USCIS Awards FY 2021 Citizenship and Integration Grants

Nearly $10 Million Will Expand Citizenship Preparation Services in 25 States

Introduction

On Sept. 20, 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced the award of $10 million in grants to 40 organizations that prepare lawful permanent residents (LPRs) for naturalization. The grants also aim to promote prospective citizens' integration into American civic life by funding educational programs designed to increase their knowledge of English, U.S. history and civics. Located in 25 states, these organizations will receive federal funding to support citizenship preparation services for LPRs through September 2023.

Background

Since it began in 2009, the <a data-entity-substitution="canonical" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="75c18082-056e-4c9d-945c-68ce87fe9f70" href="https://www.uscis.gov/citizenship/civic-in

Visa Bulletin November 2021 Predictions

For official October 2021 Visa Bulletin & Analysis, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2021/visa-bulletin-october-2021.aspx

Please see November 2021 Visa Bulletin Predictions below (for both Family Based and Employment Based categories for all countries):

Family Based:

Final Action Dates

Dates For Filing Applications

"Final Action Date" is the date when when USCIS/DOS may render their final decision on submitted applications. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	08DEC14	08DEC14	08DEC14	15FEB99	08MAR12
F2A	C	C	C	C	C
F2B	01NOV15	01NOV15	01NOV15	15APR00	01NOV11
F3	08DEC08	08DEC08	08DEC08	08JUN97	15JUN02
F4	08APR07	08APR07	01OCT05	01MAR99	15SEP02

"Date for Filing Application" is the date when you can submit I-485/NVC applications to USCIS/DOS. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	08JUN16	08JUN16	08JUN16	15AUG00	15JUL15
F2A	01JUL21	01JUL21	01JUL21	01JUL21	01JUL21
F2B	08OCT16	08OCT16	08OCT16	01NOV00	22NOV13
F3	01SEP09	01SEP09	01SEP09	15SEP00	01NOV03
F4	22OCT07	22OCT07	22JAN06	22JUN99	22MAR04

USCIS to Welcome 21,000 New Citizens in Celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day

WASHINGTON— U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will celebrate Constitution Day and Citizenship Day this year by welcoming 21,000 new citizens in 335 naturalization ceremonies across the country between Sept. 17 and 23.

"It is an honor to welcome so many new Americans this Citizenship Day and Constitution Day," said USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou. "Citizenship Day and Constitution Day are special days at USCIS – an agency where many people come to work every day to help those at home and abroad realize the full meaning of U.S. citizenship. As we take time to reflect on what citizenship means to each of us, let us share in the commitment to invest fully in this country's promise to be a place of hope and possibilities for all."

On Sept. 17, the nation observes Constitution Day and Citizenship Day as part of Constitution We

USCIS Expands Credit Card Payment Pilot Program to Texas Service Center

As part of our credit card payment pilot program, the Texas Service Center is now accepting credit card payments using Form G-1450, Authorization for Credit Card Transactions, for petitioners filing Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, with Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, or when filing Form I-907 to upgrade a pending Form I-140 to premium processing.

At the end of the pilot,

COVID-19 Vaccination Required for Immigration Medical Examinations

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced that, effective Oct. 1, 2021, applicants subject to the immigration medical examination must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before the civil surgeon can complete an immigration medical examination and sign Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record.

We are updating our policy guidance in accordance with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Aug. 17, 2021 update to the Technical Instructions for Civil Surgeons. That update requires applicants subject to the immigration medical examination to complete the

DHS Continues Temporary Protected Status Designations for El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua and Sudan

WASHINGTON—The Department of Homeland Security has announced the automatic extension of TPS designations for El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Sudan. TPS beneficiaries from these six countries will retain their status, provided they continue to meet all the individual requirements for TPS eligibility. The automatic extension of TPS-related documentation includes Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) through Dec. 31, 2022.

Eligible individuals whose TPS under the Haiti designation is presently continued by court orders and this notice are strongly encouraged to apply for Haiti TPS under the recently announced <a data-entity-substitution="canonical" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="fec6d7a4-679d-4a3f-b207-91c5926bf7e6" href="https://www.uscis.gov/news/news-releases/dhs-announces-registration-process-for-temporary-protected-status-f

October 2021 Visa Bulletin Analysis

For October 2021 Visa Bulletin, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2021/visa-bulletin-october-2021.aspx

Please see below analysis of October 2021 Visa Bulletin:

Family Based:

Final Action Dates

Dates For Filing Applications

"Final Action Date" is the date when when USCIS/DOS may render their final decision on submitted applications. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F2A	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F2B	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F3	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F4	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change

"Date for Filing Application" is the date when you can submit I-485/NVC applications to USCIS/DOS. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F2A	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F2B	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F3	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F4	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change

October 2021 Visa Bulletin

For September 2021 Visa Bulletin, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2021/visa-bulletin-september-2021.aspx

For analysis of October 2021 Visa Bulletin, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2021/visa-bulletin-analysis-october-2021.aspx

October 2021 Visa Bulletin has been officially released (valid from October 1 to October 31 only). Please see below for more details.

Family Based:

Final Action Dates

Dates For Filing Applications

"Final Action Date" is the date when when USCIS/DOS may render their final decision on submitted applications. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability  Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland  born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	01DEC14	01DEC14	01DEC14	15JAN99	01MAR12
F2A	C	C	C	C	C
F2B	22SEP15	22SEP15	22SEP15	15MAR00	22OCT11
F3	22NOV08	22NOV08	22NOV08	15MAY97	08JUN02
F4	22MAR07	22MAR07	15SEP05	08FEB99	22AUG02

"Date for Filing Application" is the date when you can submit I-485/NVC applications to USCIS/DOS. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability  Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland  born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	15MAY16	15MAY16	15MAY16	01AUG00	22APR15
F2A	01JUN21	01JUN21	01JUN21	01JUN21	01JUN21
F2B	22SEP16	22SEP16	22SEP16	01OCT00	01OCT13
F3	22AUG09	22AUG09	22AUG09	08SEP00	01OCT03
F4	01OCT07	01OCT07	01JAN06	01JUN99	01FEB04

October 2021 Visa Bulletin Special Notes

For the official October 2021 Visa Bulletin & Analysis, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2021/visa-bulletin-october-2021.aspx

Apart from posting current dates, State Department has also added special notes to Visa Bulletin mentioned above. Please see full details below:

D. EXPIRATION OF TWO EMPLOYMENT CATEGORIES

Employment Fourth Preference Certain Religious Workers (SR):

Pursuant to Section 102 of Division I, Title I of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Public Law 116-260), the non-minister special immigrant program expires on September 30, 2021. No SR visas may be issued overseas, or final action taken on adjustment of status cases, after midnight September 29, 2021. Visas issued prior to this date will only be issued with a validity date of September 29, 2021, and all individuals seeking admission as a non-minister special immigrant must be admitted (repeat, admitted) into the U.S. no later than midnight September 29, 2021.

The final action date for this category has been listed as "Unavailable" for October.

If there is legislative action extending this category for FY-2022, the final action

USCIS Extends Evidence of Status for Conditional Permanent Residents to 24 Months with Pending Form I-751 or Form I-829

Starting Sept. 4, 2021, USCIS is extending the time that receipt notices can be used to show evidence of status from 18 months to 24 months for petitioners who properly file Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence, or Form I-829, Petition by Investor to Remove Conditions on Permanent Resident Status. We are making the change from 18 to 24 months to accommodate current processing times for Form I-751 and Form I-829, which have increased over the past year.

Conditional permanent residents who properly file Form I-751 or Form I-829 will

USCIS Creates New Webpage for Lockbox Filing Location Updates

We have created a new Lockbox Filing Location Updates page on our website for customers to keep track of updates we make to lockbox filing locations. You can use this page to easily see which lockbox form filing locations we have updated and when we made the update. We will update this page regularly, but we always encourage you to check the "Where to File" section of your form's webpage for the most current information on where to mail your form.

We periodically adjust filing locations among our lockbox facilities to balance our incoming workload for timely processing.

To receive updates on these lockbox filing location changes, please <a target='_blank' href="https: