Immigration

USCIS Temporarily Closing Offices to the Public March 18-April 1

Effective March 18, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is suspending in-person services at its field offices, asylum offices and Application Support Centers (ASCs) to help slow the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). This suspension of services will be effective until at least April 1. In the meantime, USCIS will provide limited emergency services. Please call the Contact Center for assistance with emergency services.

USCIS field offices will send notices to applicants and petitioners with scheduled appointments and naturalization ceremonies impacted by this closure. USCIS asylum offices will send interview cancellation notices and automatically reschedule asylum interviews. When the interview is rescheduled, asylum applicants will receive a new interview notice with the new time, date and location of the interview. When USCIS again resumes normal operations, USCIS will automatically reschedule ASC appointments due to the office closure. You will receive a new appointment letter in the mail. Individuals who had InfoPass or other appointments must reschedule through the USCIS Contact Center once field offices are open to the public again. Please check to see if your field office has been reopened before reaching out to the USCIS Contact Center.   

Education and precautions are the strongest tools against infection. Get the latest facts by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID-19 website. Continue to practice good health habits, refrain from handshakes or hugs as greetings, and wash hands and clean surfaces appropriately.

USCIS will provide further updates as the situation develops and will continue to follow CDC guidance. Please also visit uscis.gov/coronavirus for updates.

MORE ON DACA: Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals

As a result of federal court orders on Jan. 9, 2018 and Feb. 13, 2018, USCIS has resumed accepting requests for DACA renewals. According to USCIS, the DACA policy will continue to operate on the terms prior to the Sept. 5, 2017 rescission, until further notice. For more detailed information, visit the USCIS page on the latest preliminary injunction.

DACA Renewals

You may request renewal of DACA if you met the initial 2012 DACA guidelines  and you:

• Did not depart the United States on or after Aug. 15, 2012, without advance parole;
• Have continuously resided in the United States since you submitted your most recent DACA request that was approved;
• Have not been convicted of a felony, a significant misdemeanor, or three or more other misdemeanors; and
• Do not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.

As noted above, you may only request renewal of DACA if you previously received DACA and your DACA expired (or will expire) on or after Sept. 5, 2016. 

Initial DACA Requests

If you have never been granted deferred action under DACA, USCIS will not accept your initial DACA request.

USCIS is only accepting initial DACA requests from individuals who previously received DACA and whose DACA expired before Sept. 5, 2016, or whose most recent DACA grant was previously terminated. Such individuals cannot file a renewal request, but can file a new initial DACA request. If you are filing a new initial DACA request because your DACA expired before Sept. 5, 2016, or because your most recent DACA grant was previously terminated, please list the date your prior DACA expired or was terminated on Part 1 of the Form I-821D, if available.

Advanced Parole

USCIS no longer approves applications for an advance parole document relating to DACA. If you want to travel outside the United States, you must have previously received advance parole and have a valid advance parole document.

While USCIS will not approve any new applications for an advance parole document relating to DACA, it will generally honor the stated validity period on your previously approved advance parole document. However, CBP will retain the authority it has always exercised in determining the admissibility of any person presenting at the border. Further, USCIS retains the authority to revoke or terminate an advance parole document at any time.

What changed?

•   For current DACA recipients, technically nothing. DREAMers with active DACA permits can continue to live their lives just as they did any other day. However, without legislative solutions, there is no guarantee what tomorrow brings.

•   For individuals who did not previously have a DACA permit, no new applications will be processed.

What can I do?

•   If you are eligible to apply for renewal, do so immediately. Due to two federal court injunctions, USCIS is still accepting renewal applications. USCIS recommends 90 to 120 days to process renewal applications, but renewal time could take longer.

What does the future hold?

•   The future of DREAMers rests in the hands of the courts. Currently, federal courts have prevented an end to DACA, however this could end at any time.

•    The Trump Administration has announced ICE will not actively target DACA recipients who permits have expired, however ICE has also announced it will enforce current U.S. law when officer’s encounter undocumented individuals. DACA recipients have been deported. DACA recipients without valid permits are just as vulnerable to arrest or deportation as anyone else. “