Attorney Murthy Sends Follow-Up Letter to Michael Chertoff
Posted Aug 01, 2007 | updated Aug 30, 2007

Read the USCIS response to Attorney Murthy's letter. (PDF 203KB)

July 31, 2007
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VIA FEDERAL EXPRESS
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Michael Chertoff, Esq.
Secretary
Department of Homeland Security
245 Murray Lane SW
Washington DC 20528-0300
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 RE: USCIS Decision to Accept I-485 Filings
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 Dear Honorable Secretary Chertoff:
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Thank you for prevailing upon the concerned officials to render the decision of July 17, 2007, to allow the USCIS to accept I-485/ Adjustment of Status filings based upon the July Visa Bulletin, until August 17, 2007. If my July 12, 2007 letter was strongly worded, as you may know, it was from the perspective of a person who is eternally grateful for the incredible opportunities afforded me in this great nation; of a person who believes in the "rule of law," and of the U.S. being the beacon of hope for the rest of the world. On behalf of thousands of our own law firm's clients, as well as many members of the immigrant community and the U.S. business community, we want you to know that we appreciate your leadership and courage in this bold move to reverse the earlier USCIS decision.
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Reversing the earlier, July 2nd, decision will go a long way toward showing that the leadership has the courage to stand up, acknowledge their error, and then follow through to resolve problems in an ongoing dialogue in good faith. This will help to reestablish the credibility of the USCIS as the agency created to provide "service" to the millions of immigrants seeking to file for immigration benefits and with U.S. employers that rely on the system to work in a consistent and fair manner.
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Remaining Problem:
Potential Adjustment Applicants Stranded Abroad
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We further appreciate the USCIS's ongoing efforts to set policies and procedures to ameliorate the damage caused by their actions in July. In that regard, there is a remaining, unresolved issue creating undue hardship because of the USCIS's actions in connection with the July Visa Bulletin. It concerns individuals and families who had made plans to travel abroad for the summer in June 2007. After mid June, these I-485 eligible individuals and families canceled their plans when the July Visa Bulletin was issued on June 12, 2007. Many of these individuals re-booked their tickets after the July 2nd announcement, and traveled abroad before July 17th. Some of these individuals are now stuck abroad, unable to return in time, due to their need for visa appointments at the consulates for H-1/H-4 or L-1/L-2 or other work visas. They must await visa appointments at the U.S. consulates, where the summer rush of visa applicants limits appointment availability. These individuals are unable to obtain their nonimmigrant visas abroad in time to return and meet the August 17th deadline for filing their I-485 applications.
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Potential Options for this Affected Group
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One option to address this problem would be to instruct the CBP to grant parole generously to these individuals or families, so that they can enter the U.S. without the nonimmigrant visa and promptly file their I-485s. This decision would have to be communicated properly, so that airlines would know to allow these individuals to board and CBP inspectors at airports must be thoroughly trained on this matter. Another option is for the USCIS filing date to be extended by just two weeks, until Friday, August 31, 2007, for at least this limited group of individuals who are stuck abroad because they relied on the July 2, 2007 USCIS decision.
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Thank you, once again, for doing the right thing for American employers and recognizing the contributions of the highly skilled, educated, hard working immigrants who have played by the rules. Your decision and actions have restored faith in the integrity of our government and for that we remain grateful to you.
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Very truly yours,

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Sheela Murthy
President and Founder
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Cc:  Emilio T. Gonzalez, Esq., Director, USCIS

Read the USCIS response to Attorney Murthy's letter. (PDF 203KB)