DHS Implements Keeping Families Together

Release Date

08/19/2024

WASHINGTON—The Department of Homeland Security today announced a Federal Register notice to implement Keeping Families Together, a process for certain noncitizen spouses and stepchildren of U.S. citizens. This is part of an effort to promote the unity and stability of families, increase the economic prosperity of American communities, strengthen diplomatic relationships with partner countries in the region, reduce strain on limited U.S. government resources, and further national security, public safety, and border security objectives.

“Too often, noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens – many of them mothers and fathers – live with uncertainty due to undue barriers in our immigration system.” said Ur M. Jaddou, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. “This process to keep U.S. families together will remove these undue barriers for those who would otherwise qualify to live and work lawfully in the U.S., while also creating greater efficiencies in the immigration system, conducting effective screening and vetting, and focusing on noncitizens who contribute to and have longstanding connections within American communities across the country.”

USCIS will immediately begin accepting requests from eligible individuals for this process on Aug. 19, 2024. Individuals must file Form I-131F, Application for Parole in Place for Certain Noncitizen Spouses and Stepchildren of U.S. Citizens, online after creating a myUSCIS account. The filing fee is $580. Fee waiver requests for Form I-131F will not be accepted.

Read more at: https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/news-releases/dhs-implements-keeping-families-together

Please, contact Darren Heyman, a Las Vegas Immigration Attorney, for more information.

USCIS Updates Customer Service and Safe Address Procedures for Individuals Protected Under Confidentiality Provisions

We have implemented provisions in the USCIS Policy Manual that provide guidance on customer service and safe address procedures for individuals protected under 8 U.S.C. 1367. The confidentiality provisions at 8 U.S.C. 1367 protect information about individuals who have pending or approved victim-based immigration relief, specifically relief under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), such as Form I-360 VAWA self-petitions and Form I-751 waivers based on battery or extreme cruelty, T nonimmigrant status applications or U nonimmigrant status petitions, and their derivatives and beneficiaries.

USCIS has established specific procedures to improve access to information and customer service (PDF, 332.75 KB) for these protected individuals through the USCIS Contact Center, while continuing to protect their privacy and follow statutory confidentiality provisions. Protected individuals may now submit inquiries or request a service by calling the USCIS Contact Center or sending a secure message from their USCIS online account.

The USCIS Contact Center will ask specific questions to verify a caller’s identity before providing services. See the “Inquiries for VAWA, T, and U Filings (Including Form I-751 Abuse Waivers)” section of our Contact Us webpage for important information. Callers should have documents ready, if possible, for reference when sending a secure message and during the call:

• A receipt notice for each form they are asking about; and

• A copy of relevant pending or approved applications or petitions.

Read more: https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/uscis-updates-customer-service-and-safe-address-procedures-for-individuals-protected-under

Please, contact Darren Heyman, a Las Vegas Immigration Attorney, for more information.

How Biden’s New Immigration Policy Works

President Biden’s new immigration policy protects some 500,000 people who are married to U.S. citizens from deportation and gives them a pathway to citizenship.

The election-year move comes just two weeks after Mr. Biden imposed a major crackdown at the U.S.-Mexico border, cutting off access to asylum for people who crossed into the United States illegally.

The policy announced on Tuesday is aimed at people who have been living in the United States for more than a decade and have built their lives and families here.

Here is how it works:

Read more at https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/18/us/politics/biden-immigration-policy.html

Please, contact Darren Heyman, a Las Vegas Immigration Attorney, for more information.