The Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman (CIS Ombudsman) issued a formal recommendation addressing areas of improvement for processing Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative for family-based petition submissions. The recommendations, sent to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), address the processing of these forms after approval to avoid delays.

Currently, qualifying individuals who wish to sponsor an eligible family member for legal permanent resident (LPR) status file Form I-130. When USCIS approves the form, the family member wishing to be sponsored must adjust their immigration status at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad. The individual has the option to adjust their status to LPR or apply for an immigration visa. USCIS retains the approved Form I-130 for adjustment of status requests. Alternatively, if the individual applies for an immigration visa, USCIS sends the approved Form I-130 to the Department of State’s National Visa Center (NVC) for processing at consulates abroad. However, the process was somewhat confusing. As a result, tens of thousands of cases have been misrouted.

The organizations, including the CIS Ombudsman, the Department of State, and USCIS, worked together to address the core issues. USCIS updated their policy guidance, giving officer’s discretion as to where to route approved Form I-130 when it isn’t clear. However, the key issues were not corrected, including updating the form and instructions so great clarity is provided. Further, actions to address the many outstanding petitions has not been addressed.

In their recommendation, CIS Ombudsman identifies the following items for family-based petition submissions, among others:

  • Update Form I-130 and instructions to provide greater clarity
  • For the online form, use conditional logic to improve accuracy of responses
  • Introduce a self-service tool within petitioners’ online accounts to simplify transfer requests and automate the processing of approved petitions
  • Give the NVC a tool to request and receive USCIS approved petitions
  • Provide relief for the beneficiaries with misrouted petitions

Since 2021, the CIS Ombudsman issued two informal proposals on this topic. This formal recommendation requires USCIS to respond within three months, by statute. To find out more about past recommendations, visit the CIS Ombudsman website. The office is charged with supporting individuals and employers when problems are experienced.

As always, if you have questions about family-based immigration or any U.S. immigration related issue, contact us at ILBSG. Our clients work directly with attorneys to ensure they get the right advice. We take great pride in ensuring our clients are informed throughout the process.

Family-Based Immigration