Trump administration introduces "extreme vetting" for some green cards
As per reports, an in-person interview with the US immigration authorities will now be mandatory for certain applicants seeking green cards under the Trump regime. A move, many agree, would further bog down the already-backlogged and snail paced USA visa application system. US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) spokesperson said this applies to everyone shifting from employment-based visa to lawful permanent residency. Here's more.
When will it start from?
The new policy, which is scheduled to take effect from October 1, will also apply to visa holders that are family members of refugees and of those who have received asylum, when they apply for provisional status, the stage prior to receiving the green card. This move is in compliance with President Donald Trump's agenda of "extreme vetting" immigrants and visitors to the US.
Things are rapidly changing
According to the data obtained via Department of Homeland Security, as many as 168,000 immigrants belonging to the aforementioned categories have been given lawful permanent residency and approximately 122,000 were shifted from an employment-based visa to green card in FY15. However, things have radically changed under POTUS Donald Trump and such huge numbers are very unlikely to be seen in recent times.
Applying stringent measures
Trump, in January, had signed a travel ban executive order, which was further revised in March. It had instructed federal departments to create "uniform screening and vetting standards" in order to weed out terrorists or individuals, who "present a risk of causing harm". The idea of including an in-person interview was suggested in that very order and now it is being implemented.
Expect more in the future
USCIS spokesperson, Carter Langston informed Politico that in the future there'll be "an incremental expansion" and applicants of more categories will be needed to comply with the in-person interview policy. This was "part of a comprehensive strategy to further improve the detection and prevention of fraud and security risks to the US," said Langston. Therefore, earlier waived off in-person interviews will now be mandatory.
