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USCIS will increase its processing fees due to the coronavirus crisis

  • USCIS will increase rates. The agency plans to run out of money this summer due to the coronavirus crisis and will increase processing fees by 10%
  • The agency will ask Congress for a life-saving loan to stay in 2020 and guarantee its budget until 2021 if the crisis persists.
  • As few agencies do, USCIS operates almost entirely with the money it charges for paperwork.

The Service The US Citizenship and Immigration Agency (USCIS) plans to run out of money this summer and will begin to apply a 10% surcharge to application fees, the agency confirmed according to a newspaper article. The Wall Street Journal.

As few federal agencies do, USCIS operates almost entirely on the money it charges for the paperwork immigrants and other applicants pay. The agency closed its offices in March and suspended many of its activities in response to the coronavirus pandemic, which caused extreme cuts in profits this year.

As published by the Washington Examiner, USCIS warned Congress on Friday that it needs to need a $ 1.2 billion injection from taxpayers for its coffers or it will have to take “drastic action” to keep its doors open.

Joseph Edlow, deputy chief policy officer at USCIS, told employees in a memo released Friday that they have already tightened their belts a bit and are working on a new rate increase that will bring more money.

However, a rate increase will not be enough and Congress will have to prepare to assist the agency.

“USCIS will deplete its funds this summer, and without intervention from Congress, we run the risk of not being able to pay the payroll and we will have to take drastic measures to keep the agency afloat,” Edlow wrote.

The money that Congress would grant him would be a loan and would be paid through a 10% surcharge on future applications and petitions, Edlow said, adding that it was important not to increase the deficit.

The number of paperwork the agency processes has plummeted during the coronavirus pandemic, cutting revenue in half. Without a new source of income, USCIS believes it will run out of money before July 13 and will have to suspend employees.

The agency says it needs $ 571.2 million to pay operating expenses for the rest of fiscal year 2020, and requires an additional $ 650 million in case the crisis runs until 2021. Even that will only maintain “limited operations,” the agency said. agency to Congress.

USCIS eases deadline for some procedures due to coronavirus

Due to delays caused by office closings due to the coronavirus and the cancellation of international flights, the Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced a relaxation in the length of stay of non-immigrants in the country.

USCIS recalls that generally “nonimmigrants must leave the country before their authorized admission period expires”; however, due to the impact of the coronavirus, they acknowledge that “they may remain unexpectedly in the United States beyond their period.”

The measures are part of “actions to protect Americans and our communities,” which is why they have considered “various policies and procedures to improve employment opportunities for American workers,” the agency said in a statement.

Filed Under: USCIS Will Increase Rates

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