Philadelphia Immigration Lawyer Blog

On August 13, 2008, Customs and Border Patrol announced that the Global Entry pilot program has now been expanded, effective August 1, 2008, to the following airports: Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, California (LAX); Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Atlanta, Georgia (ATL); Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Chicago, Illinois (ORD); and Miami International Airport, Miami, Florida (MIA).

Also, CBP announced that although the Global Entry pilot is currently operating at Terminal 4 of John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York (JFK), it will now become operational at the remaining terminals of that airport as well.

Here is an explanation from one of my earlier postings about the Global Entry pilot program.

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Posted In: News , Passports, Travel Documents

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The U.S.C.I.S. announced on August 11th that it is still making progress in reducing the backlog on the many N-400 naturalization applications it received last year. Now, the processing of most N-400 applications, according to the government, is taking an average of 10-12 months nationally or will by the end of September 2008.

In Philadelphia, the U.S.C.I.S. says that by September, 2008, N-400 applications will average 10 months to process. By comparison, the processing time in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey is expected to be only 5 months.

The reality in my practice is that processing times can still take much longer and I continue to successfully file Writs of Mandamus in federal court in an effort to force the government to process long-pending N-400 naturalization applications and I-485 adjustment of status applications.

Posted by James M. Tyler | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Citizenship and Naturalization

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The U.S.C.I.S. announced on August 8th that the new U.S. Passport Card may be used as a List A document in the employment eligibility verification I-9 process. As a List A document, the new Passport card is valid for I-9 purposes for both identity and work authorization.

For travel purposes, the Passport Card provides a cheaper alternative to the traditional U.S. passport book and expedites document processing at United States land and sea ports-of-entry under certain limited situations: for U.S. citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda (it can’t be used for international air travel).

With this new announcement, U.S. employers can now accept the card as List A, I-9 document.

Posted by James M. Tyler | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Employment Based Immigration , Passports, Travel Documents

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