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Citizenship and Immigration Services

Managed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the United States’ lawful immigration system is one of the most generous in the world.

  • Attorney General William P. Barr’s letter to Acting Secretary Chad F. Wolf on DACA

    Attorney General William P. Barr’s letter to Acting Secretary Chad F. Wolf on DACA, received on June 30, 2020.

  • DHS/USCIS/PIA-079 Content Management Services (CMS)

    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is expanding its use of the Content Management Services (CMS) to ingest and manage immigration-related content from other producers of Alien File content (hereafter A-File), which includes U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (DOJ-EOIR) Electronic Court of Appeals System (ECAS), and the Department of State (DOS). Content Management Services will also interface with USCIS’s Person Centric Identity Services (PCIS) via an Application Program Interface (API). This model for managing content aligns with USCIS’s vision to move away from transaction-based processes and toward a process focused on delivering person-centric content. USCIS is updating this Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) to describe the additional immigration-related content that Content Management Services will manage, the new interconnection with Person Centric Identity Services via an Application Program Interface, and the new data sources included in the Content Management Services’ Content Repository. October 2024

  • DHS/USCIS/PIA-078 Data Streaming Services (DSS)

    U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) uses Data Streaming Services as intermediary messengers to effectively and efficiently move data among USCIS systems in near real-time. The use of these services allows USCIS to transport data without the technical and administrative burden usually placed on the operating systems. USCIS is publishing this Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) to evaluate the privacy risks and mitigations associated with the transport of personally identifiable information (PII) using these services.

  • DHS/USCIS/PIA-077 FOIA Immigration Records System (FIRST)

    U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a component of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), operates the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Immigration Records System (FIRST) to process FOIA requests, Privacy Act requests, and Privacy Act amendment requests from any eligible person or entity requesting access to or amendment of USCIS records. FIRST serves two purposes: (1) FIRST has a public-facing portal that allows members of the public to submit FOIA/Privacy Act requests online and allows USCIS to electronically deliver responsive records, and (2) FIRST is an internal case management system for USCIS. USCIS is conducting this Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) to analyze the privacy impacts associated with USCIS’ use of FIRST, as well as the information collected, used, maintained, and disseminated.

  • DHS/USCIS/PIA-076 Continuous Immigration Vetting

    Information related to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) number 076, Continuous Immigration Vetting.

  • DHS/USCIS/PIA-075 RAILS

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) developed USCIS RAILS (not an acronym) to enable DHS and USCIS authorized personnel to request immigration files; electronically maintain an accurate file inventory; and track the location of paper and electronic immigration record content using a web-based system. RAILS allows DHS users to order, transfer, and receive official paper and electronic immigration records associated with an A-Number or receipt number. USCIS is updating the RAILS Privacy Impact Assessment to identify new uses of the system: Person Centrix Query Service (PCQS) and IMPACT (not an acronym), through Enterprize Citizenship and Immigration Services Centralized Operational Repository (eCISCOR), and the new connections to the following USCIS systems: Person Centric Identity Services (PCIS), USCIS Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Immigration Records System (FIRST), and Content Management Services (CMS). This Privacy Impact Assessment Update also identifies the purpose, use, and sharing information related to A-Files with external connections to the National Archives and Records Administration's (NARA) Archival Records Center Information System (ARCIS) and Iron Mountain's (IRM) Records Manager system. 

  • DHS/USCIS/PIA-074 IMPACT

    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) developed IMPACT, a secure web-based system, to alleviate the need for USCIS adjudicators to perform manual system comparisons when adjudicating an immigration benefit request. IMPACT will perform requisite DHS and USCIS system checks to move a case from one status in an adjudication queue to another.

  • DHS/USCIS/PIA-073 USCIS and CISOMB Information Sharing

    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman (CISOMB), established by Section 452 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, provides independent analysis of problems encountered by individuals and employers who have submitted benefit request filings to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and proposes changes to mitigate those problems. Sharing information between USCIS and CISOMB, where there is proper consent, is crucial to fulfilling this statutory mandate.

  • Asistencia en Casos - Espanol

    El Ombudsman brinda una perspectiva imparcial e independiente para el Servicio de Ciudadanía e Inmigración (USCIS, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) en un intento por resolver problemas con casos pendientes.

  • DHS/USCIS/PIA-072 CAP Tracker

    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) oversees lawful immigration and non-immigration benefits. For all incoming applications, petitions, and forms, USCIS reviews the completeness and acceptability of each one and rejects those failing to meet the stated criteria. USCIS developed the CAP Tracker system to track and maintain an inventory of all rejected filings. CAP Tracker is also used to generate standardized rejection notices sent to applicants or petitioners and, if applicable, legal representatives.