The Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman (CIS Ombudsman) often identifies emerging issues or trends through informal proposals, engaging in discussions with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) about how to address these problems. These informal proposals are shared with USCIS leaders and serve as a key step in our work to make recommendations to improve the administration of the U.S. immigration system. While USCIS is not statutorily required to respond to these informal proposals, it appears that they are often taken into consideration.
Our informal proposals are separate from our formal recommendations and Annual Report to Congress.
The list below highlights just some of the informal proposals developed by the CIS Ombudsman where USCIS has taken action. Our office does not seek to take credit for originating these ideas, but we create a powerful voice for achieving operational solutions to complex problems. We rely on our stakeholders to keep us informed about issues they are experiencing with USCIS.