Among efforts of the whole world to support Japan after the recent devastating earthquakes and tsunami, U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reminded Japanese nationals that there are certain U.S. immigration benefits available for them upon request.
USCIS has listed a range of options that allows Japanese nationals to remain in the US because “USCIS understands that a natural disaster can affect an individual’s ability to establish or maintain lawful immigration status”, as said in the notice.
Temporary relief measures available to eligible nationals of Japan may include:
- The grant of an application for change or extension of nonimmigrant status for an individual currently in the United States, even when the request is filed after the authorized period of admission has expired;
- Re-parole of individuals granted parole by USCIS;
- Extension of certain grants of advance parole, and expedited processing of advance parole requests;
- Expedited adjudication and approval, where possible, of requests for off-campus employment authorization for F-1 students experiencing severe economic hardship;
- Expedited processing of immigrant petitions for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents (LPRs);
- Expedited employment authorization where appropriate; and
- Assistance to LPRs stranded overseas without immigration documents such as Green Cards. USCIS and the Department of State will coordinate on these matters when the LPR is stranded in a place that has no local USCIS office.
read full article here: http://www.migrationexpert.com/visa/us_immigration_news/2011/mar/0/321/us_supports_japanese_via_visa_extensions
