Featured Issue: Changes in USCIS Policy Under the Trump Administration

Dramatic changes in USCIS policy under the Trump administration have undermined the legal immigration system that the agency was created to facilitate. Just one evidence of this change is a quote from USCIS Acting Director Ken Cuccinelli. “First of all, I see USCIS as a vetting agency, not a benefits agency,” Cuccinelli told Fox News in an interview near the Texas-Mexico border in 2019. “We have benefits that we give when people meet legal thresholds but it’s on them to prove they’ve done it and it’s our job to make sure those are going to people who have in fact met those thresholds, and we’re protecting America by screening people trying to come in and stay here a long time,” he said.

This webpage provides key updates, analysis, media coverage, and other resources that bring the nature and destructive impacts of these changes into relief. The page also highlights how members and the public can join AILA in holding USCIS accountable for failing its statutory mission—a failure causing hardship to families, vulnerable populations, and U.S. businesses around the country. Through this accountability initiative, AILA strives for a service-oriented, fair, and efficient USCIS—the one that Congress envisioned and the public deserves.

How You Can Join AILA in Holding USCIS Accountable / H.R. 5971: The Case Backlog Transparency and Accountability Act of 2020 / 2019 Congressional Hearing on USCIS Processing Delays / USCIS and the "Invisible Wall" / USCIS's Ongoing Transformation into an Immigration Enforcement Agency / Harmful Impacts on U.S. Businesses of H-1B and Other Policy Changes / Crisis-Level Processing Delays / Non-Military Deferred Action Requests at Field Offices / Harmful Impacts on U.S. Military and Veterans / "Notice to Appear" Policy / H-4 Work Authorization / Denaturalization / Public Charge / F, J, M Visa Policy / Deportation "Traps" / RFE/NOID Policy / Additional Resources

How You Can Join AILA in Holding USCIS Accountable

• Call for Examples: Impacts of USCIS Processing Delays on Individuals, Families, and U.S. Businesses - April 2, 2019

H.R. 5971: The Case Backlog Transparency and Accountability Act of 2020

• Bill Text for H.R. 5971
• AILA Press Release: Bipartisan Legislation Underscores Need for Transparency and Accountability Within USCIS
• Cárdenas, Stivers Introduce Bipartisan Case Backlog and Transparency Act of 2020 – February 26, 2020
• Summary of the Case Backlog and Transparency Act of 2020 (H.R. 5971)
• AILA Provides Summary and Section-by-Section of H.R. 5971
• AILA Policy Brief: Crisis Level USCIS Processing Delays and Inefficiencies Continue to Grow
• AILA Quicktake #282: Congress Introduces a Bipartisan Bill on USCIS Case Backlog

2019 Congressional Hearing on USCIS Processing Delays

During a House Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship hearing entitled, “Processing Delays and Policy Changes at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,” AILA President Marketa Lindt testified that misguided USCIS policies are core drivers of the agency’s crisis-level case processing delays. View her testimony and related resources below.

• AILA’s Summary of the Hearing
• Written Testimony of AILA President Marketa Lindt
• Other Written Testimony and Statements for the Record
• AILA Quicktake: AILA President Testifies Before Congress About USCIS Processing Delays
• AILA Press Release: House Committee Ramps Up Bipartisan Concern Over Crisis Delays at USCIS
• The Hill Op-Ed: Delays in immigration filings hurt US companies - July 16, 2019
• “Twitter Moments” from Hearing
• Forbes: Congress Asks USCIS To Explain Immigration Delays and Denials - July 17, 2019
• Bloomberg: Lawmakers Target Rise in Immigration Application Backlog - July 17, 2019

USCIS and the "Invisible Wall"

• Washington Post: The Trump administration is making legal immigration harder, too - July 29, 2019
• Vox: Trump's budget proposes hiking application fees for legal immigrants - March 12, 2019
• AILA Report: Deconstructing the Invisible Wall - April 24, 2018
• Dismantling the "Invisible Wall" Against Legal Immigration, Brick by Brick - March 21, 2018

USCIS's Ongoing Transformation into Immigration Enforcement Agency

• Buzzfeed: Civil Servants Who Process Immigration Applications Are Being Asked To Help ICE Instead - July 17, 2019
• The Hill: Hispanic Caucus asks for meeting with top immigration official - April 5, 2019
• AILA Policy Brief: Seven Ways USCIS is Defying the Will of Congress - February 25, 2018
• AILA Members Express Concern Over Recent USCIS Policy Memos - October 1, 2018
• Stop the Corruption of USCIS and EOIR Missions: Ensure Fairness and Consistency in All Immigration Decisions - August 1, 2018

Harmful Impacts on U.S. Businesses of H-1B and Other USCIS Policy Changes

• Time: Tech Companies Say it's Too Hard to Hire High-Skilled Immigrants in the U.S. — So They're Growing in Canada Instead - July 25, 2019
• Forbes: USCIS Ignores 30-Day H-1B Visa Processing Limit Set By Congress - May 16, 2019
• Forbes: USCIS Creates 'Chaos' With Last Minute H-1B Visa Announcement – March 21, 2019
• Reuters: Trump administration denying, delaying more foreign skilled-worker requests - February 22, 2019
• Sign-On Letter from the Business Roundtable Expressing Serious Concerns about Changes In Immigration Policy - August 22, 2018
• Los Angeles Times: Immigrant tech workers struggle to get H-1B visas under Trump: 'I've never felt so helpless' - February 1, 2019
• Forbes: USCIS Policies Harming Labor Mobility Of H-1B Professionals - December 17, 2018

Crisis-Level Processing Delays

• The Washington Post: The employment green card backlog tops 800,000, most of them Indian. A solution is elusive. – December 17, 2019
• Colorado Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights: Citizenship Delayed: Civil Rights and Voting Rights Implications of the Backlog in Citizenship and Naturalization Applications - September 12, 2019
• Bloomberg Law: Fed Up With Immigration Backlog, Lawyers Head to the Courts — August 8, 2019
• Bipartisan Letter from Senators to USCIS Seeks Answers on USCIS Backlog - May 13, 2019
• Eighty-Two House Members Request GAO Investigation Into USCIS Backlog - May 10, 2019
• AILA Flyer For Helping Clients Understand the Broader Context of USCIS Processing Delays
• Think Immigration: USCIS Acknowledges That Its Own Policies Compound Case Processing Delays - April 30, 2019
• The Nation: She Helped Convict Her Rapist. ICE Deported Her Anyway - April 1, 2019
• Bipartisan Letter from Texas Members of the House Regarding USCIS Processing Delays - March 28, 2019
• The New York Times: Trump Administration Plans to Close Key Immigration Operations Abroad - March 12, 2019
• The Nation: US Immigration Is Stuck in the Stone Age-and It's Putting Lives In Danger - March 5, 2019
• Think Immigration: USCIS Processing Delays Soared While Application Rates Fell – March 1, 2019
• U.S. Representatives Demand Accountability from USCIS - February 12, 2019
• Forbes: USCIS Immigration Delays Grow Longer and Longer - January 31, 2019
• AILA Policy Brief: USCIS Processing Delays Have Reached Crisis Levels Under the Trump Administration - January 30, 2019
• Think Immigration: AILA Analysis Reveals Crisis-Level Delays in USCIS Case Processing - January 30, 2019

Non-Military Deferred Action Requests at Field Offices

• AILA Featured Issue Webpage: USCIS’s Elimination of Non-Military Deferred Action at Local USCIS Offices

Harmful Impacts on U.S. Military and Veterans

• Congressional Hearing: The Impact of Current Immigration Policies on Service Members and Veterans, and their Families – October 29, 2019
• Stars and Stripes: Servicemembers, families can now attain US citizenship at only four 'hub' locations overseas – September 30, 2019
• The Hill: Trump USCIS 'technical correction' hurts military families, readiness – September 1, 2019
• Think Immigration: Ending Protections for World War II Veterans, What’s Next? – August 30, 2019
• Organizational Sign-On Letter: Sign-On Letter to DHS, USCIS, and DOD Requesting the Continuation of Military Parole in Place – July 30, 2019

"Notice to Appear" Policy

• Complaint Demands Government Transparency on Expansion of Deportation Policies - February 29, 2019
• Think Immigration: USCIS's New Policy is a Boon to Abusers and Traffickers - November 28, 2018
• AILA Policy Brief: Expanded NTA Guidance Will Have Devastating Effects on Survivors of Domestic Abuse, Trafficking, and Other Serious Crimes - November 27, 2018
• USCIS Teleconference on Notice to Appear (NTA) Updated Policy Guidance - November 15, 2018
• AILA Policy Brief: New USCIS Notice to Appear Guidance - July 17, 2018

H-4 Work Authorization

• NBC News: With employment authorization in limbo, H-4 and H-1B visa holders eye uncertain future – March 21, 2019
• Bloomberg Law: White House Poised to End Work Permits for H-1B Spouses - February 21, 2019
• Bipartisan House Letter to DHS to Maintain Rule to Allow Work Authorization for H-4 Visa Holders - May 16, 2018

Denaturalization

• AILA Featured Issue: Denaturalization Efforts by USCIS

Public Charge

• Featured Issue: Public Charge Changes at USCIS, DOJ, and DOS
• The New York Times: Trump’s Policy Could Alter the Face of the American Immigrant — August 14, 2019
• Wall Street Journal: The ‘Public-Charge’ Ploy — August 13, 2019
• AILA and the Council Submit Comment Opposing the Proposed Public Charge Rule - December 10, 2018
• Vox: Trump's controversial "public charge" proposal that could change the face of legal immigration, explained - December 10, 2018

F, J, M Visa Policy

• Murray, Feinstein Lead Colleagues in Urging Trump Administration to Rescind Rule Unnecessarily Punishing International Students - November 20, 2018
• AILA Member Talking Points and Background Information on Unlawful Presence Memo Affecting Students and Exchange Visitors - August 10, 2018

Deportation "Traps"

• Rewire News: Exclusive: Immigration Agencies Communicated Prior to Arrest of Sanctuary Leader – March 25, 2019
• Miami Herald: Her husband went to an immigration interview about their marriage. He was detained by ICE - October 1, 2018
• Court Documents Demonstrate USCIS and ICE Collaborated to Separate Families Pursuing Lawful Immigration Status - August 13, 2018

RFE/NOID Policy

• AILA Member Talking Points and Background Information on USCIS RFEs and NOIDs Guidance - August 28, 2018

Additional Resources

• AILA Sends Oversight Letter to House Judiciary Committee - January 24, 2019
• Sign-On Letter Urging Senate to Conduct Oversight and Advise USCIS to Withdraw Policy Memos - August 14, 2018

Cite as AILA Doc. No. 19022633.