The following is a summary of the updated information
provided from Ciudad Juarez by Charles Wheeler. Caseload. The consulate continues to be the largest and busiest  immigrant visa (IV) post in the world. For the last fiscal year the
consulate processed more than 89,000 immigrant visa applications.
That is a 3,000 application gain over the prior year.

The consulate has been experiencing a steady increase in applications – especially

in the last few months – and anticipates that it will be processing
approximately 135,000 IV applications during this current fiscal
year. For example, last month the consulate processed 14,000 IV
applications, and for the first three months next year it anticipates
processing 16,000 cases per month. The consulate averages between
700 - 950 IV applications per day.

As of December 11, 2006, the National Visa Center (NVC) began
scheduling the IV appointment interviews for immediate relative
applications. At that time a sizeable backlog had developed at the
consulate, due to a combination of staffing shortages and increased
workload. This caused immigrant visa applicants to wait almost 10 to
12 months for the consulate to schedule the IV interview from the
date it received the file from the NVC. As of the end of September
2007, the backlog in immigrant visa applications had been reduced to
approximately 41,000 cases. This was comprised of approximately
25,000 immigrant visa applications scheduled by the consulate under
the prior system and 16,000 cases where the visa appointment was
scheduled by the NVC. As of today, the "local" backlog has been
eliminated. The only remaining backlog is that which exists at the
NVC.

By mid-March 2008, the consulate believes that it will be able to
comply with the "30/60-day" Congressional mandate. That rule requires
the consulate to schedule an IV interview within 30 days of receipt
of an immediate relative application from the NVC; the consulate must
schedule the interview within 60 days for a preference category case.
Due to the high volume of applications and increased demand, the
consulate has been unable to meet that requirement.

Upcoming move. The consulate anticipates a huge demand for services
next year when millions of laser visas (border crossing cards)
throughout Mexico will need to be renewed. Another demand will come
through implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative,
which will require U.S. citizens to have a passport to travel to and
from Mexico. The consulate will be moving into new facilities in June
2008, which will be larger, more modern, and better able to
accommodate the increased number of immigrant and nonimmigrant visa
applicants, as well as U.S. citizens seeking services. All of the
various consular and USCIS offices will be housed together in this
new compound, which will be located a little bit farther into Cd.
Juarez (nine miles from the Port of Entry).

The physical move next summer should not cause much interruption in
services.

The consulate plans on closing down services on a Wednesday and re-
opening on the following Tuesday.
Communications. As a result of the increased caseload, backlog
reduction efforts, and preparation for upcoming surges, the consulate
has decided to suspend e-mail communications with practitioners for
the next six to eight months.

Responding to e-mails had become very time consuming, with many
practitioners sending follow-up questions and using it almost as
a "chat" session. At the present time, applicants and practitioners
must communicate with the consulate only through the Call Center.
That number is 900-476-1212. If calling from Mexico dial 01-900-849-
4949. While practitioners may not receive the same type of response
they were used to getting, Mr. Burciaga encouraged them to please
continue using this service. The Call Center is submitting regular
reports and the consulate is monitoring the service they provide. If
the inquiry is particularly urgent, send a fax to the Immigrant Visa
Chief and state your case.

The fax number is 011-52-656-616- 9056.

For example, if you need to cancel an IV appointment, contact the
Call Center. It will send a report to the consulate, which will in
turn make a notation in the electronic file and send verification to
the Call Center. In addition, you may also fax your request to the
consulate, which will allow you to receive written confirmation that
your communication was received. However, the faster and preferred
method is to communicate through the Call Center.

The consulate will accept G-28s, Notice of Entry of Appearance as
Attorney or Representative, signed by either the I-130 petitioner or
beneficiary.

However, the USCIS, when adjudicating a waiver application, will only
accept G-28s signed by the IV/waiver applicant.

Denials. Approximately 18-20 percent of the IV applicants are found
inadmissible and require a waiver. Most of these are based on the
unlawful presence ground of inadmissibility. In the last fiscal year,
the USCIS adjudicated approximately 10,800 waiver applications, and
for next year it anticipates processing almost double that.

K-3 visa applications. The consulate has also reduced the backlog in
K-3 applications from U.S. citizens on behalf of spouses residing
abroad. The wait time is now greatly reduced. If the consulate has
started processing for the nonimmigrant visa and it receives the
approved alien relative petition (Form I-130 and IV application) , it
will ask the applicant which visa he or she would prefer to receive.
If the applicant would prefer to receive the immigrant visa, the
consulate will cease processing for the K-3, or vice versa. Having
made that election, however, the applicant cannot change his/her mind.

Medical exams. As a result of new guidelines from the Center for
Disease Control regarding screening for tuberculosis, applicants
between the ages of 2-14 must receive a PPD skin test as part of the
medical exam. The panel physicians need 72 hours to read the reaction
to the skin test. Therefore, applicants with children must have the
medical exam conducted at least four days prior to the scheduled
immigrant visa interview. The NVC is not informing applicants of this
new requirement, except to refer them to a website for possible
supplemental information. This new TB test is currently only required
for applicants immigrating through Cd. Juarez, Manila, and Guangzhou.
It will be required for all IV applicants in the future.

Being an alcoholic is not per se a health-related ground of
inadmissibility; one must also evidence associated harmful behavior.
If the applicant drinks and drives, then that is a potentially
dangerous activity and the applicant may be found inadmissible. If
there was a prior drunken driving conviction, it doesn't matter when
the DUI occurred as much as if the behavior continues.

Please refer to the new guidance issued by the State Department
earlier this year that requires the consular official to refer the IV
applicants to a panel physician if they have a single drunk driving
arrest or conviction within the last three calendar years or at least
two arrests or convictions in any time period. 9 FAM 40.11 N8.3.
There is a waiver for alcohol-related inadmissibility, but not for
narcotic drug use. In the latter situation, the applicants must show
remission – usually for three years – before they can reapply.

If the derivative child is not named on the appointment letter, go to
the consulate's Information Window and request a new appointment
letter. The derivative will then be added. Take that letter and the
Mexican passport to the panel physician and they will conduct the
medical exam.

Affidavit of Support. After the USCIS finalized the affidavit of
support rule in July 2006, applicants have been able to file an I-
864W in lieu of an

I-864 in cases where the intending immigrant has satisfied the 40
Social Security quarters rule or will be deriving citizenship through
the Child Citizenship Act of 2000. The consulate will now accept
these "waiver" forms and will not require the submission of tax or
employment information. The consulate recognizes that due to staff
turn over, some officers have mistakenly rejected the I-864W and
requested an affidavit of support. If your client experiences this
type of improper rejection, please contact the consulate by fax.

If the applicant must submit an affidavit of support, the sponsor has
to establish domicile in the United States. In cases where the U.S.
citizen sponsor has been residing in Mexico and is petitioning for a
spouse, that sponsor can re-establish U.S. domicile with the
intending immigrant. The consulate does not require any specific
evidence that the couple plans on settling in the United States upon
the granting of the immigrant visa. Rather, the consulate looks to
the intent of the parties. That intent to resettle does not have to
be immediate; it could be an intent to resettle a year from now.

The State Department has recently confirmed that Unemployment
Insurance benefits are considered income and can be counted in
satisfying the 125 percent of poverty requirement. Social Security
retirement or disability benefits can be counted as well, though not
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for the, aged, blind, or disabled.
The consulate will also count child support as income.

The consulate will not consider real estate located in Mexico as an
asset, though it will consider the intending immigrant's income-
generating property that will continue after the applicant immigrates.

Inadmissibility due to unlawful presence. The consulate and the USCIS
office in Cd. Juarez define unlawful presence and its exceptions in
the same manner for those potentially subject to the three- or ten-
year bar under INA §212(a)(9)(B) and the "permanent" bar for illegal
reentry after one year of unlawful presence under INA § 212(a)(9)(C)
(i)(I). [Note: The wording of the statute is potentially ambiguous.
The unlawful presence exceptions for minors, asylum applicants,
Family Unity recipients, battered spouses and children, and
adjustment/extensio n/change of status applicants appear to apply only
to the three- and ten-year bar provision, not the permanent bar
provision. The consulate is applying the exceptions to both
provisions.] In other words, if a child under the age of 18 has not
acquired unlawful presence for purposes of triggering the three- or
ten-year bar, he or she will not have triggered the permanent bar for
illegal reentry after one year of unlawful presence.

Repayment of IV visa fee after waiver granted. If the applicant is
initially found inadmissible and denied an immigrant visa, submits a
waiver, and the waiver is granted, the applicant will be rescheduled
for an interview with the consulate. At that interview, the applicant
must repay the $380 IV visa fee.

The only circumstances where the applicant will not have to re-pay
the fee is when the consulate refuses the applicant under INA § 221
(g).

False claims of citizenship. There are no waivers for false claims of
citizenship made after September 30, 1996, and there is only one
narrow exception.

However, according to the consulate and the local USCIS office,
children under the age of 15 are legally incapable of making a false
claim of citizenship for purposes of INA § 212(a)(6)(C) (ii). Children
aged 15-17 can be found to have made a false claim of citizenship if
the facts indicate that they were acting on their own and not under
the direction of a parent or guardian. In most cases, however,
children under age 18 are determined to be not legally capable of
committing this offense and therefore are not being found
inadmissible.

Signing the State Department forms. The Form DS-230 Part 1 can be
signed by either the IV applicant (I-130 beneficiary) , the I-130
petitioner, or the designated agent. The DS-230 Part 2 can only be
signed by the IV applicant in front of the consular official on the
date of the interview.

What to bring to the interview. Most of the IV interviews are now
being scheduled by the NVC, which forwards the file to the consulate
approximately one month before the scheduled date. The consular
officials may go through the file prior to the interview date and
notice that additional documents are required, or indicate that
certain documents have been separated from the file. In that case,
please bring the requested documents to the interview.

If the case is being scheduled locally, the consulate will send a
notice indicating which documents should be taken to the interview.
If original documents have already been submitted, these will be
returned to the applicant at the interview upon being granted the
immigrant visa. All applicants, including children, must come to the
interview with the passport because the consulate is now issuing
machine-readable immigrant visas that are stamped into the passport.

Family members attending the immigrant visa. The consulate will not
allow family members of the intending immigrant to attend the
interview with the exception of minor children. In those cases, the
consulate would like the petitioning parent to attend the interview.
This is a safety issue, given the rise in human trafficking and other
fraudulent activity.

Derivatives. If a derivative child is not included in the visa forms
sent from the State Department, either due to agency error, a failure
to include the child's name on the I-130, or because the child is
after-acquired, contact the NVC and have that office re-send the fee
bill and forms. If the derivative and the principal for some reason
have separate files, notify the consulate and it will cross-reference
and merge the files so the family members can attend the same
interview.

If the principal beneficiary has adjusted status in the United States
and that person wants to start consular processing for derivative
children residing in Mexico, the principal may file a Form I-824 with
the USCIS and have that office forward confirmation of adjustment
approval to the consulate, which will open a file for the
derivatives. Alternatively, the principal may send proof of having
adjusted directly to the consulate. Send a cover letter and a copy of
the Form I-551, Resident Alien card. The consulate will register that
derivative as following-to- join the principal beneficiary. The
consulate will verify the "A" number with USCIS. On the day of the
interview the consulate will request the principal beneficiary to be
present and bring a copy of the original I-551 card.

Update from Warren Janssen. Mr. Janssen's office is located near the
consulate, but is under the jurisdiction of the DHS/USCIS.
Approximately 15 to 20 percent of the IV applications require a
waiver for inadmissibility, and his main responsibility is
adjudicating waiver applications.

When he started in this position in July 2005 he faced a backlog of
waiver applications and a steady monthly stream of approximately 200-
400 applications.

The approval rate of his predecessor was between 95 to 98 percent.
Mr. Janssen took a harder look than his predecessor at the waiver
applications and documentation supporting the extreme hardship claim,
and the approval rate necessarily went down. At this time, however,
the approval rate is still quite high – between 70 to 75 percent of
the waiver applications are granted.

The volume of waiver applications has steadily increased commensurate
with the increase in IV applications. It soon became obvious that the
job required more than two adjudicators. Part of the problem was that
a large amount of time was being spent filing documents in the
appropriate case file. Since it was taking between 6 to 12 months to
adjudicate the waiver applications, and during that time applicants
were allowed to supplement their cases with current evidence of
extreme hardship to the qualifying relative, a more efficient system
was developed that allowed for same-day adjudication of "clearly
approveable" waiver applications. Mr. Janssen, working with the U.S.
consulate, developed a pilot program in March 2007 that allowed IV
applicants to schedule an InfoPass appointment a few days after their
IV interview where they could submit their waiver application.

Immigrant visa applicants who were found inadmissible for a waivable
ground are now given written notice at the time of the consular
interview informing them of the procedure for submitting their waiver
packet through an InfoPass appointment. At that time they return to
the consulate, pay the waiver fee, and submit the waiver application,
together with supporting documentation of extreme hardship. The
consulate receives the application and hands the file over to the
USCIS adjudicating officer in an adjoining room. If Mr. Janssen's
office believes it is a "clean" case (no FBI criminal hits, no
separate A file to examine) that is readily approveable, it will
grant the waiver and hand the file back to the consulate. The
consular official in turn will approve the immigrant visa either that
day or the following.

The approval rate for applications processed through the pilot
program is about 55 percent. Persons who do not have a clearly
approveable case are not denied but are rather referred to the pre-
existing adjudication process. In other words, their application is
added to the backlog of pending cases and reviewed later. They are
encouraged to supplement their file with additional proof of
hardship. Although the referral letter indicates that they have 30
days to submit additional supporting documentation, they can actually
submit it at any time up to the date of adjudication.

The current backlog of pre-pilot program cases is 4,000, which is
down from a high of 8,000 cases. The waiting time for adjudication is
10 to 12 months.

Applicants may ask to expedite the waiver adjudication if they submit
evidence of serious health factors or military deployment. The
applications are reviewed and adjudicated locally, as well as sent to
USCIS offices in Tijuana, Monterrey, and Mexico City for
adjudication. If the USCIS receives the anticipated 18,000 waiver
applications during this current fiscal year, and 55 percent (approx.
10,000) are approved through the pilot program, the others would be
referred to the backlog, which would grow to12,000 unless action were
taken to adjudicate them. Mr. Janssen plans to continue sending cases
in the backlog to the other USCIS offices in Mexico, as well as
adjudicating some in-house, to eliminate the backlog by the end of
the fiscal year. His goal is then to adjudicate the cases referred
through the pilot program within a three-month period.

That InfoPass pilot program worked well for the first six months
until the demand for InfoPass appointments exceeded the number of
available slots. This created a "frontlog" of several hundred persons
trying to schedule an InfoPass appointment and who were unable to do
so. Part of the problem with scheduling through InfoPass is that one
can't schedule an appointment beyond a two-week period. The El Paso
USCIS district office has recently lent Mr. Janssen's office an agent
to assist in adjudicating pilot program applications. As a result,
the USCIS has now doubled the number of possible appointment slots
from 65 to 130, which should alleviate some of the difficulty in
scheduling an appointment. It is their hope that the frontlog can be
cleared up within the next several weeks.

Beginning December 17, 2007, persons wanting to schedule an
appointment to file their waiver application with the USCIS will no
longer be using InfoPass.

Instead they must telephone the Call Center (900-476-1212 from the
United States or 01-900-849-49- 49 from Mexico). To use a credit card,
call 800-919-1754 from the United States or 01-477-788-70- 70 from
Mexico. The call-in appointment service should be able to schedule
these appointments much more efficiently than the prior InfoPass
system and handle a larger volume of applicants.

Mr. Janssen prefers to receive the application and supporting
documentation two-hole punched at the top so it can be easily
inserted into the file. Do not include any tabs that would protrude
from the file. He likes to see a cover letter that sets forth in
bulleted format the supporting documentation that is included. Do not
include reports of country conditions or evidence (e.g., birth or
marriage certificates) reestablishing the relationship to the
qualifying relative. Set forth the facts that support the extreme
hardship claim, but do not cloud the application with case citations
or legalese.

Applicants who are denied may file an appeal with the Administrative
Appeals Office. Those appeals are filed with his office and forwarded
to the AAO. It currently takes approximately 12 to 25 months to
receive a decision.