Name/Security Check pentru Adjustment of Status

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Pentru cai care asteapta Name/Security Checks pentru Adjustment of status:


If Your DV Lottery Adjustment is Stuck in Security Checks

Cite as "Posted on AILA InfoNet at Doc. No. 03091740 (Sep. 17, 2003) ."

DV Lottery Adjustment Caught In Security Check?

Problem: AILA has been discussing with USCIS the problem of DV lottery adjustments of status that have not been completed because they are stalled in the security check process. An explanation of the process, and of where the stalls are likely occurring, is below. In the meantime, the field offices are under instructions to send information about "stuck" DV cases to HQ so that HQ can request that the FBI and CIA expedite the checks. But those agencies limit the number of expedites they will provide each week (although, in the past few weeks they've been expediting more than the limit).

Action: USCIS has agreed to also accept information about "stuck" DV cases from AILA. If your case was filed before September 1 (or after Sept. 1 because you were not eligible to file until then due to the priority date issue), and you have been informed by the local office that the problem is delays in the security check, please email details about your case (for all family members: name, date of birth, country of birth, A#, office where the application is pending, and the name of the person at that office who advised you that there is a security check delay) to Cora Tekach at [email protected]. Please: send only those cases for which you have specific information that there is a delay due to security checks. The overall need to expedite the case through the local office MUST be handled locally.

Background on security checks: USCIS advises that, for most of the DV cases, there are three checks (other than IBIS) that must be completed: a fingerprint check with FBI (which looks for arrests and convictions), a name check with FBI (which looks for whether the person is or has been under investigation), and a name check with the CIA (which looks for "adverse information").

The fingerprint checks with FBI are generally not a problem. According to USCIS, these are usually completed within 48 hours.

The FBI name checks, however, can be a problem for all types of adjustment cases. In these checks, the USCIS sends a tape containing the names, dates of birth, and countries of birth of adjustment applicants. In December 2002, USCIS sent 3.2 million names to the FBI for clearance. Of those, about 60,000 are still pending. In addition, USCIS sends a tape to FBI once a week with new names. Of these, some 80% are usually cleared within 72 hours. The remaining 20% go into a triage process. If the information regarding name, DOB and/or COB is far afield of that information regarding the individual identified in the "hit", the clearance will usually be sent back to USCIS the next week. If these factors are closer to the "hit" information, the physical file will have to be retrieved from wherever it is (storage, FBI field office, etc.) and inspected. This is where the lengthy delays tend to occur.

The CIA name checks also present a problem, mostly because the information received as a result of these checks tends to be less than definitive, and the impact on the immigration application therefore unclear. CIA generally responds to name check requests within 60 days, and has agreed to expedite up to 500 per week (but has been known to expedite more).