On November 16, 2018, during the Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) Ombudsman Annual Conference, USCIS Director L. Francis Cissna spoke briefly on the USCIS policy to deny pending Forms I-131, Application for Travel Document when an applicant travels overseas. Based on feedback from the CIS Ombudsman and other stakeholders, Director Cissna indicated that USCIS will end the practice of denying pending I-131 (Advance Parole) applications when an applicant travels overseas. Though he did not provide a timeline for this change, he indicated that policy on this would be forthcoming.
AILA (American Immigration Lawyer's Association) submitted comments to USCIS on October 15, 2018, requesting, among other things, that USCIS remove language from the Form I-131 instructions that considers an application for advance parole document abandoned if the applicant departs the U.S. before the document is issued, or at a minimum, that USCIS restore a prior policy exempting applicants who travel on valid nonimmigrant visas or approved advance parole travel documents from the abandonment policy.
It is unclear whether USCIS will alter its policy yet again, or simply restore its prior policy.
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