January 30, 2024
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final rule to adjust certain immigration and naturalization benefit request fees for the first time since 2016. The final rule will allow USCIS to recover a greater share of its operating costs and support more timely processing of new applications.
December 27, 2023
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced a final rule that will increase the filing fee for Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing, to adjust for inflation.
November 21, 2023
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced today that we are expanding myProgress (formerly known as personalized processing times) to Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status, and Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. myProgress will initially only be available for family-based or Afghan special immigrant I-485 applicants.
Visa processing in many countries continue to be delayed, with limited visa appointment availability. Third Country National (TCN) visa processing is increasingly limited or has been suspended in certain countries, including Canada and Mexico. It is strongly advised to schedule a visa appointment prior to departure from the U.S., especially if you will not be processing in/traveling to your Home Country, i.e. a TCN request. Please use the Department of State Website to better understand processing times at the consulate of your choice. Individual consulate websites will also help you better understand current visa processing procedures at that site, including whether an interview will be required. First-time applicants for a visa of a given type could be referred for secondary processing resulting in additional delay. For applicants applying for the same category of visa they have held before, this risk is reduced. Remember to consider whether you have any dependent family members that may also require visa processing.
An electronic Form I-94 is issued to almost all non-immigrant visa holders during the admission process at the U.S. port of entry. Inspect your Form I-94 carefully each time you enter the US to ensure that you and your family (if applicable) are admitted in the correct status for the full length of your approved status. If either the status or expiration date are incorrect, it may be necessary to take corrective steps to prevent violations of your immigration status and from accumulating time in unlawful presence, which may result in a 3-10 year bar to re-entry into the U.S.
Form I-94 at Land Borders: Recently, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) requested that travelers apply for their Form I-94 and prepay online before arriving at a land border. The announcement also contains travel tips, including pointers on monitoring border wait times and understanding customs and other policies surrounding border travel.
