New York Paralegal Blog

In the mid-1990s, tens of thousands of Haitians and Cubans attempted to seek refuge in the United States during what was deemed Operation Sea Signal. Years before that, tens of thousands of Cubans exited their country for the United States during the Mariel Boatlift. Both of these events serve as examples of mass migration and historical reminders of how such events can affect a nation's security.

WASHINGTON—In an effort to provide better customer service to refugees, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that it would extend the validity of initial work authorization documents for refugees to two years after arrival in the United States. Previous policy required renewal of the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) after one year. The new policy will reduce the financial burden on refugees by eliminating the need for many refugees to apply for renewal of work documents before they are able to adjust status to permanent residency. While there is no fee for the initial application for a refugee EAD, applicants incur a $340 fee for renewals. USCIS estimated that a refugee would request, at minimum, one EAD renewal prior to adjustment of status if the EAD validity period was not extended to two years. By extending the work authorization validity period, USCIS can increase Agency efficiency by reallocating resources from adjudication of refugee EA...