Immigration Interviews – COVID Updates


USCIS interview changes as it relates to the ever-changing landscape of COVID. On May 17th of 2021, USCIS announced some changes in their facilities as it relates to changes in COVID with everyone receiving vaccines.

Read: USCIS Response to COVId-19

The main point of the announcement from USCIS is that they are no longer requiring facial coverings for individuals who have been vaccinated. By vaccinated, they outline exactly that if you had a two-dose vaccine, you will be considered fully vaccinated. If it’s been two weeks since your second dose and if you had a one-dose vaccine two weeks from that one dose.

You’ll definitely want to carry around the card that you should have received that shows you’ve been vaccinated. It’s a good idea not just for immigration purposes but for all purposes now with COVID to have a copy of your vaccination card.

It is also recommended that you take a picture of it with your phone. You can always make copies of the card or have it laminated so it doesn’t get damaged.

All of the attorneys in our firm go to immigration interviews regularly, and we are noticing that individuals who have been vaccinated aren’t required to wear masks and the immigration officers who have been vaccinated are also not wearing masks.

It’s not required but you’re still welcome to wear one and you should also still bring one with you just to be safe because rules can vary from state to state. They might be implemented a little differently depending on what state you’re living in. That is the announcement from USCIS that mask is not required if you’ve been vaccinated.

Something else that they are changing is before, they were having temperature checks. That isn’t happening at every USCIS office anymore. We go regularly to interviews with all of our clients and so, we notice those changes more quickly because you should only have to go for one immigration interview.

They are still implementing social distancing protocols and they still have hand sanitizer. Some of those things are still in place and they are still also recommending that you bring with you a blue or black pen. If you forget a blue or black pen, no worries. It’s just something that they are recommending to limit the spread of the virus through contact.