TortFeasor
Registered Users (C)
As promised, this thread will host communications in connection with our efforts to effect regulatory reform relating to the issuance of RTDs. On behalf of the Steering Committee on Travel Freedom, we sent the letter below to both the Director and the Ombudsman of the CIS.
This is what we plan to do : (1) seek an audience with the Ombudsman to explain our requests; (2) follow up with appropriate persons at CIS; and (3) communicate our demand with other advocacy and interest groups so that we may gain credibility and traction. Depending on the response we get, we may think of other legal avenues to remedy the situation.
In the meantime, this is how you can help: send out copies of the attached letter to both the Director and the Ombudsman. Make the necessary modifications to reflect the right addressee. This will hopefully indicate that the problems are shared by a larger community. Furthermore, give us ideas and your thoughts as we push along.
We believe that the worst thing to do is to do nothing and allow this travesty to continue!
Cheerio
Dan
---------------------------------------------
Mr. Eduardo Aguirre
Director (with a rank of Under Secretary)
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”)
Department of Homeland Security
425 I Street, NW
Washington, DC 20536
[OR]
Mr. Prakash Khatri, Esq.
Ombudsman
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”)
Department of Homeland Security
Washington, DC 20528
Re: Regulatory Change to Expedite the Processing of Applications for Refugee Travel Documents
Dear [Director Aguirre] [Ombudsman Khatri]:
The undersigned are coordinators of the Steering Committee on Travel Freedom, a volunteer unincorporated association of current and previous asylees or refugees. By previous asylees or refugees, we are referring to those of us who have become permanent residents after adjusting from a previous asylee or refugee status.
We sought the protection of the United States of America from regimes or societies that persecuted us. We live in our adopted country, paying taxes, obeying its laws and contributing to its economic and social life. Pursuant to Section 223.2(b)(2) of Title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations (the "CFR"), we are required to apply for a Refugee Travel Document ("RTD") from the USCIS to travel outside the United States.
On numerous occasions, it has been stated that the mission of the new USCIS is to ensure that "the right applicant receives the right benefit in the right amount of time, while preventing the wrong individuals from obtaining benefits."
In contrast, today we encounter the following when we apply for RTDs:
1. It is taking a minimum of six months for the USCIS to process RTDs.
2. Pursuant to 8 CFR 223.3(a)(2), RTDs are only valid for one year.
3. Pursuant to 8 CFR 223.2(c), we cannot apply for a new RTD while a currently valid RTD is in our possession.
4. A number of countries require that, in order to grant entry visas, RTDs should be valid for at least six months from the date of visa application.
The cumulative effect of the processing backlog and the provisions of the aforementioned regulations is that for at least six months out of every year, it is effectively and practically impossible for us to travel overseas.
We have been forced to forego numerous business and professional opportunities that are essential for our livelihoods, when, as is usually the case in such an interdependent and globalized economy, our work obligations require us to travel oversees. Furthermore, we have also missed numerous family and social events in safe countries. This issue is particularly important to us as we cannot travel to our respective countries of origin. One of the few occasions for our loved ones to meet us in person is to arrange for such meetings in safe countries.
In short, we feel "imprisoned" in the most free nation on earth.
The aforedescribed process infringes on our due process and equal protection rights to travel and earn a livelihood, free from unreasonable restrictions, afforded to all persons by the United States Constitution. Furthermore, the current process violates the spirit, if not the letter, of Article 28.1 of the United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (the "Refugee Convention"), as made applicable to the United States by its accession to the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees.
We ask you to use the powers of your good offices to effect regulatory and administrative changes that will go a long way in mitigating our situation. Specifically, we ask that the USCIS amend 8 CFR 223.3(a)(2) and make RTDs valid for five years or more. One of the reasons for the current backlog is the fact that we have to apply for RTDs every year. Prolonging the duration of RTDs for five years or more will reduce the workload for USCIS, thereby reducing the processing backlog significantly. This will then result in faster processing of RTD applications, allowing such applications to be processed, hopefully, in less than four weeks. By way of comparison, the British equivalent of the RTD is issued for up to ten years while its Canadian equivalent is issued for five years.
On numerous occasions, the USCIS has promised to review and reform procedures that create unnecessary backlogs. USCIS’s recent decision to amend 8 CFR 274a.12, by extending the duration of validity of certain employment authorization documents by up to five years is a good precedent the USCIS should follow with regards to RTDs.
We will be glad to discuss these concerns in detail with you or your delegate(s)). We look forward to working with your office on this issue of immense importance to us.
Sincerely,
/s/ Chee Chong
/s/ Abe Elmamoun
/s/ Daniel Woubishet
This is what we plan to do : (1) seek an audience with the Ombudsman to explain our requests; (2) follow up with appropriate persons at CIS; and (3) communicate our demand with other advocacy and interest groups so that we may gain credibility and traction. Depending on the response we get, we may think of other legal avenues to remedy the situation.
In the meantime, this is how you can help: send out copies of the attached letter to both the Director and the Ombudsman. Make the necessary modifications to reflect the right addressee. This will hopefully indicate that the problems are shared by a larger community. Furthermore, give us ideas and your thoughts as we push along.
We believe that the worst thing to do is to do nothing and allow this travesty to continue!
Cheerio
Dan
---------------------------------------------
Mr. Eduardo Aguirre
Director (with a rank of Under Secretary)
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”)
Department of Homeland Security
425 I Street, NW
Washington, DC 20536
[OR]
Mr. Prakash Khatri, Esq.
Ombudsman
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”)
Department of Homeland Security
Washington, DC 20528
Re: Regulatory Change to Expedite the Processing of Applications for Refugee Travel Documents
Dear [Director Aguirre] [Ombudsman Khatri]:
The undersigned are coordinators of the Steering Committee on Travel Freedom, a volunteer unincorporated association of current and previous asylees or refugees. By previous asylees or refugees, we are referring to those of us who have become permanent residents after adjusting from a previous asylee or refugee status.
We sought the protection of the United States of America from regimes or societies that persecuted us. We live in our adopted country, paying taxes, obeying its laws and contributing to its economic and social life. Pursuant to Section 223.2(b)(2) of Title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations (the "CFR"), we are required to apply for a Refugee Travel Document ("RTD") from the USCIS to travel outside the United States.
On numerous occasions, it has been stated that the mission of the new USCIS is to ensure that "the right applicant receives the right benefit in the right amount of time, while preventing the wrong individuals from obtaining benefits."
In contrast, today we encounter the following when we apply for RTDs:
1. It is taking a minimum of six months for the USCIS to process RTDs.
2. Pursuant to 8 CFR 223.3(a)(2), RTDs are only valid for one year.
3. Pursuant to 8 CFR 223.2(c), we cannot apply for a new RTD while a currently valid RTD is in our possession.
4. A number of countries require that, in order to grant entry visas, RTDs should be valid for at least six months from the date of visa application.
The cumulative effect of the processing backlog and the provisions of the aforementioned regulations is that for at least six months out of every year, it is effectively and practically impossible for us to travel overseas.
We have been forced to forego numerous business and professional opportunities that are essential for our livelihoods, when, as is usually the case in such an interdependent and globalized economy, our work obligations require us to travel oversees. Furthermore, we have also missed numerous family and social events in safe countries. This issue is particularly important to us as we cannot travel to our respective countries of origin. One of the few occasions for our loved ones to meet us in person is to arrange for such meetings in safe countries.
In short, we feel "imprisoned" in the most free nation on earth.
The aforedescribed process infringes on our due process and equal protection rights to travel and earn a livelihood, free from unreasonable restrictions, afforded to all persons by the United States Constitution. Furthermore, the current process violates the spirit, if not the letter, of Article 28.1 of the United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (the "Refugee Convention"), as made applicable to the United States by its accession to the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees.
We ask you to use the powers of your good offices to effect regulatory and administrative changes that will go a long way in mitigating our situation. Specifically, we ask that the USCIS amend 8 CFR 223.3(a)(2) and make RTDs valid for five years or more. One of the reasons for the current backlog is the fact that we have to apply for RTDs every year. Prolonging the duration of RTDs for five years or more will reduce the workload for USCIS, thereby reducing the processing backlog significantly. This will then result in faster processing of RTD applications, allowing such applications to be processed, hopefully, in less than four weeks. By way of comparison, the British equivalent of the RTD is issued for up to ten years while its Canadian equivalent is issued for five years.
On numerous occasions, the USCIS has promised to review and reform procedures that create unnecessary backlogs. USCIS’s recent decision to amend 8 CFR 274a.12, by extending the duration of validity of certain employment authorization documents by up to five years is a good precedent the USCIS should follow with regards to RTDs.
We will be glad to discuss these concerns in detail with you or your delegate(s)). We look forward to working with your office on this issue of immense importance to us.
Sincerely,
/s/ Chee Chong
/s/ Abe Elmamoun
/s/ Daniel Woubishet
