Last Updated on February 23, 2023
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is facing delays printing employment authorization documents for immigrants and nonimmigrants.
What Happened?
According to The Washington Post, USCIS is reportedly facing a backlog printing 50,000 green cards and 75,000 employment authorization documents (EAD).
The Post also cites USCIS as saying these delays are the result of financial concerns and they are not renewing a contract with a printing company. As a result, USCIS has shut down a facility in Corbin, KY and another facility in Lee’s Summit, MO is operating at reduced capacity.
Who Does This Impact?
Per the Post, this backlog is affecting immigrants who have been newly approved for their legal permanent residency (LPR) status. Other individuals affected are existing LPRs who need to renew their physical green cards.
This also impacts people who have been approved to be issued an EAD card.
How Are Envoy and GIA Responding?
GIA and Envoy are working to stay up to date via their communication channels to ensure they provide their clients with up to date information on when the matter is resolved.
What Do I Need To Do Next?
Unfortunately, there is no avenue of relief to get a card issued any quicker so we must wait for the USCIS to resolve this matter internally and get caught back-up on issuing green cards and EAD cards. If you were recently approved for either a green card or EAD card and have questions about your status, please post to your Envoy communication center.
Envoy is pleased to provide you this information, which was prepared in collaboration with Ryan Bay, who is Partner, Legal Operations at Global Immigration Associates, P.C. (www.giafirm.com), Envoy’s affiliated law firm.
Content in this publication is not intended as legal advice, nor should it be relied on as such. For additional information on the issues discussed, consult an Envoy-affiliated attorney or another qualified professional.
