Monthly Archive July 31, 2010

Introduction

On July 15, 2010, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced it has

approved 10,000 petitions for U nonimmigrant status (also referred to as the “U visa”)

in fiscal year 2010, an important milestone for a program that offers immigration

protection to victims of crime while also strengthening law enforcement efforts to

combat those crimes. This marks the first time that USCIS, through extensive outreach

and collaboration, has reached the statutory maximum of 10,000 U visas per fiscal year

since it began issuing U visas in 2008.

Questions and Answers

Q: What is the U Visa?

A. The U visa was created in the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act,

legislation intended to strengthen the ability of law enforcement agencies to investigate

and prosecute cases of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and other

crimes while, at the same time, offering protection to victims of such crimes.

U nonimmigrant status is set aside for victims of certain crimes who have suffered

substantial mental or physical abuse as a result of the criminal activity and are willing to

help law enforcement authorities in the investigation or prosecution of the criminal

activity. Congress limited the amount of available U visas to 10,000 per fiscal year.

Q: Will USCIS continue to accept new petitions for U nonimmigrants status for the

remainder of fiscal year 2010?

A: Yes. USCIS will continue to accept and process new petitions for U nonimmigrant

status and will issue a Notice of Conditional Approval to petitioners who are found

eligible but who are unable to receive a U visa in fiscal year 2010 because the statutory

cap has been reached. Conditionally approved petitioners will be placed on a waiting list

for the next available U visa.

Q. Will petitioners who receive conditional approval be able to apply for work

authorization? What about qualifying family members?

A: Yes. Conditional approval will allow the petitioner and qualifying family members to

remain in the United States under deferred action. The conditional approval will also

allow the petitioner and qualifying family members to request work authorization.

Q. Does this apply to petitioners and qualifying family members who are in removal

proceedings or who have a final order of removal?

A. Yes. If the petitioner or a qualifying family member is in removal proceedings or has a

final order of removal, USCIS will issue a Notice of Conditional Approval of U

nonimmigrant status and will also issue deferred action.

Q. When will USCIS begin issuing U visas again?

A. USCIS will resume issuing U visas for fiscal year 2011 on October 1, 2010.

Conditionally approved petitioners on the waiting list will receive a U visa in the order in

which the petition was initially filed. Petitioners who have received conditional approval

must remain admissible and eligible for U nonimmigrant status while on the waiting list.

After U visas have been issued to qualifying principal petitioners on the waiting list, any

remaining U visas for fiscal year 2011 will be issued to new qualifying principal

petitioners in the order in which petitions are filed.

Q. Does the annual cap for U visas also apply to family members of petitioners?

A. No. The annual cap for U visas applies only to principal petitioners. Qualifying family

members will also be placed on the waiting list since their petitions are dependent on

the principal’s petition. Qualifying family members on the waiting list will receive U

visas when the principal petitioner receives a U visa.

Q. What contributed to the annual cap being met this year?

A. A combination of factors contributed to the U visa statutory cap being met this year.

Over the last year USCIS has increased training, expanded communication channels,

and dedicated other resources to the U visa program. USCIS significantly enhanced

outreach around the U visa, educating service providers on the eligibility requirements

of a U visa petition and making dedicated efforts to reach both law enforcement

officials and community advocates alike. These and other factors have contributed to an

increase in the number of approved U visa petitions.
For More Information, Please Contact:
Fresno Immigration Attorney Phillip Kim
(559) 761-9742
https://phillipkimlaw.com/

Section 312 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) requires that naturalization

applicants must demonstrate an ability to read, write, and speak words in ordinary usage

in the English language, and have a knowledge and understanding of U.S. history and

government. As part of a multi-year redesign, the naturalization test was modified to

achieve two basic objectives:

A uniform and consistent testing experience for all applicants
A civics test that can effectively assess an applicant’s knowledge of U.S. history and

government
The new test strives to emphasize the founding principles of American democracy and

the rights and responsibilities of citizenship while also serving as an important

instrument to encourage civic learning and attachment to the country.

On October 1, 2008, USCIS began administering the new naturalization test. Up until

October 1, 2009, applicants who had filed for naturalization before October 1, 2008, had

a choice of taking the old test or the new test. On October 1, 2009, following a one-

year transition, the new test became mandatory for all naturalization applicants.

From October 1, 2008 through May 31, 2010, more than 789,000 new naturalization

tests were administered nationwide. For those applicants taking both the English and

civics tests, the overall national pass rate as of May 2010 is 92 percent. Data collected

since October 1, 2008 indicate that applicant performance remains relatively consistent

with that of the previous test. Compared to historical data from USCIS’ internal case

management systems, the current pass rate of 92 percent is similar to that of the old

test, which was 91 percent based on 2008 data.

Background on the Data
USCIS plans to periodically provide information on the national pass rate of applicants

who were administered the new naturalization test. The data reflected above were

taken from internal case management systems used to track naturalization applications

and have been gathered to provide a general snapshot of how applicants are performing

on the revised test. The national pass rate is determined based solely on an applicant’s

first test within the current naturalization application. The data represent applicants

taking the new naturalization test from October 1, 2008 through May 31, 2010. Please

note that test results for each applicant are manually entered into the case

management system and some errors may occur during manual entry. Although every

effort has been undertaken to eliminate any errors made during manual data entry,

errors may exist that would impact the publicized national pass rate.
For More Information, Please Contact:
Fresno Immigration Attorney Phillip Kim
(559) 761-9742
https://phillipkimlaw.com/