The Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman (CIS Ombudsman) is sending this message to make sure you are aware that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is offering temporary flexibilities for certain benefit requests that were submitted to a USCIS lockbox. These flexibilities only apply to benefit requests submitted to a USCIS lockbox and not to USCIS service centers or field offices.

According to USCIS, the following flexibilities are effective from June 10 until August 9, 2021:

• Rejection Due to Filing Fee Payment: If you submitted a benefit request to a USCIS lockbox between October 1, 2020, and April 1, 2021, and that request was rejected during that timeframe solely due to a filing fee payment that expired while the benefit request was awaiting processing, you may resubmit the request with a new fee payment. If USCIS concurs that it rejected the benefit request because of its delay, USCIS will deem the request to have been received on the initial filing date it was first received and waive the $30 dishonored check fee.
• Ineligible for Benefit Due to Age: USCIS will allow applicants and petitioners to submit documentation with a benefit request resubmission demonstrating that because of the time that elapsed between when a benefit request was originally submitted to a USCIS lockbox and when USCIS rejected it, an applicant, co-applicant, beneficiary or derivative has reached an age that makes them no longer eligible to file for the benefit requested. If USCIS agrees that the delayed rejection caused the person to be ineligible due to age, USCIS will accept the request and deem it to have been received on the date the initial benefit request was received. This flexibility does not apply to Form N-600K, Application for Citizenship and Issuance of Certificate Under Section 322.

More Information

Visit the USCIS website for more information on these filing flexibilities.

The CIS Ombudsman remains dedicated to assisting individuals seeking to resolve problems with USCIS whenever possible. For more information on our office, please visit our website.

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