USCIS to Begin Using More Secure Mail Delivery Service

From USCIS News:

WASHINGTON - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that the agency will begin phasing in use of the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) Signature Confirmation Restricted Delivery service to mail Green Cards and other secure documents beginning April 30, 2018.

The first phase will affect documents that need to be re-mailed because they have been returned as non-deliverable. These documents include Permanent Resident Cards (also called Green Cards), Employment Authorization Cards, and Travel Booklets. Applicants who have changed mailing addresses during the course of the application process are more likely to have their secure documents sent with the new delivery method, which USCIS will expand to all secure documents in the future.

As part of the new delivery method, applicants mus

USCIS Premieres Video Highlighting its Historic Connections to Ellis Island

From USCIS News:

Video: USCIS and the Legacy of Ellis Island

WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today released a new documentary video, USCIS and the Legacy of Ellis Island, following an internal premiere for the agency’s employees. From 1892 to 1954, the federal immigration service and its employees processed over twelve million immigrants at the Ellis Island Immigration Station in New York Harbor. 

The video, created by USCIS, tells the story of Ellis Island from the perspective of those who worked there, highlighting the historical connections between our agency’s mission to administer lawful immigratio

Outage: Case Status by Text Message

From USCIS Alerts:

Because of system maintenance, we are not able to send you text messages updating you about changes in the status of your case. We do not know when the system will be back to normal. However, you can still get updates on our website.

Tools Outage

From USCIS Alerts:

USCIS will conduct system maintenance on Wednesday, April 25, 2018, from 9 p.m. until midnight (Eastern).

During this time, our online tools may be unavailable, including:

• Check My Case Status
• e-Request
• Change of Address Online
• Check Processing Times
• Civil Surgeon Locator
• FOIA Status Check
• Office Locator
• Forms by Mail

Credit Card Payment Now Available for Form N-565, Application for Replacement Naturalization/Citizenship Document

From USCIS Alerts:

The USCIS Phoenix Lockbox facility is now accepting Form N-565, Application for Replacement Naturalization/Citizenship Document.

As of April 18, the Nebraska Service Center no longer accepts this form and forwards N-565 applications to the Phoenix Lockbox.

With the transfer to a Lockbox facility, applicants may now pay the filing fee by credit card using Form G-1450, Authorization for Credit Card Transactions.

Substantial Support from USCIS Fraud Detection Unit Leads to Convictions in Two Separate Immigration Fraud Cases

From USCIS News:

LOS ANGELES – This week, two immigration fraud perpetrators were sentenced to prison due to the considerable efforts of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Los Angeles Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) unit. Los Angeles FDNS immigration officers worked closely with law enforcement and intelligence community partners to resolve potential fraud, national security and public safety concerns, and to ensure exchange of current and comprehensive information. 

“Convictions in both cases send a powerful message to anyone trying to take advantage of our community or defraud the government,” said USCIS Los Angeles District Director Donna Campagnolo. “Fighting fraud and ensuring the integrity of our immigration system are top priorities for USCIS. We remain committed and vi

E-Verify Outage and New Features

From USCIS Alerts:

E-Verify, the free system that allows employers to confirm the eligibility of their employees to work in the United States, will be unavailable from April 20 at 9 p.m. until April 22 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern, while we implement system enhancements. For more information on how the outage will affect the creation of E-Verify cases see the fact sheet on our website.

On April 23, we will release a modernized version of E-Verify that will help users enter correct information, increase the speed and accuracy of the employment eligibility verification process, decrease Tentative Nonconfirmations (TNCs), and red