USCIS's 1-2 Policy Punch: Expansion of Denials and Notices to Appear

In a one-two punch, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has instituted two policy shifts that place immigrant and non-immigrant workers, investors, business owners, and their family members in harm's way legally.

First, as of September 11, 2018, USCIS will start denying petitions and applications without having to issue a Request for Evidence (RFE) or Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID), both of which have provided petitioners, applicants, and their lawyers the opportunity to respond to USCIS before the agency renders a decision. Given that USCIS can now deny cases even based on their own errors and subjective bias, this is a strongly negative turn of events.

In a related policy shift, USCIS will now begin removal proceedings against any person who becomes unlawfully present in the United States upon the denial of an application or petition, or where an application for U.S. citizenship (N-400) is denied due to a lack of good moral character. This will require the USCIS to issue a Notice to Appear (NTA), further clogging the already massively backlogged national Immigration Court system.

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Tenga en cuenta que a partir del 11 de Septiembre de 2018, el Servicio de Ciudadanía e Inmigración de los Estados Unidos (USCIS) comenzará a negar peticiones y solicitudes sin tener que emitir una Solicitud de Evidencia (RFE) o una Notificación de Intención de Denegar (NOID), ambas han proporcionado al demandante, solicitante y abogado la oportunidad de responder a USCIS antes de que la agencia tome una decisión. En un cambio de política relacionado, USCIS comenzará ahora procedimientos de deportación contra cualquier persona que se presente ilegalmente en los Estados Unidos al negar una solicitud o petición, o cuando se niegue una solicitud de ciudadanía estadounidense (N-400) debido a una falta de buen carácter moral.