Trump Administration to Close
All International Immigration Offices The international division of the United States Citizenship
and Immigration Services is set to close down by the end of 2019. With immigration offices in more than 20 countries,
closing down services would dissolve a key support system
for those applying to relocate to the U.S. The international division is responsible
for providing logistical assistance to American
citizens hoping to bring family members into the U.S. Field office employees are responsible for conducting interviews
with refugees and assist in the flow of immigration applications. The closings are reportedly being done in an effort
to reallocate resources to the current backlog of asylum applications. Barbara Strack, the former chief of the
Refugee Affairs Division, believes these
changes will only cause further delays. Barbara Strack,
via 'New York Times’ The average processing time for citizenship and immigration
cases has risen 46% in the past two years and 91% since 2014.
