Category: Religious Workers

Any Form I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status) where the underlying basis for adjustment is an I-360 petition for a special immigrant religious worker must be filed based on an approved I-360 petition.

After a suspension of several years, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has resumed premium processing service for nonimmigrant religious worker petitions filed by certain R-1 petitioners. Only those petitioners who have successfully passed an on-site inspection are eligible to file under premium processing service. Under premium processing service, USCIS guarantees petitioners… Read More

The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for December 2009 notes that legislation in October extended the employment fourth preference “Certain Religious Workers” and employment fifth preference “Investor Pilot Program” green card categories for three years, through September 30, 2012. Other employment-based categories generally have not budged since November’s Bulletin, with the exception of the India… Read More

On June 11, 2009, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington issued an order in Ruiz-Diaz v. U.S., finding that 8 CFR § 245.2(a)(2)(i)(B), which does not allow religious workers to concurrently file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status (Form I-485), was invalid and unenforceable. The court has ordered… Read More

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has extended (PDF) the non-minister special immigrant religious worker program through September 29, 2009. The program had expired on March 6, 2009. The extended category covers special immigrant religious workers in professional or non-professional capacity within a religious vocation or occupation. The extended date also applies to accompanying spouses… Read More