News

[Lev Kobrin]

DHS Publishes Final Rule on Notices of Decisions and Documents Evidencing Lawful StatusOn Oct. 29, 2014, the Department of Homeland Security published a final rule amending its regulations governing when USCIS will• correspond with,• issue a notice of decision to, or• provide documents toan applicant, petitioner, or requester, and/or an attorney of record or accredited representative.This final rule explains how USCIS will provide notices to applicants, petitioners or requestors. It also explains how they can consent to have such notices and secure identification documents sent directly to their designated representatives.USCIS is in the process of updating Form G-28, Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Accredited Representative, and Form G-28I, Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney in Matters Outside the Geographical Confines of the United States, to reflect the changes in this rule. You can view the revised forms at www.regulations.gov in Docket ID USCIS-2008-0037.This rule will take effect 90 days from the date of publication in the Federal Register.Last Reviewed/Updated: 10/29/2014USCIS Expands the Definition of “Mother” and “Parent” to Include Gestational Mothers Using Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART)USCIS issued a new policy (PA-2014-009) clarifying the definition of “mother” and “parent” under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to include gestational mothers using assisted reproductive technology regardless of whether they are the genetic mothers. USCIS and the Department of State (DOS), who exercise authority over these issues, collaborated in the development of this policy. USCIS and DOS concluded that the term “mother” and “parent” under the INA includes any mother who:• Gave birth to the child, and• Was the child’s legal mother at the time of birth under the law of the relevant jurisdiction.Under this new policy, a mother who meets this definition but does not have a genetic relationship with her child (for example, she became pregnant through an egg donor) will:• Be able to petition for her child based on their relationship• Be eligible to have her child petition for her based on their relationship• Be able to transmit U.S. citizenship to her child, if she is a U.S. citizen and all other pertinent citizenship requirements are met.We have updated our policy manual, Adjudicator’s Field Manual, and Web pages to reflect this change. For more information, please visit our website at www.uscis.gov.Last Reviewed/Updated: 10/28/2014