May/070
USCIS Proposes Revisions for Religious Workers
The USCIS has detected extremely high levels of fraud in the religious worker immigration categories. In its effort to eliminate fraud and misrepresentation within these categories, the USCIS has proposed significant revisions to special immigrant and nonimmigrant religious worker classifications. An April 19, 2007 press release contains some of the details. In addition to eliminating opportunities for fraud, the proposed changes purport to streamline the process for legitimate petitioners. The USCIS will accept public comments until June 25, 2007, after which they will make a decision and publish the final regulation. The proposal contains provisions impacting both the R-1, temporary, nonimmigrant religious worker category as well as the Special Immigrant green card category for religious workers.