuals with extraordinary ability in science, education, business, athletics, or the arts, and individuals with extraordinary achievement in the motion picture or television industry, and certain essential support personnel. A consultation letter from a U.S.

WASHINGTON— U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced the agency will celebrate Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, observed on Sept. 17, with over 260 naturalization ceremonies across the country from Sept. 14 to 23 as part of this year’s celebration of Constitution Week. 

USCIS is sending text and email messages between Sept. 17 and Sept. 20, 2018, about filing Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card online. If you are a lawful permanent resident and your Green Card has expired or is about to expire, or if you need to replace it for another reason, you may file Form I-90 online. Go to the Form I-90 page on the USCIS website to begin your online application process.

USCIS has published a revised version of Form G-28, Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Accredited Representative, with an edition date of 09/17/18. This revised version removes the geographic requirement for sending an original notice to a U.S. address for attorneys and representatives that had been added to the 05/05/16 and 05/23/18 versions of the form.

USCIS is proposing to revise our Form I-912, Request for Fee Waiver, to remove the receipt of means-tested benefits from the eligibility criteria. A means-tested benefit is a public benefit where eligibility for the benefit, the amount of the benefit, or both, is based on an individual’s income level. Eligibility for these benefits can vary from state to state, depending on the state’s income level guidelines.

F-1 students who have an H-1B petition that remains pending on Oct. 1, 2018, risk accruing unlawful presence if they continue to work on or after Oct. 1 (unless otherwise authorized to continue employment), as their “cap-gap” work authorization is only valid through Sept. 30.

WASHINGTON — Under updated policy guidance (PDF, 97 KB), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is instructing its officers to apply the same level of scrutiny to both initial petitions and extension requests for certain nonimmigrant visa categories. The guidance applies to nearly all nonimmigrant classifications filed using Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker.

• Fact Sheet

  Office of the SpokespersonWashington, DC
  October 24, 2017
  
  

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  Based on Section 6(a) of Executive Order 13780, “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States,” the U.S. government undertook a 120-day review of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) to identify and implement additional security screening processes in order to uphold the safety of the American people.

  As a result, the President has issued a new Executive Order that provides for the general resumption of the USRAP.

The following Immigration Policy Memorandum is now available in the Policy Memoranda section of the USCIS website:

• Revised Guidance for Processing Cases Subject to Terrorism-Related Inadmissibility Grounds and Rescission of the Prior Hold Policy for Such Cases

USCIS generally process cases in the order they receive them. The link below provides you an estimate of how much time the office handling your case currently takes to process your type of application, petition, or request.

USCIS Processing Time Information