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Department of Justice investigating border security initiative
The Texas Department of Public Safety launched a program in March to target migrants crossing the Mexican border into the United States. The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating this program for potential civil rights violations.
What are the alleged violations?
Alleged civil rights violations
The DOJ investigation is attempting to determine if the Texas DPS is not complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Information that indicates that the DPS is discriminating based on race or national origin prompted the investigation. The allegations assert that Operation Loan Star officials are targeting people for traffic stops and misdemeanor trespass violations based on their actual or perceived race or national origin.
Operation Lone Star
The Texas governor deployed close to 10,000 DPS officers and Texas National Guard soldiers to the border between the United States and Mexico to help arrest migrants. Additionally, he signed an executive order allowing the Guard and the DPS to apprehend and return to the border migrants crossing the border between ports of entry.
Ready to bring your foreign national fiancée into the U.S.?
If you are a U.S. citizen, you are eligible to bring your foreign national fiancée into the country.
There are regulations to follow and documents to submit, but once you finish with the details, your fiancée will qualify for the required K-1 visa.
About Form I-129F
As the petitioner to bring your fiancée to the U.S., you must first file Form I-129F, the Petition for Alien Fiancée, with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). In this document, you must confirm that the two of you are free to marry. You must also confirm that the marriage will occur within 90 days of your fiancée arriving in the U.S. as a K-1 non-immigrant.
Background checks
As part of the Form I-129F approval process, USCIS will perform background checks on the two of you. When completed, the Department of State (DOS) will let you know when your intended can apply for the K-1 visa. Among the documents she must take to her visa interview are proof of her relationship with you and proof of a medical examination.
Understanding the provisional waiver application
If you are currently in the United States and you are not eligible to adjust your status because of unlawful presence, there may be a faster way to begin the green card process. Unlawful presence means you entered the country without inspection, you are in violation of your temporary visa or you overstayed your original period of authorization.
The provisional waiver application, or I-601A, is available to certain visa applicants who are immediate family members of U.S. citizens.
Purpose of the provisional waiver
According to the U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the purpose of the waiver is to reduce the amount of time that spouses and children are away from their families while they go through the immigrant visa process. Without the provisional waiver, the separation time is sometimes months or even years.
How can you prepare for your naturalization test?
The naturalization process can feel overwhelming as you steadily move closer to your interview and test. A lot hinges on whether you pass your test, so it makes sense that you may feel nervous about the whole event.
Fortunately, there are plenty of opportunities to prepare for your naturalization interview and test. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the interview and test involve answering an officer’s questions and taking a two-part exam.
Preparing for the interview
To prepare for the interview, study your application. The USCIS officer will have questions about your background and talk to you about your application. If you are nervous before the interview, ask a friend or family member to go over your application with you. Ask someone you trust to perform a mock interview to prepare you. When it comes to your interview, answer calmly and honestly.
As a U.S. citizen, how can you help relatives come to the states?
If you are a U.S. citizen who moved here from another country, you may have both close and extended relatives that would like to join you in the states. You might also be planning to marry a non-U.S. citizen and would like him or her to be able to live and work in the country you now call home.
American immigration law is constantly changing. However, preserving family bonds remains a top priority when considering petitions for either visas or green cards.
What are the options for helping family members gain legal residency?
If you already have citizen status, you may be able to sponsor immediate family, extended family members, a current spouse or a future spouse. Options for helping family members gain legal residency include:
- Requesting a K-1 visa for a fiancé, though the visa may only be valid if you marry within a certain period of his or her admission to the U.S.
What happens if you fail the English or civics naturalization tests?
The naturalization and citizenship process consists of several parts, including English and civics tests. Unless you qualify for an exemption, you must pass both.
What happens, though, if you fail either? Do you get another chance to retake it, or do you lose the opportunity to become a U.S. citizen entirely?
The English and Civics test portions of the naturalization test
Unless an exemption applies to you, you must take and pass the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services naturalization test. This test consists of two components:
- The English Component: In this component, you must demonstrate your ability to speak, read and write basic English.
- The Civics Component: Via this portion of the test, the USCIS will ask you important questions regarding American history and government, and expect you to answer most of them correctly.
Background checks and naturalization
If you are preparing to move forward with naturalization, it is crucial to familiarize yourself with the process and prepare for your interview. For example, you should take a look at how the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services carries out background checks.
The outcome of a background investigation can have an impact on an applicant’s ability to go ahead with a naturalization interview, and you may need to review unique issues (such as securing a fingerprint waiver).
Naturalization and fingerprint requirements
According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, those pursuing naturalization must go through background checks that include fingerprints and name checks with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). You must satisfy these requirements before you can attend a naturalization interview.
The USCIS collects fingerprints from naturalization applicants no matter how old they are. Those who do not appear at a fingerprinting appointment without informing the USCIS beforehand have abandoned their application. However, if you need a waiver because you have birth defects, a skin condition or another condition that prevents you from providing fingerprints, you might have the ability to secure a fingerprint waiver after meeting with a USCIS officer in person.
What should you do after naturalization?
After all of the excitement of getting your U.S. citizenship, you may wonder what comes next. Getting involved in your community and celebrating your accomplishments can help you embrace your newfound freedom.
Knowing some of the things you can do after completing the naturalization process may help you identify your next steps. Setting goals for your progress may increase your motivation for the future.
Learn about your privileges
Your citizenship opens a whole world of possibilities. In fact, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, after acquiring citizenship you have the chance to get your passport, update your driver’s license and register to vote. Each of these tasks requires various documentation and the completion of an application.
You may also want to take a moment to update your social security records. The Social Security Administration can direct you where to go to make any needed changes to your record.
Is there a waiver for making a false claim of U.S. citizenship?
Being an American citizen comes with a variety of important and valuable benefits. Still, if you are not a citizen of the U.S., it is imperative to understand the consequences of claiming to be one. Simply put, making a false claim to U.S. citizenship may make you forever ineligible to become a legal permanent resident or to obtain a nonimmigrant visa.
Falsely claiming to be a U.S. citizen makes you inadmissible to the country. This means immigration officials will not allow you to enter legally. It also makes you deportable, meaning government lawyers may try to remove you from the country.
No general waiver
There are several grounds for both inadmissibility and deportability. With many of these grounds, though, a person can seek a waiver. With a waiver, government officials essentially agree to ignore your violations of U.S. immigration law.
According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, there is no general waiver for making a false claim to U.S. citizenship. Therefore, if you falsely claim you are a U.S. citizen, you may have few or no options for gaining legal status.
Immediate Relative vs. Family Preference : Which type visa is easier to get?
Once you successfully emigrate from your country of origin to the United States, it is only natural for you to want to bring others of your family to join you here.
The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs, advises that you have two visa options: Family Preference and Immediate Relative. The question then becomes: Which type of visa can you more easily obtain? The answer depends on who you need to obtain the visa for.
Immediate Relative visas
Assuming you are a permanent U.S. resident, Immediate Relative visas are easier to obtain than Family Preference visas. The U.S. government issues an unlimited number of IR visas each year. The downside, however, is that you can only obtain this class of visas for your immediate family members. The following lists the five types of Immediate Relative visas and your family members to whom each applies:
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