Asylee adjustment cut-off date

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alanpero

Registered Users (C)
June 6, 2001

Asylee Adjustment Cut-Off Date and Litigation

The INS Asylum Office has advised AILA that the current cut-off date for adjustment of status processing for asylees is January 16, 1998. Under the current quota for asylum adjustments, applications to adjust from asylum status filed before that date should have been adjudicated by now, or should be in the process of being adjudicated. The cut-off date is set at the beginning of each fiscal year. Thus, the next cut-off date is expected to be announced on or after October 1, 2001.

AILF is preparing litigation about the INS\'s administration of the asylee adjustment waiting lists. For more information, click here to consult the Frequently Asked Questions and click here to retrieve the Potential Plaintiff Questionnaire. Members who have clients who may be eligible to participate in the lawsuit should return the questionnaires to asylee@ailf.org as soon as possible.

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My I-485 app has been pending since September 1996. So that\'s 2 years over their so called "cut off date."
  I am not a big fan of law suits and I am still hopeful to Congresswoman Shiela Jackson Lee\'s Bill.
 
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Hi Jack,
I am not a fan of lawsuits either and, as a matter of fact, I hate them, but those people from AILF say they are preparing a litigation.
As for your case, and as I told you in a previous message, I believe your case was unproperly handled by your local INS office. Anyway, you are about to succesfully complete this process and won\'t have to worry about this pretty soon.
INS reported that by the end of FY 2000 the cut off date was October 14, 1997 and now for the end of FY 2001 is January 16, 1998. The cutt off date moved only 3 months in FY 2001!! Regards
 
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Dear Alanpero:

I just got confused about cut-off date that you have decribed. I had filed my I-485 in Nov. 1999. So do you think I will also have some luck on December?
 
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Hi Rajarani,
The cut-off date means the filing date of I-485 asylees adjustment applications that INS is processing by the end of the FY. In this case, the cut-off date January 16, 1998 means that after reaching the 10000 visas quota for FY 2001, the latest filing date being processed by INS, is January 16, 1998. In other words, only applications filed before that date have been adjudicated or are in the process of being adjudicated. Applications filed after that date will be adjudicated in the following FY\'s. Thus, the next 10000 applications filed after that date will be processed in FY 2002, starting this coming October. The following 10000 in FY 2003 and so on.
INS reports these cut-off dates to AILA. At least, that is what AILA says and, I am relying on that information.
As for your application, and under the current quota for asylum adjustments, I do not give hopes for your application to be processed in FY 2002 (to start this coming October). Truly, I wish I were wrong, but better to be reallistic, and avoid feeding false expectations.
Take into account that about 16000 applications were filed in FY 1998 (some of them already adjudicated) and like 13000 applications were filed in FY 1999. All of them are ahead of you in the waiting line, since yours was filed after them, in November 1999 (which is FY 2000). And, INS is allowed to approve only 10000 visas per year. This is why I believe the time frame for your application is as I explained to you in message 12.2 posted in a different discussion. Good luck.
 
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I just found this in a different discussion, posted by "longdrive2":

"Just talked to IIO at 3:45 PM on 6/20/01
I couldn\'t believe when in just the 2nd attempt, I got connected to INS & then waited only 7 minutes before an IIO picked up the phone. He told me that they are processing cases received at NSC up to June 2nd,00. He also told me that by receive date they actually mean, RECEIVE DATE. Notice date has nothing to do with the application processing. He said that my application is not being looked at yet but it will be picked up "shortly"as my RD is June24th,00.
I am hoping that the processing date will reach July or August in the next sweep. That\'s when july ND cases like mine have a better chance approval. Until August, no more INS calling. RD: June 26,00, ND: July10,00, LIN : 00-209-xxxxx"

Though, this is for a EB application, what is really interesting is to know that the IIO said that the Received date is what really counts for application processing purposes. If true (unfortunately not all IIO\'s give the same version)this would be a good new and provide some relief.
 
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Hi Alanpero,

  I am not clear on what AILF hopes to gain or accomplish by suing the INS. Monetary settlement, policy change, preferential treatment for some asylees that are clients of AILF member lawyers...??? . Isn\'t the Sentate already considering to increase the number of asylee greencard approvals per year?

  Law suits can get really nasty. Both sides go to all out battle and they will throw in all the little pieces of evidence they got to prove that they\'re right. So I want my fellow asylees to be reminded of that basic fact about law suits in general before they get involved in anything.

  It is most likely that the INS will come up with the same old excuse that every Federal agency makes when they\'re being called inefficient or incompetent. Those excuses are "we need more money", "we need more staff", "we don\'t make the policies we just carry out the laws made by the Legislative branch." I\'m not mocking at the INS, but that\'s the bitter truth about all Federal agencies.

  On the other hand I\'ve heard stories through my lawyer friends about how INS mishandle some cases, lose paperworks, case mix ups, etc. And history suggests that the INS has not always been a politically correct organization: once they banned immigration from Italy because they believed all Italians turn into mobsters, refused to accept a shipful of Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi occupied Europe, banned immigration from Asia for X years of time, etc.

 Anyhow..this law suit should be an interesting event to look forward to.
 
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Hi Jack,
I am totally staying away from this. As said before I hate this type of actions, but if you need more information about this organization and their whereabouts visit their web site, I believe is http://www.ailf.org
I would be so pleased after getting the GC, that I wouldn\'t care about any lawsuit. Also, sometime ago you said a friend of yours filed his I-485 in Delaware in 1996 and received approval in early 2000. Could you please be more specific on the dates, I mean what month in 1996 and what month in 2000? If you can get this info of course. Thanks
 
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Hi Alanpero,

 I read through the FAQ section at AILF web site regarding this law suit and this particular abstract worries me:

"Q: Will participating in this lawsuit hurt my or my family\'s immigration status or hurt us in some other way?

A: The INS cannot deny you a benefit that you are legally entitled to because you participate in this lawsuit. We believe it is very unlikely that the INS will retaliate against you for participating in this lawsuit. However, it is likely that the INS will look at your case or application more closely than they might otherwise. "

 As quoted above, the INS will not officially harass you or penalize against you for being a plaintiff in this law suit. But, they will look at your case more "CLOSELY" than they might otherwise.

 It is entirely up to the asylees whether they want to get involved in this or not. But to give my opinion, you better be a near perfect model person to be a part of this law suit as the INS will "put your case under the microscope."

 I will check with my buddy on the dates you have asked.
 
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"Q: What is this lawsuit about?

A: The immigration law allows only 10,000 asylees each year to become lawful permanent residents (LPRs) of the United States. Each year there are many more than 10,000 people who are granted asylum and so there are many people on the waiting list to become LPRs. We believe that the INS is not properly handling the waiting list of asylees who are waiting to become LPRs.

In particular, we believe the INS is not processing asylee permanent residence applications on a first-come, first-serve basis as it is required to do under its own regulations. This is the "waiting list" part of the lawsuit."

   The AILF is correct about asylee I-485 applications not being handled on first-come-first-serve basis. Under the old policies we had to apply I-485s at the local offices. And it is also my assumption that the INS gave local offices autonomy over processing time and interviews.
So it will become obvious why there is a big time difference in processing time between I-485 application filed in New York INS office and application filed in Rhode Island, Delaware etc.

 Actually the INS has already came to realize about this unfairness and changed the I-485 filing policy: all asylee I-485s are now filed at NSC again.
  The AILF is also planning to sue the INS for EAD delays. And guess what? the INS and DSS also changed things to "cover their own behinds." Now asylee can apply for SS card with no employment restrictions.
  
  A question is raised: What about the asylees who got screwed under the INS\'s "experimental policies?"
 
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Hi Rajarani,
I am thinking further on this, and there is one more piece of information, which I have recently received, and is making me think that things could be better than what I posted in my message 1.1.1.1
The big question is: Has the INS already adjudicated the 10000 visas for FY 2001? Obviously, there are only two answers: “yes” and “no”
· If the answer is yes, that means that the cut-off dated of January 16, 1998 will not move for the rest of FY 2001, which ends on September 30, 2001. There are two facts that support this option. The first one is Jack’s experience posted sometime ago. He was told that INS couldn’t approve his case at the time of the interview (February 2001?) because of the quota system. I deduct from this, that by February 2001, INS had already adjudicated the 10000 visas for FY 2001. The second fact is that from experiences collected from previous years, I found that normally, INS processes the majority of the 10000 visas during the first months of the FY. I might be wrong, but that is what I know.
· If the answer is no, (that would be the good new!!) means that because INS has currently adjudicated less than 10000 visas in FY 2001, the cut-off date should move ahead from the reported date (January 16, 1998) before the end of FY 2001. There are three facts that support this option. The first one, the message textually says: “The INS Asylum Office has advised AILA that the current cut-off date for adjustment of status processing for asylees is January 16, 1998”. Note that they say CURRENT, and that the message was posted on June 6, 2001. They are saying also the next cut-off date is expected to be announced on or after October 1, 2001. They are not saying that January 16, 2001 is the cut-off date for the end of FY 2001. Since FY 2001 ends in September 30, 2001 there are still almost four more months during which more visas could be approved if the quota has not been currently reached. The second fact is that by the end of March, I talked to an IIO; she was unusually friendly and told me that by the end of FY 2001 they were expecting the cut-off date to move to the end of March of 1998. But she had just received a report indicating that the cut-off date had moved until mid-January 1998 only (in accordance with what INS recently announced). At that moment, I didn’t specifically ask her if INS had already adjudicated the 10000 visas for FY 2001, but somehow I took that as valid. She also confirmed that the previous cut-off dated reported on October 1, 2000 was October 14, 1997. That meant that between 10/14/1997 and 01/16/1998, 10000 I-485 asylee applications were filed (on the assumption that INS had already reached the quota). This was something hard to believe, and this is why I called INS Statistics Branch and also filed a G-639 “Freedom of Information/Privacy Act Request” to get INS monthly Statistical reports for FY 1997. The third fact, is based on response I received from INS. They do not report asylees I-485’s filed; however, they show how many asylum cases were approved in the previous year, and based on this information and some reasonable assumptions, I was able to estimate how many asylees I-485’s were filed between 10/14/97 and 01/16/1998, and found that less than 10000 applications should have been filed in that period of time. Meaning that the cut-off date should be moving ahead before September 30, 2001.
To make this shorter, if the answer to the question is “yes” then, by the end of FY 2001, the cut-off date will be the same (January, 16 1998). However, if the answer to the question is “no” the cut-off date will move to around mid-March 1998, the next time to be announced by INS. Only time will let me know, unless I can find a trustable answer to the question
 
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Thanks for that Jack. As said before, I am staying totally away from this law suit action and my decision is not to be involved in it. But, as you said it is entirely up to the asylees to participate or not. Regards
 
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That is exactly right!! What about them? What can they expect as compensation? How truly were they affected and how able are they to certainly demonstrate they were really affected? Hard to answer!!!
The EAD problem no longer exists since SSC are being issued with no restrictions, so what can anybody argue? Hard to answer!!!
That\'s also true, they are not handling on first-come-first-serve basis, applications filed before July \'98. Now that everything is centralized in only one office this won\'t longer be a problem. So, what could anybody argue? Hard to answer!!! There is not a common answer that applies to everybody, only can be answered on a individual basis.
This has provided material for discussion, eh? But, I am more worried about trying to find when my application will be processed rather than dedicating time to these law suit actions.
 
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I believe that the Senate will decide on Congresswoman Shiela Jackson-Lee\'s Bill sooner than AILF\'s law suit can be reached to a decision.

 Suing against a Federal Agency like the INS (especially one of Department of Justice\'s own branches) can be VERY time consuming. I don\'t think the courts can give speedy trial for this kind of disputes. Alot of time will be spent with hearings, testimonies, studying the laws....etc
   
  I\'m kinda skeptical on how the Senate Subcommittee will decide on Shiela JacksonLee\'s Bill. Democrats and Republicans are playing partisan politics again after the Vermont Senator quit the Republican Party. So there\'s no sure way of predicting how the Subcommittee members will vote on the bill.
 
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Jack, sometime ago you said you were composing a letter to the Subcommitee. Any new on that you could share with us? Thanks
 
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I apologize for not posting my letter in it\'s original format:(privacy issues)

Basically this is how I composed my letter:

 In the introduction I let the Subcommittee members aware that I am writing in support of the Bill introduced by Congresswoman Shiela Jackson Lee.

  I introduced myself, how/where/when I was granted asylum in the US.
Then I explained the reasons I applied for I-485: there is no sign of improvement on human right conditions in my homecountry and I don\'t know how much longer things will continue to be that way. I told my story in details how my asylee status is making difficult for me to integrate into the American society (we are kept out from better jobs because of our uncertain immigration status, we can\'t travel freely outside of the US, we have to renew our EADs once every year..). I also explained how the INS did not respond to inquiries about the status of my case, how difficult is it for asylees to call the NSC to keep track of their application status etc. Most important of all I let them know how the quota system is creating a cogested bottle neck of asylee I-485 applicants.

  In conclusion I said I thank all American people for providing me with a safe place of refuge when humanright violators in my homecountry threatened my life. Lastly I told them all my neighbors, my colleagues at work have already accpted me as a member of American society and that the quota system is preventing me from actually becoming a Permenant Resident.
 
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Thanks for that Jack. Your explanation was just fine and more detailed than what I was asking for. I understand there are privacy issues that have to be as that, privately. That\'s OK
Somehow my letter to congresswoman Sheila and to my Congressman was about the same, but certainly with less detail than yours. Hopefully, this is going to work for all of us.
 
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I also sent a brief Thank you note to Shiela Jackson Lee. Actually I called her office in Houston but the receptionist said Congresswoman is currently in DC.

 I don\'t think there is anymore Shiela Jackson Lee can do right now. It is all up to Senate Subcommittee on Immigration. The Subcommittee is made up of 5 Republican Senators and 5 Democrat Senators. I hope they don\'t let the party politics influence in voting for this Bill.
 
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Also I do not know what criteria the subcommitee follows to decide on what Bill to vote. I have seen there are a bunch of Bills introduced before HR 1560, with no action, still pending. Also there are no cosponsors to our Bill, that\'s is why I also sent a letter to my Congressman but no answer so far. It\'s hard to say what\'s going to happen with this Bill, but I keep confident that finally is going to help.
 
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