Overview:
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The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) agency is responsible for handling all matters pertaining to immigration and the granting of citizenship to non-nationals. USCIS awards an average of one million green cards, 700,000 naturalizations and one million temporary work permits each year. The agency has been criticized for not keeping up with immigration requests, allowing backlogs to occur. USCIS raised fees it charges to immigrants seeking visas or citizenship, a move that prompted more criticism from Congress and others.
History:
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The United States has had a long, vital and sometimes hypocritical relationship with immigrants. On the one hand, America would never have been founded had it not been for immigrants fleeing England in the 17th Century to establish a new home. For approximately the first 100 years after the country won its independence, the US welcomed immigrants without concern. But once the founding generations of colonists were replaced by succeeding generations of US-born Americans, the country began to forget its roots and use immigrants as scapegoats for economic and political troubles.
During the latter half of the 19th Century, immigration began to grow as a political issue. As part of the federal government’s effort to free African-American slaves, Congress adopted the 14th Amendment in 1866 which, among other provisions, established the law granting citizenship to those born on US soil. As the century progressed, many Americans complained about new waves of European and Asian immigrants flooding into the US, claiming they took away jobs from citizens. First it was the Irish who were scorned, then Italians, then Eastern Europeans and later Chinese. Some states started to pass their own immigration laws, which prompted the Supreme Court to rule in 1875 that immigration was the responsibility of the federal government.
US officials created the first immigration office, the Office of the Superintendent of Immigration, within the Treasury Department in 1891. This office was responsible for admitting, rejecting and processing all immigrants seeking admission to the United States and for implementing national immigration policy. Legislation in March 1895 upgraded the Office of Immigration to the Bureau of Immigration and changed the agency head’s title from Superintendent to Commissioner-General of Immigration. The 1890s was also when Ellis Island in New York first opened, becoming the nation’s largest and busiest immigrant-processing center well into the 20th Century.
In 1906, Congress passed the Basic Naturalization Act, which established naturalization procedures that have endured until today. The act encouraged state and local courts to relinquish their jurisdiction over immigrants to federal courts, and it expanded the Bureau of Immigration into the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization.
Seven years later, in 1913, the Department of Commerce and Labor reorganized into today’s separate cabinet departments, and for a time, the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization followed suit, each becoming a separate bureau, one for immigration, one for naturalization.
After World War I, immigration into the US again rose, prompting Congress to act once more by instituting the national-origins quota system. Laws passed in 1921 and 1924 limited the numbers of newcomers by assigning a quota to each nationality based upon its representation in previous US census figures. Each year, the State Department issued a limited number of visas; only those immigrants who had obtained them and could present valid visas were permitted entry. Because of the limitations that the quota system imposed on immigration, illegal attempts to enter the US first began to occur.
In 1933, Congress decided to rejoin immigration and naturalization into one agency, creating the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). With war brewing in Europe in the 1930s, immigration took on greater importance, especially with fears of fascist spies entering the country. President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the INS from the Department of Labor to the Department of Justice in 1940. The task of securing American borders against enemy aliens became a key duty of the INS during WWII, causing it to double in size, from approximately 4,000 to 8,000 employees.
In 1940, the federal government adopted the Alien Registration Act of 1940, better known as the Smith Act, which made it a criminal offense to “advocate violent overthrow of the government or to organize or be a member of any group or society devoted to such advocacy.” A less controversial provision of the Smith Act was the creation of the Alien Registration Receipt Card, or “green card” as it came to be known. Obtaining a green card meant an immigrant could stay permanently in the US.
Following the attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan in December 1941, national fears about foreign-born citizens and residents erupted. In response, President Roosevelt signed an executive order that forced thousands of Japanese-Americans living on the West Coast to live in internment camps. The INS played a role in this forced relocation, setting up internment camps and detention facilities
In the post-war era, immigration concerns shifted from those of European descent to those entering the US from Latin America and Southeast Asia. In 1954, the INS instituted an aggressive effort to round up illegal Mexican immigrants in the Southwest through Operation Wetback. In 1965, Congress amended federal immigration law by replacing the national-origins system with a preference system designed to reunite immigrant families and attract skilled workers. Although the number of immigration visas available each year was still limited, Congress continued to pass special legislation, as it did for Indochinese refugees in the post-Vietnam era of the 1970s.
In 1986 Congress passed a controversial immigration bill, the Immigration Reform and Control Act, which not only expanded the INS’s responsibilities but also granted amnesty to illegal immigrants who entered the US before January 1, 1982, and had stayed continuously in the country. The act charged INS with enforcing sanctions against American employers who hired undocumented aliens. This meant the INS was now investigating, prosecuting and levying fines against corporate and individual employers and deporting aliens found to be working illegally in the US.
Also during the 1980s, anti-immigrant movements began to rise, focusing mostly on Hispanic immigration in the American Southwest. This backlash continued into the 1990s with the passage of initiatives in California that helped fuel national anti-immigration movements. Those initiatives sought to ban social services to illegal immigrants (Prop. 187, most of which was later thrown out by the courts) and to eliminate bilingual education in public schools (Prop. 227).
The terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, shifted the immigration debate in a different direction. Upon learning the hijackers of commercial airliners that crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were non-US citizens who had slipped into the country despite some of them already being on terrorist “watch lists,” federal officials decided to make dramatic changes in government operations overseeing domestic security and immigration. As part of the formation of the Department of Homeland Security in 2003, the INS was changed into the US Citizenship and Immigration Services. The law enforcement arm of the INS, however, was turned over to a new office, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Immigration reform again became a hot political topic before the 2006 election. Both the House and Senate passed legislation changing immigration laws, but the two sides were unable to reconcile their differences into one bill. Republicans pushed for building a 700-mile fence along the US-Mexico border and ending the practice of “catch and release,” in which immigration officers used to free detained aliens on the promise they would leave the country voluntary. Utilized as a cost-savings measure, catch-and-release resulted in many freed immigrants staying in the country, much to the consternation of illegal immigration opponents. Although the immigration reform legislation did not pass, catch-and-release was still scuttled by ICE officials who instituted a deportation-only policy with captured undocumented workers.
After the 2006 election, President George W. Bush pushed for a plan that would have increased border security, instituted a temporary worker program and established a path towards legalizing the nation’s approximately 12 million illegal immigrants. Bush pushed the plan was pushed strongly, but without success.
“Operation Wetback”: Illegal Immigration’s Golden-Crisp Myth (by Pierre Tristam, Daytona Beach News-Journal)
#187 Illegal Aliens. Ineligibility for public services. (by Nancy H. Martis, California Jounral)
What it Does:
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Located within the Department of Homeland Security, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) agency is responsible for handling all matters pertaining to immigration and the granting of citizenship to non-nationals. USCIS awards an average of one million green cards, 700,000 naturalizations and one million temporary work permits each year. The agency decides who is eligible for lawful permanent residence in the US, which involves the granting of “green cards.” The office provides information on becoming a permanent resident, and application procedures.
One way immigrants can gain legal residence in the US is through employment visas. There are four categories for granting permanent residence to foreign nationals based upon employment: EB-1, EB-2, EB-3 and EB-4. Each pertains to a different category of worker, ranging from scientists and researchers to corporate executives to specially-skilled workers. USCIS also provides information to employers on how to assist potential employees attain visas.
Employers who wish to hire foreign workers on a temporary basis can do so through an I-129 petition. The I-129 is mainly used for nonimmigrant categories; thus, in most cases, workers who enter the US under this petition must depart the country when their maximum period of stay has been reached.
Immigrants can also gain visas through a family member or investment. In the case of the latter, permanent resident status is available to foreign nationals who have invested, or are actively in the process of investing, a required amount of capital ($1 million or more) into a new commercial enterprise that they have established. They must demonstrate that this investment will benefit the US economy and create a requisite number of full-time jobs within the US.
USCIS is also responsible for issuing student visas. Federal law provides two nonimmigrant visa categories for persons wishing to study in the US. The “F” visa is reserved for those wishing to pursue academic studies and/or language training programs, and the “M” visa is reserved for others wishing to pursue nonacademic or vocational studies.
USCIS confers upon foreign citizens or nationals the status of US citizenship after certain requirements are fulfilled. The general requirements for administrative naturalization include:
- a period of continuous residence and physical presence in the US;
- residence in a particular USCIS district prior to filing;
- ability to read, write and speak English;
- knowledge and understanding of US history and government;
- good moral character;
- attachment to the principles of the US Constitution;
- favorable disposition toward the United States.
Immigration law provides for a number of humanitarian programs to assist foreign individuals in need of shelter or aid from various disasters and oppression. USCIS provides help to the following categories of people: Asylum; Refugees; Temporary Protected Status; Humanitarian Parole; Victims of Violence Against Women ; and Victims of Trafficking and Violence.
USCIS approves the adoption of foreign-born children by American citizens. Adopting children from all over the world has steadily increased in the past decade. There are more than 200,000 foreign-adopted children currently living in the US, and approximately 20,000 adoptions take place each year.
Where Does the Money Go:
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USCIS has utilized several private companies to help streamline the agency’s operations, including one of the nation’s largest defense contractors. Northrop Grumman, known more for building warplanes and missiles, was given a $750 million contract in 2007 to continue providing “biometric capture services” - aka fingerprinting technology. The defense giant has performed this service since 1999, when immigration services were handled by the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
Biometric capture services involve electronic scanning and recording of fingerprints, photographs and signatures for identification purposes. The contract work will be performed in all 50 US states at 136 Application Support Centers. Northrop Grumman claims that since it began working with immigration officials, USCIS has reduced its fingerprint rejection rate from 20% to 1.5% through implementation of fingerprint technician training, the creation of a certification training program for quality assurance and upgrades in fingerprinting computer systems.
In addition to Northrop Grumman, the agency gave Stanley, Inc. a $225 million contract to help make USCIS service centers run more efficiently. Stanley provides information technology services to defense and federal civilian government agencies.
USCIS service centers process applications and petitions filed by immigrants and foreign nationals seeking a variety of services.
USCIS service centers process applications and petitions filed by immigrants and foreign nationals seeking a variety of services.
SiloSmashers, a Fairfax, VA-based management and technology consulting firm, was given a five-year $31.4 million contract to help modernize USCIS operations. SiloSmashers will work with the Transformation Program Office whose mission is to transition USCIS to a paperless system.
PEC Solutions Inc., a communications technology company, was hired by USCIS for $4.8 million to help support the agency’s toll-free phone system that customers use to gain immigration services.
SiloSmashers Awarded $31.4 Million Contract to Support U.S. Citizenship and Immigration... (PRNewswire)
Controversies:
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USCIS Officials Reject Efficiency Efforts
According to former US officials, watchdog groups and immigrant advocates, USCIS, and its predecessor, the INS, have had a legacy of “shoddy service, years-long delays and susceptibility to fraud.” With this in mind, the Senate proposed in 2007 a series of reforms that would have slashed waiting times for green cards from nearly three years to three months and save the government about $350 million.
USCIS officials rejected the changes on fiscal grounds, claiming they would have cost the agency millions of dollars in lost application and renewal fees which represent a vital part of USCIS’s annual budget. Instead, agency officials preferred their own plan to raise the amount of fees that immigrants must pay.
Immigration Agency Mired In Inefficiency (by Spencer S. Hsu, Washington Post)
Fee Increase
In May 2007 USCIS announced a fee increase that dramatically raised the cost to immigrants seeking visas and citizenship. Then-Director Emilio Gonzalez said the fee increase was necessary to finance badly needed improvements at the agency, including hiring 1,300 workers to reduce backlogs. The agency would be funded almost exclusively by the fees, following a decision by the Bush administration to severely cutback USCIS’s FY 2009 budget appropriation. The administration set USCIS’s next budget at $2.7 billion, of which $2.5 billion would be generated by fees.
The agency initially proposed even higher fees in February, but Congressional representatives and immigration advocates objected to the hikes. For example, the fee to apply for permanent residency would have gone up from $325 to $905 (a 178% increase). The fee for citizenship applications would have increased from $330 to $595 (an 80% increase). Instead, USCIS went with a fee structure that left some rates the same while doubling others, such as:
- Form I-129 Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker went from $190 to $320
- Form I-102 Replace I-94 Card, from $160 to $320
- Form I-539 Application to Change/Extend Nonimmigrant Status, from $200 to $300
- Form I-765 Application for Employment Authorization, from $180 to $340
- Form I-140 Petition for an Immigrant Worker, from $195 to $475
- Supplemental and fraud prevention fees that accompany petitions for H-1B, H2B and L-1 workers were left unchanged.
The American Friends Service Committee pointed out that the proposed increases contradicted statements by President Bush in his 2007 State of the Union indicating that his administration wanted to help immigrants become US citizens.
The cost of applying to become an U.S citizen doubles (blog, Progressive U)
USCIS Increases Are Excessive and Unfair (American Friends Service Committee)
Budget brawl (by Daniel Widome, Natural Selection)
Fees increase for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (Temple University)
Former Directors:
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Emilio T. Gonzalez (December 2005 - April 2008)
A Cuban exile, Emilio T. Gonzalez graduated from the University of South Florida in Tampa with a BA in International Studies. He also earned MA degrees in Latin American Studies from Tulane University and in Strategic Studies and National Security Affairs from the US Naval War College. He was awarded a PhD degree in International Relations from the Graduate School of International Studies, University of Miami.
Gonzalez spent 26 years in the US Army, during which he served as a military attaché to US embassies in El Salvador and Mexico, taught at the US Military Academy at West Point and headed the Office of Special Assistants for the Commander-in-Chief of the US Southern Command. He then was director for Western Hemisphere affairs at the National Security Council under National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice. Gonzalez left the White House and joined the Miami-based international law firm of Tew Cardenas before being selected by President Bush to lead the USCIS.
Observers of USCIS said Gonzalez obtained mixed results during his efforts to adopt new technology, overhaul services for immigrants and expand the agency’s workforce. By the time Gonzalez became director, USCIS was struggling to process a backlog of immigration requests dating back to Sept. 11, 2001. The agency made some progress initially in clearing up unprocessed applications for citizenship, but then stumbled again and fell behind. The average processing time, which had been reduced to seven months, ballooned to 18 months. By the end of 2007, the number of pending cases stood at almost one million. US Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) characterized the naturalization system as being “in crisis” and said many immigrants who had applied for naturalization in the hope of voting in the November 2008 presidential election won’t become citizens in time.
Gonzalez was credited with making the agency more accessible and responsive. But his tenure was also marked by a sharp increase in fees charged to immigrants (see Controversies).
Besieged immigration agency chief resigns (by Andres Viglucci, Miami Herald)
- Table of Contents
- Overview
- History
- What it Does
- Where Does the Money Go
- Controversies
- Suggested Reforms
- Comments
- Leave a comment
Founded: 1891, 2003
Annual Budget:
Employees:
Official Website: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
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