Web appointments for immigrants to go nationwide
USCIS hopes to have its Internet-based appointment system available across the country by September.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officials said they will implement an Internet-based appointment system nationwide by September.
The announcement came as USCIS officials announced today that they would expand the Web system to New York City, the fourth such site since the service was launched in a Miami pilot program last year. It is also available in Los Angeles and Dallas districts. The service will be expanded to another 33 USCIS districts.
Rather than wait on long lines at immigration offices, people can schedule a date and time online to meet with officers. Lines usually begin in the early morning and people are turned away if they come late. More than 350,000 people were served at the New York office last year.
"Now that we have InfoPass, people who come to our busiest offices can be assured they'll get the assistance they need," said Mary Ann Gantner, USCIS district director in New York. "And they can schedule their appointments for a date and time that is convenient for them."
InfoPass is offered in a dozen languages including Arabic, Chinese, Creole, English, French, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Russian, and Vietnamese, with plans for more in the future.
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