Adopted by Design

USCIS To Increase Fees on November 23, 2010

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced a fee increase that will take effect on November 23, 2010. The increase will include fees for both USCIS fingerprints and immigration forms. The filing fee for the I-600a or the I-800a immigration application will be $720 and the fingerprinting fee will be $85.  Families who submit immigration documents or fingerprinting fees prior to November 23, 2010 will continue to pay under the current rate of $670 for filing the I-600a or I-800a and $80 per person for fingerprinting. 

Any family filing for fingerprints or an immigration form on or after November 23, 2010 will pay under the new rates.

USCIS I600 Processing Changes

Beginning July 1, 2010 all extensions and grandfathered cases of the I600A/I600 cases will be processed by NBC (National Benefits Center) instead of the local field offices. These changes are now reflected on the USCIS website.  The local (state) USCIS offices will be mailing all I6000 cases to NBC and will mail letters to families explaining the new process.

Families filing extensions without a fee can mail their application/documents directly to NBC at the following address:

NBC
Attn: Adoptions
PO Box 8025
Lee’s Summit, Missouri 64002

Families filing an extension with a fee must mail their documents/application to the lockbox location for processing.

If using U.S. Postal Service:
PO Box 660087
Dallas, TX 75266

If using Courier services (UPS, FedEx, etc.):
ATTN: Hague
2501 S. State Highway 121 Business, Suite 400
Lewisville, TX 75067

Families with questions on this process should call or email (NBC) USCIS. The contact information is as follows:

Phone Number: 877-424-8374
Email: NBC.Adoptions@DHS.gov

USCIS National Children’s Art Project

Now that school is out, looking for a fun project for your kids this summer?  The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has commissioned an art project for children ages 5 through 12 across the country, which will depict interpretations of the theme, "We Are America."  The project asks children to draw pictures that answer the question, "People have come from all over the world to become Americans.  Why does that make us great?"

All adopted children have a very special story behind how they became a U.S. citizen.  This project could be a great opportunity for them to reflect on both their heritage, and the future they have as part of a new family and new country. 

Full details on this project here: USCIS National Children’s Art Project. 

This project is open to all children, adopted or biological.  If you decide to participate, send us your submissions at blog@awaa.org in addition to the USCIS, and we will feature some of the artwork and short essays!