The Immigration and Naturalization Service (the “INS”) has announced that the waiting times for naturalization in several major cities has declined significantly as a result of “Citizenship USA,” the INS’ major plan to reduce the processing times for citizenship applications. Citizenship USA has been implemented in Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Chicago and San Francisco, cities that represent more than 75% of all pending citizenship applications. The plan includes the hiring of 850 new naturalization officers nationwide, direct filing of naturalization applications with INS regional service centers, streamlining testing and interviewing, improvements in technology and increasing the capacity to swear in large numbers of applicants. The INS is working with community-based organizations (“CBOs”) to develop on-site naturalization interviewing at various locations in a community, contact applicants and provide volunteer assistance at the sites. The INS has reported that waiting times in Los Angeles have decreased from 15 months to 10 months and the waiting time in New York has been reduced to 10 months.
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