STATE DEPARTMENT PULLS THE RUG OUT FROM UNDER GREEN CARD APPLICANTS
I promised I wouldn't blog today, but there's very distressing breaking news that needs to be disseminated.
The State Department has informed the American Immigration Lawyers Association that it is going back on its word and will issue a new Visa Bulletin on Monday or Tuesday that retrogresses all green card categories it made current in the July Visa Bulletin released earlier this month. The numbers may actually be worse or even be listed as unavailable.
According to AILA, USCIS has been feverishly working through green card applications to use up the 2007 quota numbers. DOS apparently made the numbers current because it wanted to force USCIS to work more cases and not leave substantial green card numbers left over at the end of the year, something it has done over and over again in the past.
This is horribly unfair and potentially illegal. Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of people have been working frenetically over the last few weeks to get their adjustment of status applications ready to file in July. That means money spent on medical exams (with many people flying out of town to find physicians able to accommodate them), money spent on lawyers, money spent getting documents translated on an expedited basis, etc. And then what about the emotional roller coaster people have been forced to bear.
A number of disturbing questions need to be asked:
- Did DOS plan on doing this all along? Were they trying to send a message to USCIS when they made the numbers current and once the message was apparently received, DOS would back down on its "threat"?
- Did USCIS speed up processing to try and ensure that all of the would be July applicants would have to file under the substantially increased filing fees that go in to effect in late July?
- If USCIS is capable of processing 40,000 cases so fast, what do they do the rest of the year? Why do they need big fee increases if they can move cases this quickly? If they can process 20,000 cases a week, why do we hear incessant whining from the agency on their ability to timely adjudicate applications and their need for more staff.
- What kind of message does this send future American citizens about transparency and fair dealing by our government?
- Is DOS even legally permitted to take such an action? Immigration regulations would seem to suggest otherwise.
If you're outraged, then you're paying attention. Let your Congressman and Senator know what you think.
I promised I wouldn't blog today, but there's very distressing breaking news that needs to be disseminated.
The State Department has informed the American Immigration Lawyers Association that it is going back on its word and will issue a new Visa Bulletin on Monday or Tuesday that retrogresses all green card categories it made current in the July Visa Bulletin released earlier this month. The numbers may actually be worse or even be listed as unavailable.
According to AILA, USCIS has been feverishly working through green card applications to use up the 2007 quota numbers. DOS apparently made the numbers current because it wanted to force USCIS to work more cases and not leave substantial green card numbers left over at the end of the year, something it has done over and over again in the past.
This is horribly unfair and potentially illegal. Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of people have been working frenetically over the last few weeks to get their adjustment of status applications ready to file in July. That means money spent on medical exams (with many people flying out of town to find physicians able to accommodate them), money spent on lawyers, money spent getting documents translated on an expedited basis, etc. And then what about the emotional roller coaster people have been forced to bear.
A number of disturbing questions need to be asked:
- Did DOS plan on doing this all along? Were they trying to send a message to USCIS when they made the numbers current and once the message was apparently received, DOS would back down on its "threat"?
- Did USCIS speed up processing to try and ensure that all of the would be July applicants would have to file under the substantially increased filing fees that go in to effect in late July?
- If USCIS is capable of processing 40,000 cases so fast, what do they do the rest of the year? Why do they need big fee increases if they can move cases this quickly? If they can process 20,000 cases a week, why do we hear incessant whining from the agency on their ability to timely adjudicate applications and their need for more staff.
- What kind of message does this send future American citizens about transparency and fair dealing by our government?
- Is DOS even legally permitted to take such an action? Immigration regulations would seem to suggest otherwise.
If you're outraged, then you're paying attention. Let your Congressman and Senator know what you think.
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