Outstanding customer service is what USCIS always strives for - but on Friday, May 11, the New York District Office had the opportunity to go above and beyond for a customer - or, actually, a former customer. Lt. Col. Natalie Giscombe, originally from Panama, naturalized in New York in 1986. After a successful 22-year career as a Nurse in the U.S Air Force, Lt. Col. Giscombe was eager to take part in a military retirement tradition of sending an American flag to the first and last base where she served and asking for it to be flown in her honor. Lt. Col. Giscombe had one additional request - because her naturalization was such a meaningful event in her life. She wanted her flag to make a stop in New York to fly over the office where she naturalized 26 years earlier.



Lt. Col. Giscombe was unable to attend the flag-raising because she is still serving as Chief Nurse at Edwards Air Force Base, but she was deeply grateful for the tribute. Her mother, Margarita Farnum-Watson, and her son, Stephon Giscombe, were on hand for the ceremony.

Also in attendance were more than 20 employees of the New York District office who are themselves retired military or reservists. Representing all five branches of the military, they gathered to pay tribute. This event also provided an opportunity for the office to extend gratitude to the veterans and military reservists on staff. District Director Quarantillo remarked to the employees “you embody true patriotism and love of country. Thank you for your past and continued service.”

Labels: Citizenship, Military

Did you know USCIS is now on Facebook?  Check out our page for the latest news, events, informational videos, and learn more about our nation’s immigration history on our timeline. Visit us today for that and more at www.facebook.com/USCIS

Posted by Keith Canney, St. Albans Acting Field Office Director

As Acting Director of the St. Albans Field Office, I recently had the privilege to participate in a naturalization ceremony at the Beeman Elementary School in New Haven, Vermont.  As I watched the 39 soon-to-be U.S. citizens enter the school with their families and friends, I wondered what was going through their minds as they waited to become U.S. citizens.

Several years ago I was in New York City to attend an immigration conference. During that trip, I visited Ellis Island taking a similar route my grandfather took when he first immigrated to this country from Italy. As I rode over on the ferry, I remember wondering what was going through my grandfather’s mind when he traveled across these same waters, and saw the Statute of Liberty and the New York shorelines for the first time. I tried to imagine the excitement and nervousness he felt as he reached the end of his long journey to arrive in the U.S.

I imagined that these immigrants felt the same excitement as they smiled broadly while watching the Beeman Elementary students sing patriotic songs. As each naturalization candidate raised their right hand to take the Oath of Allegiance, I thought of my grandfather and his immigration experience.


Once the Oath was completed and Judge John Conroy welcomed the new citizens, there was a long applause from their family and friends, the students and faculty, and the participants.  I proudly shook each of their hands and remembered the impact and importance that this moment had on my grandfather’s life. I was grateful that I could share such an important and significant day in their lives.


Participation in this ceremony reminded me of the important work done by USCIS employees every day, and how the work we do makes a difference in the lives of these new citizens.  The decision to become a U.S. citizen had an impact on everyone who took an Oath that day and will continue to affect the lives of future generations.

To all of the U.S. citizens that were naturalized that day, welcome and congratulations again! It was an honor and privilege to share in your naturalization experience!

Labels: Citizenship

The USCIS E-Verify team understands that privacy is important to you.  Protecting your privacy is serious business for E-Verify.

We encourage you to review our commitment to privacy. Are you curious about what personal information E-Verify collects and how long that information is kept? Do you want to know why E-Verify users cannot share login information? Visit the E-Verify Privacy Questions and Answers page today and learn about E-Verify’s privacy policies. USCIS Privacy Policy and Privacy Principles are available in multiple languages.  To view these, click the links on the right of the E-Verify Privacy Questions and Answers page.

We also encourage our own E-Verify employees and their colleagues within USCIS to take privacy seriously by attending annual educational events focusing on the latest privacy issues, solutions and policies. 
By keeping yourself informed and keeping our employees in the know, we can all ensure your private records are safe.

E-Verify is the free, web-based service that allows employers to quickly confirm the employment eligibility of new employees.  Learn more at www.dhs.gov/E-Verify.

Labels: e-verify

USCIS has partnered with business experts to improve the way we approach the employment-based and high-skilled visa categories used by immigrant entrepreneurs. Director Alejandro Mayorkas kicked-off this innovative program, called the Entrepreneurs in Residence (EIR) initiative, with an Information Summit in Silicon Valley in February. Now, USCIS has entered a new phase of the initiative by bringing together the EIR Tactical Team. For 90 days this collaborative team, comprised of both USCIS employees and entrepreneurs from the private sector, will identify opportunities where USCIS can streamline pathways for foreign entrepreneurs. Team members began their work at USCIS in late March. Last week, they traveled to the California Service Center and met with USCIS officers to discuss the visa categories most often used by immigrant entrepreneurs: H-1B, L-1 E-1, E-2, and O-1.

EIR team members come from diverse backgrounds and offer vast business and immigration expertise. The USCIS employees are seasoned professionals with experience in employment-based immigration. The entrepreneurs bring a wide-range of real-world startup experience, including product development, investment and finance, and technology innovation. Together, they have worked with private companies, non-profits, students, and domestic and international startups at all stages of the startup lifecycle. You can read complete team member bios on our website.

Team members include (listed alphabetically):

• Luis Arbulu, Founder and Managing Partner, Hattery
• Sunny Choi, Associate Counsel , USCIS Office of Chief Counsel
• Robert H. Cox, Associate Counsel, USCIS Office of Chief Counsel
• Liz Elkiss, Counselor to the Director, USCIS
• Paul Ford, Vice President, Community Development, SoftLayer Technologies
• Ted Gonder, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Moneythink
• Mark E. Harvey, Supervisory Immigration Services Officer, USCIS California Service Center
• Efren Hernandez, Senior Advisor, USCIS Office of Policy and Strategy
• Tanya Howrigan, Supervisory Immigration Services Officer, USCIS Vermont Service Center
• Julia C. Kennedy, Adjudications Officer, USCIS Service Center Operations
• Emery Moore, Supervisory Immigration Officer, USCIS Vermont Service Center
• Blake Patton, Entrepreneur in Residence, Advanced Technology Development Center
• Paul Singh, Partner, 500 Startups
• Catherina Sun, Assistant Center Director, USCIS California Service Center
• Natalie Tynan, USCIS Office of Policy and Strategy

We are excited for the opportunity to bring together a dynamic team of industry experts and talented USCIS employees to explore ways to better serve our customers and promote American prosperity and job creation. To read more about this program or employment-based immigration visit http://www.uscis.gov/

• Click 'Forgot your password' on the E-Verify login page.
• Enter your user ID and click 'Submit.'
• Enter the answers to the three challenge questions you created when you logged in to E-Verify for the first time.
• If you answer the questions correctly, E-Verify will prompt you to create a new password.

• Click 'Forgot your User ID' on the E-Verify login page. 
• Enter your e-mail address and click 'Submit.'  You must enter the same e-mail address that is in your E-Verify user profile. 
• If the e-mail address you entered matches what we have on file, E-Verify will e-mail you with your user ID.

Labels: e-verify

Labels: Citizenship