On September 20, 2021, The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that they will be awarding $10 million in grants to 40 different organizations that prepare lawful permanent residents for naturalization. Furthermore, these grants have been issued to promote prospective citizens’ by financing educational programs that support the increase of English, United States History, and civics knowledge. These organizations are in 25 states and will be obtaining funding through September 2023.

Do not hesitate to reach out to our experienced New York immigration attorneys to learn more about this newly issued grant and how it might affect your immigration status. At the Law Office of Cheryl R. David, we are dedicated to ensuring that you, your family, and your future are protected.

Who will be receiving the grants?

The grant recipients are targeted at public or private non-profit organizations that have recent experience producing citizenship education and naturalization application assistance to lawful permanent residents. The Citizenship Instruction and Naturalization Application Services and the Refugee and Asylee Integration Services have supported these opportunities, and have allowed public or private nonprofit organizations to receive these grants. These organizations include community and faith-based groups, public libraries, and adult education and literacy organizations.

In FY 2021, the recipient organizations will strive to serve both traditional immigrant population centers and growing immigrant population centers in 25 states. Grant recipients will fulfill citizenship preparation services to approximately 25,000 lawful permanent residents who have come from more than 50 countries around the world. The grant recipients include:

  • Eight out of the top 10 states with the greatest increase in their lawful permanent resident population between FY 2017 and 2019, including California, New York, Florida, Texas, New Jersey, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania; and
  • Eight out of the top 10 states with the most naturalizations between FY 2016 and 2018, including California, New York, Florida, Texas, New Jersey, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Washington.
  • Eight out of the top 10 metropolitan areas with the most naturalizations between FY 2017 and 2019, including New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta.

If you are uncertain about how this may affect you and your immigration status, do not wait to reach out to our experienced New York immigration firm to learn more.

What does the review process entail?

95 applications using two-member teams to assess each plan have been analyzed by the USCIS. The reviewers included were expected to score applications numerically using published evaluation criteria. The USCIS then ranked the applications based on their average scores. The USCIS internal review panel selected the final list of recipients based on the ranked order.

Contact Our New York City Immigration Lawyers

Our law firm can explain all the opportunities associated with fiancé visas and help you through the entire procedure, as well as discuss whether this is a good option. For an initial consultation with a skilled immigration lawyer, contact the Law Office of Cheryl R. David in New York.