USCIS Update For Green Card Applicants Currently In The US

India-West News Desk

WASHINGTON, DC – USCIS has begun shifting certain Green Card interviews from its field offices inside the United States to U.S. consulates abroad. This procedural change means that thousands of applicants – a large majority from India – who have been waiting for their final interview to obtain the American Green Card, must now travel to their home country for the consular interview.

The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) warns that this shift may create significant hardship for both applicants and their U.S. sponsors — including American families in relative‑petition cases and U.S. employers in employment‑based cases certified by the Department of Labor for employment in the U.S.

Unlike USCIS field offices, consulates do not issue written Requests for Evidence (RFEs) to correct or clarify paperwork before the interview. If an applicant cannot fully explain an error or inconsistency during a brief interview at the consular window, the case may be denied or delayed. Because U.S. consulates remain heavily backlogged year‑round, obtaining a new appointment may take months. During this time, applicants risk losing their stateside employment, while U.S. employers lose essential workers — a no‑win situation for all parties.

Washington, D.C.  attorney Arun Kumar Chhabra strongly advises applicants to have their entire application package thoroughly reviewed by a qualified U.S. immigration attorney before submitting documents abroad. He notes that while reviewing the Green Card application package of a husband‑wife team — both college professors in the U.S. – he identified multiple inconsistencies and incomplete answers. What may appear to be a fully completed application to the applicant may not appear readily approvable to the consular officers. “You want to be on the good side of the interviewing officer, not increase his/her workload by presenting a shoddily prepared package”, adds attorney Chhabra.