USCIS Settles Kaplan Class Action
On May 15, 2008, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service
(USCIS) entered into a settlement agreement in the national class
action, Kaplan, et. al. v. Chertoff, et. al., filed in the U.S.
District Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The
petitioners consisted of non-U.S. citizens who lost or were on the
verge of losing their eligibility for Supplemental Social Security
Income (SSI) based on a statutory seven-year limit, and were unable
to become naturalized U.S. citizens before the loss of SSI benefits.
Under the settlement agreement, USCIS will expedite Applications to
Register Permanent Status or Adjust Status (Form I-485) and
Applications for Naturalization (From N-400) of current or former
SSI beneficiaries, provided their application was pending with USCIS
for more than six months. Expedited processing includes USCIS
requesting an accelerated FBI Name Check, as well as prioritizing
other USCIS internal actions, such as scheduling an interview. USCIS
will collaborate with the Social Security Administration (SSA) to
identify those individuals who have lost or will lose their SSI
benefits within in the next year, and who have an I-485 or N-400
pending with USCIS. USCIS will then expedite the identified
cases―even if the applicant has not yet requested expedited
processing, and even if the application has not been pending for
more than six months.
To learn more about becoming a U.S. citizen or applying for
adjustment of status, please contact a GT attorney.
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