During the second term of President Barack Obama, certain improvements to the immigration process were made by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS). While these improvements were certainly welcome, they still fell short of their intended goals.
It is in the best interest of both DHS and USCIS to streamline and improve the immigration process, but the reality is that comprehensive reform would be needed to truly achieve efficiency. Until then, the best hope for applicants who wish to speed up the process is to seek the assistance of an immigration attorney in San Diego experienced with handling expedited processing requests.
Expedited processing is an option that the USCIS makes available under certain circumstances, and the most common is for H-1B applications for skilled workers. Other situations must denote an emergency such as:
* When a travel restriction is in effect while awaiting issuance of a green card and the applicant must travel abroad to visit a dying relative.
* When an applicant will be unable to attend an interview scheduled by the USCIS due to scheduled surgery and convalescence.
* When an applicant needs Supplemental Security Income (SSI) but cannot receive payments until USCIS completes the adjustment of status.
For the first two cases above, the first step involves writing a letter that explains the situation and its urgency. This letter should be very clear in terms of explaining the situation, which means that it should include important details such as:
Case number
Names of applicant and petitioner
Dates of birth
Medical records
SSI forms
A seasoned immigration attorney will be able to compose the letter and cite any pertinent rules or case law to support expedited processing. For example, the need to speed up the process to be able to receive SSI can be supported by the court ruling of Kaplan, et al. v. Chertoff, et al., CV 06-5304.
The letter and supporting documents should be copied and sent via certified mail to the USCIS office determined by the attorney. If no response has been received after 30 days, a follow up letter can be sent before trying to establish direct telephone contact.
For more information or help with the immigration process, don’t hesitate to reach out to the lawyers at Kazmi & Sakata Attorneys at Law by calling (858) 874-0711. You can request a complimentary consultation and receive free immigration help in San Diego. Call today. We are here to help!
