Updates ON USCIS filing processes and legislations. The Law Office of Ify Ononogbu aims to keep everyone up to date with the latest insights in immigration news and updates for the United States.
Here is what’s happening in immigration in April 2022
Visa Bulletin for April 2022
The U.S Department of State releases monthly updates to priority dates indicating when immigrant visa applicants should be notified to assemble and submit required documentation to the National Visa Center. View the latest green card waiting lists as of April 2022.
April 4th, 2022
The latest Bulletin from the U.S Department of State has been released for April 2022. The Bulletin shows that Family-based applicants — except those in the F-2A category — must use the “Dates for Filing” (available on the State Department’s website), whereas F-2A must use the “Final Action Dates.” Employment-based visa applicants must use the Dates for Filing, as must applicants filing from outside the United States.
USCIS has announced plans to reduce wait times, expand premium processing, and provide relief for immigrant workers. New cycle time goals for Form N-400, N-600, I-130, and more is 6 months, to be achieved by the end of FY 2023. Premium processing for I-129 and I-140 also has a new cycle time goal of 2 weeks.
The Biden administration is expected to end the use of Title 42 to expel asylum-seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border by May 23, more than two years after the program was first implemented. Title 42, the policy introduced by the Trump administration which has allowed migrants seeking asylum at the U.S. – Mexico borders to be immediately turned away without a hearing is to be officially ended.
USCIS is extending deadlines to respond until July 25, this will most likely be the last time that deadlines are being extended as services are returning back to normal.
April 11th, 2022
Immigration officers will be able to decide whether to waive removal of conditions interviews for family-based immigrants with conditional green cards. In 2018, the Trump administration barred officers from using their own judgment in these cases. The updated policy rolls back the 2018 guidance and restores interview waiver discretion to USCIS adjudicators.
The Biden administration has instructed Immigration and Customs Enforcement attorneys to consider dismissing deportation cases that are not arrest priorities under the agency’s rules. Not only is this an attempt to tackle the backlog of cases in immigration court, but also the latest in a series of policy changes that have marked a departure from the Trump administration’s aggressive enforcement measures.
The number of green cards being issued has rebounded to pre-covid levels, in particular through the adjustment of status process from within the United States. Between June and September 2021, around 282,000 green cards were issued compared to 72,000 at the height of the pandemic.
April 18th, 2022
DACA recipients can now file for their renewals online. This is an effort from USCIS to speed up operations. The online filing is only available for renewals, first time applicants are still required to send paper applications via mail.
Cameroonian nationals are now eligible for Temporary Protected Status due to the ongoing armed conflict in the nation. Individuals who are already residing in the United States as of April 14, 2022, will be eligible to live and work in the U.S. for up to 18 months.
New data shows that immigrant households contributed 15.4% of the total tax revenues governments received from U.S. residents, whereas they only make up 14.8% of U.S. households. In 2019 alone, immigrant households paid $492.4 billion in taxes.
April 24th, 2022
Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced a controversial policy to bus people legally in the U.S. seeking asylum from Texas to Washington, D.C. This is a move from the Governor in response to the Biden administration ending Title 42, the controversial policy by the Trump administration that “expels” migrants and asylum seekers back to Mexico or their home country without a hearing or the opportunity to request asylum.
Ukrainian and Sudanese nationals are eligible for Temporary Protected Status. To be eligible under the Ukraine designation, individuals must demonstrate their continuous residence in the United States since April 11, 2022. To be eligible under the Sudan designation, individuals must demonstrate their continuous residence in the United States since March 1, 2022.
Get in touch today with your immigration and family law needs. Virtual and in-person consultations are available in Dallas, Texas with Attorney Ify.
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