U.S. Immigration Updates- Week of October 3, 2022
Green Card Validity Extended to 24 Months for Renewals
Effective September 26, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is automatically extending the validity of permanent resident cards (green cards) to 24 months for lawful permanent residents who file Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card.
Lawful permanent residents who properly file Form I-90 to renew an expiring or expired green card may receive this extension. Form I-90 receipt notices had previously provided a 12-month extension of the validity of a green card. USCIS said it has updated the language on Form I-90 receipt notices to extend this validity to 24 months for individuals with a newly filed Form I-90.
On September 26, 2022, USCIS began printing amended receipt notices for individuals with a pending Form I-90. These receipt notices can be presented with an expired green card as evidence of continued status, USCIS said.
SOURCE: ABIL Immigration Insider, October 3, 2022 and https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/uscis-extends-green-card-validity-extension-to-24-months-for-green-card-renewals
Temporary Waiver of 60-Day Rule Extended for Civil Surgeon Signatures on Form I-693
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has extended its temporary waiver of the 60-day rule for civil surgeon signatures on Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record. The waiver, which was effective until September 30, 2022, has been extended to March 31, 2023.
The waiver applies to all Forms I-693 associated with applications for underlying immigration benefits that have not been adjudicated, regardless of when the application was submitted to USCIS or when a civil surgeon signed the Form I-693.
USCIS said the waiver will help applicants who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and related processing delays, which have sometimes delayed immigration medical examinations, as well as applicants, including Afghan nationals evacuated under Operation Allies Welcome, who completed immigration medical examinations but could not apply for adjustment of status within 60 days of a civil surgeon signing their Form I-693.
SOURCE: ABIL Immigration Insider, October 3, 2022, and https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/extension-of-temporary-waiver-of-60-day-rule-for-civil-surgeon-signatures-on-form-i-693
E-Verify Restores Client Company Enrollments
E-Verify announced on September 26, 2022, that it has resolved technical issues with client enrollments. According to E-Verify, employer agents can once again create and submit enrollments, and they will not experience any change in the process to enroll a new client.
For client enrollments pending registration, employer agents will need to re-send the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) email to the previously identified MOU signatory or upload a signed signature page on the client’s behalf to complete the enrollment process.
SOURCE: ABIL Immigration Insider, October 3, 2022: https://www.e-verify.gov/about-e-verify/whats-new/e-verify-client-company-enrollment-restored
Legislation Introduced to Broaden Legal Pathway to Citizenship
U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety, introduced legislation to expand a pathway to legal permanent resident (LPR) status for millions of long-term U.S. residents. The Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929 would update the existing Registry statute so that an immigrant may qualify for LPR status if they have lived in the U.S. continuously for at least seven years and are of good moral character.
The legislation would provide a much-needed pathway to a green card for up to eight million people, including Dreamers, forcibly displaced people, Temporary Protected Status holders, children of long-term visa holders who face deportation, essential workers, and highly skilled members of our workforce such as H-1B visa holders who have been waiting years for a green card to become available. According to FWD.us estimates, if the undocumented individuals covered in this bill became citizens, they would contribute approximately $83 billion to the U.S. economy annually and about $27 billion in taxes.
Section 249 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, also known as the Registry, gives the Secretary of Homeland Security the discretion to register certain individuals for LPR status if they have been in the country since a certain date and meet other requirements. Section 249 was first codified in 1929 and Congress has modified it four times, most recently in 1986. No changes have been made since 1986 and the cutoff date for eligibility remains January 1, 1972, more than 50 years ago.
The Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929 would:
- Amend the existing Registry statute by moving the eligibility cutoff date so that an immigrant may qualify for lawful permanent resident status if they have been in the U.S. for at least seven years before filing an application under the Registry.
- Preempt the need for further congressional action by making the eligibility cutoff rolling, instead of tying it to a specific date, as it is now.
SOURCE: https://www.durbin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/durbin-padilla-introduce-legislation-to-broaden-legal-pathway-to-citizenship