U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the federal agency that oversees business and family immigration to the United States, is suspending in-person services at its field offices, asylum offices, and Application Support Centers (ASC) to help slow the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). This suspension is effective March 18, 2020 until at least April 1, 2020.
USCIS field offices will send notices to applicants and petitioners (and their attorneys) with scheduled appointments and naturalization ceremonies impacted by this closure. USCIS asylum offices will send interview cancellation notices and automatically reschedule asylum interviews. When the interview is rescheduled, asylum applicants will receive a new interview notice with the new time, date, and location of the interview. When USCIS again resumes normal operations, USCIS will automatically reschedule ASC appointments due to the office closure.
The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), the federal agency that oversees the nation’s immigration courts, has postponed all non-detained deportation hearings. Immigration courts remain open for individuals who are detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations continue.
Ulmer’s immigration team is working remotely and fully prepared to quickly respond to support you and your organization. Our attorneys are monitoring immigration-related developments closely and will update this alert as needed. Please reach out to our Immigration Law Group if you have any questions.