Earlier this week, Siskind, Susser, Haas & Devine learned that a number of INS offices around the country have been circulating announcements that they had suspended issuing employment authorization documents as well as advance parole documents. For example, a Texas INS office issued the following announcement:
“Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Immigration and Naturalization Service will be unable to issue Employment Authorization Documents and Travel Documents until further notice. It is expected that this situation will be resolved in approximately sixty (60) days. If your employer has any questions, they are welcome to contact the service at 800-375-5283. We sincerely apologize for the extreme inconvenience this
situation will cause you and your family.”
We checked with a spokesman for the INS and learned that a memorandum was indeed circulated on November 13th to INS field offices on this subject. The memorandum informed all field adjudicators that they are to complete all appropriate security background checks, regardless of the INS benefit, and that a final adjudication cannot be made until all clearances have been obtained. An additional memorandum was issued yesterday and provided to us that seeks to clear up various misconceptions about the November 13th memorandum and assist INS offices in responding to inquiries relating to the November 13th memorandum.
There are two key points that need to be clarified regarding what the memorandum did NOT say:
The memorandum only applies to asylum, adjustment of status and naturalization applications and not to travel documents or employment authorization documents. Previous rules requiring IBIS background clearances on work and travel documents continue to apply. There is NO moratorium on issuing approvals on the applications
covered in the memorandum.
The original memorandum instructs all INS offices to cease same-day adjudications of benefits when there is not a temporary A-file created for a particular applicant. The memorandum also instructs officers to “ensure that benefits are not granted to ineligible applicants.” While this might seem to cover work and travel documents since they are typically the only applications adjudicated on a same day basis, a
source at INS headquarters confirmed that this is not the case. It is not clear what other types of applications could potentially be approved on a same day basis, but it has become clear that it is this particular item in the November 13th memorandum that has caused the most confusion at local INS offices.
If an applicant only has a temporary A-file, certain additional steps must also be taken by an adjudicator. That would include checking the Central Index System at the INS to see if an applicant’s name exists in other INS systems. If nothing is found, the examiner must note this and must list the various background checks that were performed. Then a supervising officer must sign off on the case and approve the
adjudication of the application. If there is a record or the possibility of a record of any sort, the adjudicator needs to locate the record and then have a specific senior official at the INS office or service center sign off.
The American Immigration Lawyers Association report ed early Friday that several INS District Offices immediately suspended or altered their policies regarding issuing same day employment authorization documents and travel documents. They include Boston, Minneapolis and Harlingen, Texas. AILA later reported that Fujie Ohata of the INS’ Immigrant Services Division is now saying that no INS offices have stopped
adjudicating work and travel cards, though adjustment and naturalization cases could be slowed in some cases by the new procedures.
In the November 21st follow up document, the INS noted that all background checks must be complete and there are no guidelines on what is an appropriate amount of time. When we asked if there is an average or target time for security checks, we were told by the spokesman that there is no target, but that there is a feeling that most clearances should take no longer than 60 days. But this is just a rule of thumb and cases could take longer from time to time.
The November 21st memorandum states that the “INS is continuing to process all benefit applications; there is no moratorium. Cases may not be approved, however, without the completion of the requisite security checks… All benefit applications will continue to be processed in a timely and equitable basis, given heightened level of vigilance and security considerations.”
The implication of this change in procedure is that one day processing of work and travel documents will likely decrease significantly across the country and two to three month processing times will become even more common. INS offices that have always taken this length of time should hopefully not experience problems in complying in a timely manner with the new requirements. INS offices may be temporarily halting issuing documents while they determine how to comply with the rules, but these decisions are being made locally and not as a result of any order from INS headquarters.
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