In this blog, we will share the latest US immigration updates you must know of.
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced the removal of the 60-day rule for submitting immigration medical exams signed by civil surgeons. To be more specific, this restriction affects the filing of Form I-693, Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record.
The signed form is supposed to be submitted with the Form I-485 adjustment of status (green card) application to USCIS.
Now green card aspirants have two years to file their Form I-693 once a civil surgeon has signed it.
For those who don’t know, green card applicants had to submit the signed medical examination forms within 60 days after filing their application or risk getting rejected by USCIS. It is safe to say that the 60-day requirement was unfavourable for many green card applicants and turned out to be an unwanted obstacle in the application process. In case an applicant fails to submit Form I-693 within the designated period of 60 days, they would receive a Request for Evidence (RFE) telling them to submit the Form before the deadline.
The elimination of the 60-day rule gives applicants more freedom and flexibility to get their Form I-693 signed without any worries. The new policy is also expected to reduce the green card backlogs since fewer RFEs will be issued now, and applicants have 2 years to submit their medical examination forms signed by a civil surgeon.
What’s important to note here is that USCIS believes that the authorities hoped to boost operational efficiency and reduce the possibility of the issuance of RFEs by implementing the 60-day rule, but it didn’t meet their expectations.
Do you want to learn more about the latest update? Click here.
Today’s next update covers the announcement of USCIS to change the filing location to the Phoenix lockbox for courier delivery services. This is because the facility and the filing location for courier delivery services for DHL, FedEx, and UPS have been shifted to Tempe, Arizona. However, the filing location for using the US Postal Service remains unchanged.
As a result, USCIS will forward applications or requests received in Phoenix between 30 March and 28 April 2023 to Tempe through courier delivery services. Please note that courier deliveries sent to the previous address will not be accepted by USCIS.
Click here for more details regarding the new filing address for courier delivery services.
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