I-90 Application to Replace Green Card Guidance is Issued via Neufeld Memo
Acting Associate Director Donald Neufeld has issued revised guidance regarding the
I-90 Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card. The guidance is dated February 6, 2009.
Previously, if an I-90 applicant presented a national security concern or had a record of arrest or presented an “Egregious Public Safety” concern, then the USCIS adjudicator was instructed to immediately suspend adjudication of the 1-90 and refer the case to ICE.
The problem with that position, as pointed out in the Neufeld memo, is that an I-90 applicant who is a Lawful Permanent Resident LPR holds that status until he or she either abandons it themselves or has it revoked through rescission or removal proceedings. Therefore, until the LPR status is either abandoned or revoked, the applicant is entitled to evidence of his or her status.
Now, the Neufeld memo provides that all 1-90 applications will be adjudicated when all of the basic filing requirements and conditions have been met:
1. The applicant has established his or her identity; and
2. It has been established that the applicant is a lawful permanent resident.
Once those conditions have been met, the I-90 should be approved regardless of whether derogatory information comes up during the fingerprint and IBIS checks. If that happens, the I-90 should still be approved first and the derogatory information issue addressed second, presumably with a referral to ICE.
In the past, some applicants have been served with Requests for Evidence (RFE) asking for arrest records or court dispositions. Now any RFE that is issued must be limited to requesting supporting documentation related to establishing identity or status.
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