The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released policy guidance, effective October 29, 2019, modifying certain residency requirements for obtaining U.S. citizenship. Notably, this policy impacts children born abroad to U.S. government employees and U.S. armed forces members. Under the new policy guidance, "children...
For the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to approve an application for naturalization (form N-400), the applicant for citizenship generally must first pass a U.S. civics and history test, and demonstrate the ability to read, write, and speak English. The USCIS has announced that...
Processing times at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) have long been a point of concern. And the Trump Administration's efforts to implement roadblocks in the legal immigration system have only exacerbated the situation. Since the last fiscal year of the Obama Administration, the...
On May 10, 2019, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated the Adjudicator's Field Manual (AFM) to reduce the circumstances under which the USCIS will consider granting a case expedited treatment. In general, the USCIS has the authority to grant an expedite request on...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that it will be closing all international operations (IO) division offices by the end of 2019. The USCIS IO division is comprised of 24 field offices in 21 foreign countries. These offices have served as hubs...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has added an online submission option for two immigration forms: the application for certificate of citizenship (form N-600), and the application for citizenship and issuance of certificate under section 322 (form N-600K). Form N-600 is used to obtain...
A new online fee calculator has been added to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) website to help stakeholders properly calculate the amount owed when applying for certain immigration benefits. This calculator is designed to help reduce the number of applications and petitions the...
President Donald Trump recently announced that he intends to revoke birthright citizenship through an executive order. However, this appears to be little more than political posturing, as legal experts nearly all agree that the President has no ability to alter this legal right provided by...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) policy manual has been updated with regard to marriage and cohabitation requirements for those applying for citizenship based on marriage to a U.S. citizen (USC). As summarized in the USCIS policy alert, the policy update clarifies how long...
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a proposed regulation regarding inadmissibility on public charge grounds. A public charge is a person who is deemed likely to become financially dependent on public benefits.Generally speaking, a person applying for lawful permanent residence (commonly referred...
