The Vermont Service Center (VSC) has re-opened after a temporary closure, according to the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). Last week, USCIS temporarily closed the VSC after a presumed positive COVID-19 case, but since the test results came back negative for the individual, the VSC is now able to accept cases and/or any other form of correspondence.
AILA Report: Vermont Service Center (VSC) Temporarily Closed
UPDATE APRIL 13, 2020: The Vermont Service Center has re-opened.
We have received reports through the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) that the Vermont Service Center (VSC) has been temporarily closed due to a potential COVID-19 exposure. Reports indicate that the VSC will likely be closed at least until Wednesday, April 15, 2020, for a deep cleaning. During this time, it appears that mail or packages cannot be delivered to the VSC. AILA National has reached out to USCIS for confirmation of closure and guidance on how filings should be handled during the VSC closure. We will provide updates as we receive them.
Hello from Vermont!
Lake Champlain
Matt and I traveled up to beautiful Vermont for the annual stakeholder’s event at the Vermont Service Center (VSC) of US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS). These annual stakeholder events provide a valuable opportunity to meet officers of the VSC and fellow practitioners and discuss immigration issues and topics. (Okay, and also ask about that case that has been pending for way beyond the processing times.) At these stakeholder events, the VSC typically hosts roundtables and informational sessions related to business, family, and student-based immigration case types as well as customer service issues and concerns. The highlight is a tour of the VSC itself, but for security reasons, the VSC doesn't allow photos of their buildings. That's okay, though. This beautiful sunset on Lake Champlain will do!
Matt and Protima at the Vermont Service Center
Excuse me, where I can deliver this H-1B petition?
Matt and Protima are in beautiful New England for the Vermont Service Center Fall Stakeholder Event. These stakeholder events are important since they allow US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) to discuss key immigration issues and topics with lawyers and other stakeholders. On the agenda for today were roundtable events related to business-related immigration case types, family-based immigration case types, student-based case types, customer service issues and concerns, as well as—the best part really—a tour of the Vermont Service Center (VSC)! For security reasons, the VSC doesn't allow photos of their buildings, but this street sign is perfect: the regular Vermont Service Center is on Lower Welden Street and H-1B cap processing is on Lemnah Drive—this truly is one of the great crossroads of the immigration world!
Travel Report: VSC at Essex Junction
“So Ashley, what surprised you most about today's visit to VSC?” I ask.
We’ve just ended the annual stakeholder’s event at the new location of the Vermont Service Center (VSC) of US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS), where we get to meet officers of the VSC face-to-face and ask them, “What the heck were you thinking when you issued a request for evidence on my last case?” (Just joking.) Rather, it’s a time for those with a vested interest or who are significantly impacted by the decisions that come out of the VSC (i.e., the “stakeholders,” which includes immigration lawyers) to visit the VSC and participate in informational sessions. Jen reported about last year’s event.
“I think it would have to be the five million pieces of mail that they reported were sent out last year…”
Read moreTravel Report: Vermont Service Center
Each year the US Citizenship & Immigration Services Vermont Service Center (VSC) invites “stakeholders"--anyone with a vested interest or who is significantly impacted by the decisions that come out of the VSC--to visit the Center, take a tour, and participate in roundtable discussions on individual types of visas. The VSC processes nearly all the nonimmigrant visa petitions originating from the Eastern half of the US, and the Center also has exclusive jurisdiction over several other types of cases, including certain family-based applications, all VAWA, T visa, and U visa cases. As a brand new addition to the firm, I was invited by Partners Protima Daryanani and Manuel Otero to accompany them to this event, along with Associate Attorney Jacki Granet. I was interested to see just where all those petitions go once we seal up the FedEx envelopes and send them off.
Read moreNPR: "MANEUVERING THE SYSTEM THAT IS THE H-1B VISA PROGRAM"
NPR has a short (but fairly accurate) look at the H-1B process and also gives a glimpse inside the Vermont Service Center in St. Albans (which "looks like a law school library on the day before exams"). The news report follows the H-1B petition for Paddy, a programmer from India. GymPact, a web-based exercise motivator in the US, is petitioning for H-1B classification for Paddy (incidentally, I asked Protima, our managing partner who is Indian, how many Indian Paddys she shows. Zero, she said). NPR Reporter Zoe Chace gets inside the Vermont Service Center at 75 Lower Welden and speaks, yes, to a real immigration officer! As anyone who has spent time on either the national USCIS 1-800 customer service number or the premium processing line will know, this is a rare treat. Unfortunately the immigration officer doesn't know about Paddy's H-1B petition (perhaps it's at the California Service Center?). But Zoe Chace does get an adjudications officer to show her the Occupational Outlook Handbook and tells Zoe that in adjudicating an H-1B she looks for evidence of the degree and transcripts. Not exactly revelatory, but still reassuring. Perhaps the important information we can take from this report is that much of it "comes down to how precisely Paddy's lawyer filled out his paperwork." Ah yes, lawyers. They are useful sometimes.