About Immigration Forms
Learning about immigration forms is crucial for prospective immigrants eager to reside and work legally in the United States. Since the office of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services is inundated with filings on a daily basis, it is vital to not only choose the correct form to file, but also complete and return it in accordance with the instructions. To cut down on the waiting times that immigrants experience, this government agency now accepts e-filings of some forms. Find out about immigration forms, how to file them and how to make sure your files do not get returned to you.
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Types
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Free immigration forms are available directly from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) website (see Resources). The listing includes a brief synopsis of what the form may be used for and also the filing fee associated with it. As an alternative, people who do not have a printer may request up to five form packets by mail. Prospective immigrants simply enter their request online (see Resources) and wait for the forms to arrive in their mailboxes.
Considerations
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Applicants can now file some immigration forms online and no longer have to visit the local immigration office. Filers pay the fees that usually accompany these papers electronically as well. The Immigration Service hosts a special web page (see Resources) for immigrants who e-file their packets. For those forms that hopeful immigrants cannot file online, they still have the option of filling in the different fields online and then printing out the forms from their computers. This greatly cuts down on the amount of times that applicants have to redo their forms because of problems with legibility.
Features
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With only a couple of exceptions, all of the immigration forms require a filing fee. In the past, the fee had to be handed to a clerk in cash; today, the fee may also be paid with a money order or a cashier's check made out to the Department of Homeland Security. E-filers may use a credit card or a direct withdrawal from a checking or savings account when filing and paying for their forms.
Misconceptions
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It is a common misconception that immigration forms must be purchased. In fact, this has translated into quite a lucrative online business that now has websites marketing immigration packets to benefit applicants. The Immigration and Naturalization Service warns that some of these packets contain outdated or retired forms that the agency will not accept. To get around the criticism of providing an essentially free service for a cost, some of these businesses, assert that the forms themselves are free of charge, but the accompanying tip sheet and manuals are actually the reason for the charges. In some cases, costs range from $70 to $150 per forms package.
Expert Insight
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No matter how prospective immigrants obtain their forms, it is vital that each and every question is answered and no blank boxes are left. Failure to properly complete the forms results in a request for completion that will delay the approval of the petition for a significant period of time.
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Resources
- Photo Credit United States Government Accountability Office/Wikimedia Commons
