 4th Circuit Slams
Immigration Court’s Investigation Procedure 
On appeal, the court found that the Immigration Judge was wrong in
denying Ms. Anim’s case based on an overseas investigation that concluded
that the documents she submitted were fraudulent. In support of her case for asylum Ms.
Anim had submitted three convocations that had been issued to her in
Cameroon. Concerned about the
alien’s credibility, the Judge suggested that forensic testing be
conducted to determine the documents’ authenticity. The report that came
back from Cameroon concluded that the documents were fraudulent, and the
Judge subsequently denied Ms. Anim’s asylum claim. On appeal, the court agreed with Ms.
Anim and found that the government’s overseas investigation violated her
right to due process and to a confidential asylum application, since the
government investigators showed the convocations to an official of the
Cameroonian government. The court
stated that it was fundamentally unfair for the Immigration Judge to have
relied on the report finding the documents to be fraudulent. There was no
indication that this report was reliable and this, in turn, violated Mr.
Anim’s due process rights.
For more info, see Anim v. Mukasey, 535 F. 3d 243 (4th
Cir. 2008).
News from Capitol Hill 
On September 17, the House passed two immigration
related bills -- H.R. 2608 would provide a two year extension of benefits
under the Supplemental Security Income Program (SSI) for elderly and
disabled refugees, asylum seekers, and victims of trafficking who are
younger than 18 or older than 70, making the total period of eligibility
nine years instead of seven. The bill is expected to be signed into law
by President Bush.
On September 17, 2008 the House Judiciary Committee
approved H.R. 6020, which is a bill that will create easier
naturalization conditions for immigrants serving in the armed forces by
streamlining the citizenship process for foreign-born military personnel,
as well as the permanent residence process for the families of military
personnel. The bill would also
prevent deportation proceedings against undocumented immigrants who have
served honorably in the military.
New Address for Mailing
N-400 Applications
 USCIS
has announced that the Direct Mail program will now include Applications
for Naturalization (N-400).
Non-military N-400 applications must now be sent to a lockbox
facility in either Phoenix, AZ or Lewisville, TX instead of one of the
four service centers as has been the case since 1998. The appropriate place where to send
your application is determined by where you live. For the proper lockbox
address, please visit the USCIS
website.
Extension of TPS Status 
USCIS
announced on September 26, 2008 that it will extend Temporary Protected
Status (TPS) for Nicaraguans for 18 months – through July 5, 2010. The extension allows those who have
already been granted TPS status to reregister and maintain their status
for an additional 18 months. In
order to reregister, TPS beneficiaries must submit Form I-821
(Application for Temporary Protected Status) and Form I-765 (Application
for Employment Authorization), as well as the applicable filing fees. TPS
status has also been extended for anyone from Honduras and El Salvador,
since all three countries are still suffering from the effects of natural
disasters.
On
September 17, the House passed two immigration related bills -- H.R. 2608
would provide a two year extension of benefits under the Supplemental
Security Income Program (SSI) for elderly and disabled refugees, asylum
seekers, and victims of trafficking who are younger than 18 or older than
70, making the total period of eligibility nine years instead of seven.
The bill is expected to be signed into law by President Bush.
On September
17, 2008 the House Judiciary Committee approved H.R. 6020, which is a
bill that will create easier naturalization conditions for immigrants
serving in the armed forces by streamlining the citizenship process for
foreign-born military personnel, as well as the permanent residence
process for the families of military personnel. The bill would also prevent deportation
proceedings against undocumented immigrants who have served honorably in
the military.
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