On November 22, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said it is extending and expanding previously announced fee exemptions and expedited application processing for certain Afghan nationals through September 30, 2023.
Fee exemptions include:
- An initial or replacement Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, for Afghan nationals who are applying for work authorization on the basis of parole (eligibility category (c)(11));
- Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, to adjust status on the basis of Afghan special immigrant classification, and any associated Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility;
- Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, filed with USCIS in the United States on behalf of any Afghan national (beneficiary) with a visa immediately available;
- Form I-824, Application for Action on an Approved Application or Petition, for an Afghan holding a Special Immigrant Visa;
- Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility, for any Afghan national with an approved Form I-130 with a visa immediately available; and
- USCIS Immigrant Fee (Form I-551) for Afghan nationals.
Expedited processing includes:
- An initial and replacement Form I-765 for those applying for employment authorization on the basis of parole (eligibility category (c)(11));
- Form I-485 for Afghan nationals seeking to adjust status on the basis of Afghan special immigrant classification, and any associated Form I-601;
- Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal, filed by certain Afghan parolees as described in § 2502(a) of the Extending Government Funding and Delivering Emergency Assistance Act of 2021;
- Form I-130, filed with USCIS in the United States on behalf of an Afghan national (beneficiary) with a visa immediately available, and any associated Form I-601; and
- Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, filed with USCIS on behalf of an Afghan national (beneficiary) with a visa immediately available.
Details:
- USCIS alert, Nov. 22, 2022. https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/uscis-extends-and-expands-fee-exemptions-and-expedited-processing-for-afghan-nationals
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