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DHS Office of Inspector General Report on Implementation of L-1 Visa Regulations

Senator Charles Grassley requested that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General examine the potential for fraud or abuse in the L-1 intracompany transferee visa program. The L-1 visa program facilitates the temporary transfer of foreign nationals with management, professional, and specialist skills to the United States.

Frequently Asked Questions e-filing using USCIS ELIS

Q1: What is USCIS ELIS?
A1: USCIS ELIS is a secure web-based system that allows immigration benefit seekers and their legal representatives to create an account and file benefit requests online.

• USCIS policy memo indicating that the listing of the advance notification of Diversity Visa (DV) availability in the Visa Bulletin enables the filing of DV adjustment applications with DV numbers ranked below the specified cut-off number, even though a visa is not yet available.
• Pleae check the attached Policy memo.

As announced in Ref A, 9 FAM 40.92 has been updated with information and guidance to consular officers related to a new final rule permitting certain immediate relatives of U.S. citizens to apply to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) for an I-601A provisional waiver of unlawful presence before leaving the United States for their immigrant visa appointments. This cable provides supplemental information for posts in processing these cases.

For more information on this please click the attachment.

U.S. embassies and consulates are sometimes forced to limit or, at times, suspend visa services because of natural disasters, civil unrest, war, and/or security concerns, among other reasons. Information in the link provided below notes the U.S. embassies and consulates that currently provide limited visa services, locations where visa services are suspended, and countries that do not have U.S. embassies or consulates.

For more information on this please visit the DOS website.

Please click the attachment or the link to view the DACA Processing Dates.

The Department has published a Notice in the Federal Register announcing a 60-day comment period on its proposed changes to the form ETA-9033, Attestation by Employers Using Alien Crewmembers for Longshore Activities in U.S. Ports and ETA-9033A, Attestation by Employers Using Alien Crewmembers for Longshore Activities in the State of Alaska. To read the Notice, please click here.

Current Average FOIA Request Processing Times

(All times in business days)

USCIS uses a three-track system to process FOIA requests for alien file material.

In order to provide faster and more efficient service beginning August 16 USCIS will be changing call routing procedures at the National Customer Service Center (NCSC). This will be a great advantage for attorneys and  BIA accredited representatives. Attorney's can quickly connect with the NCSC customer service representative and avoid long delays.Customer representatives will evaluate the nature of the call and transfer or accept service request for detailed review.