The pandemic strikes the immigration sector

With the arrival of the coronavirus in the US, there were sudden changes in the most important sectors of our society. For instance, the immigration sector has recently undergone major changes. These changes are not only related to processes and applications, but also to the entities in charge of immigration processes.

That is the case of the US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), which is the primary entity in charge of all immigration processes, applications and requests.

The USCIS is going through a tough financial situation. Due to the fact that most of its income comes from the fees applicants must pay when starting an immigration process, the USCIS had a downturn in revenue during the massive outbreak of Coronavirus in the US.

There are also other reasons why the USCIS is going through a downturn in revenue.

Let’s see some of them:

• Its offices remained closed for more than two months to avoid a surge of Coronavirus within its offices and to protect its employees.
• Most immigration processes were paused for a considerable period of time since the borders of the US were closed and foreigners were not allowed to enter temporarily.
• Green Card applications (one of the highest income of the USCIS) are not available until the end of the year and have been suspended for more than two months already.

Therefore, the USCIS economic recession forced it to take several emergency measures.

Let’s see some of them:

• The USCIS asked Congress for a total of $ 1.2 billion to address the downturn in revenue and protect the wages of its employees. However, Congress has not given an official response to this request.
• If the USCIS does not receive monetary aid from Congress, it may have to furlough at least 70% of its employees beginning in August 2020, which would delay immigration processes even more.
• The USCIS is considering repaying monetary aid from Congress, by increasing the application fees.

This means that if Congress does not provide financial aid to the USCIS soon, the measures implemented could harm both a large part of its employees and applicants.

The government discusses the USCIS situation

Several members of the US Congress (both Republicans and Democrats) decided to contact the Trump government to enter into a dialogue about the necessary actions to avoid the furloughs of USCIS employees.

Congress asks the Trump administration to send the official request to be able to release the funds and bailout the USCIS.

In fact, one of the members of Congress stated: “Everyone is in agreement and focusing on the fact that we’re going to prevent those furloughs. But unfortunately, with OMB (Office of Management and Budget) not taking any action at this time, it is very difficult to sit down and finalize what exactly is needed.”

However, the Trump administration ensures that Congress has everything necessary to help the USCIS without the need of another government request.

This is a watershed moment for the agency in charge of immigration processes in the US.

Keep up to date with the latest Immigration News.

Prepare your immigration case correctly

In light of the current circumstances the USCIS is going through, it is imperative for you to properly organize your immigration application and avoid possible denial.

If you have any questions about an immigration issue or relating to a case you may have currently in progress, then please don’t hesitate to contact us for a FREE Phone Consultation with one of our expert immigration attorneys.

imply call Motion Law today at: (202) 918-1799.