Incomplete APA Reimbursement Requests in MRIS 

USCCB Accounting has indicated that there are several APA reimbursement requests submitted in MRIS that are incomplete. Reimbursements with missing information will be re-routed to the agency and the reimbursement process must be completed again. Please ensure that all reimbursement fields (such as check numbers) are completed before submitting to USCCB to ensure your agency is reimbursed without delay. 

Afghan Family Reunification  

Please note that PRM has shared information on family reunification for Afghans that were separated during the evacuation flights between August 14th and August 31st. Traditional family reunification pathways continue to exist for Afghans that meet eligibility criteria, however a non-traditional pathway for family reunification has been established specifically for those separated as a part of the evacuations.   

Family reunification for individuals evacuated out of Afghanistan is limited to immediate family members of U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs) and other individuals that were separated due to the non-combat evacuation operation (NEO), including those granted Afghan Humanitarian Parole. Immediate family members are defined as:   

• Spouse   
• Minor Children (unmarried children under the age of 21)  

For unaccompanied minors or minors that traveled with non-parental relatives, immediate family members are defined as:   

• Parent  
• Minor Siblings (unmarried children under the age of 21)  

Affiliates may begin completing and submitting the USCCB NEO Family Reunification Request Form to USCCB HQ at apa_processing@usccb.org. Requests for family reunification will be shared with the Department of State and CARE International to prioritize eligible individuals for future evacuation flights out of Afghanistan. At this time, we do not anticipate we will receive many, if any, status updates on cases submitted to PRM for evacuation flights.  

Eligibility to file a NEO Family Reunification Request is limited to the following individuals (all must apply):  

• U.S. citizen, LRP, or other individual separated from their immediate family member(s) due to the NEO  
• Departure from Afghanistan was between August 14th and August 31st, 2021  
• Departure from Afghanistan was from Hamid Karzai International Airport    

Please review the USCCB NEO Family Reunification Request form (you must be logged into MRSConnect to access link) and you may begin to submit requests to apa_processing@usccb.org 

Reminder: June 2022 APA Housing Survey 

If you have resettled APA clients, please complete the June tab of your “APA Monthly Housing Survey” in OneDrive by FRI., June 10th. Instructions and hints for completing the survey have been added in red to the June tab – please fully read the “Instructions” below the survey. 

PRM and ORR have announced they will collect monthly APA housing surveys through the end of the fiscal year, so please mark the due dates in your calendar: 



June survey – complete in OneDrive by COB FRI., June 10 

July survey – complete in OneDrive by COB FRI., July 8 

August survey – complete in OneDrive by COB FRI., August 5th 

September survey – complete in OneDrive by COB FRI., Sept. 9th 

If your team has questions about how to complete the APA monthly housing survey, please send questions to sevans@usccb.org 

Survey Opportunity: Safety + Security Needs Assessment

In February 2022, USCCB/MRS became a founding member of the Resettlement Agency (RA) Safety and Security Focal Point (SSFP) Forum. The forum is a place where RAs share information on best practices and oversee working groups, one of which is training. The Forum is commissioning this outreach to develop a training strategy.   

To this end, the RA Safety + Security Focal Point Forum is conducting a brief survey (linked here) to get affiliate feedback on the trainings you think are most valuable for you and your organization. This survey will take between 5-8 minutes to complete. The Forum will also be conducting a series of focus groups, so please note in the survey comments if you are interested in participating in one of the groups as well as how the Forum staff can reach you. Please complete the survey by June 10th, 2022; the results of the survey and focus groups will be released on June 17th. 

Reminder: USCCB Guidance on APA Documentation Issues 

A reminder that, as of late March, USCCB and IOM are no longer the point of contact to locate APA clients’ I-94s, Employment Authorization Documents (EADs), or Social Security (SS) cards. USCCB is no longer regularly checking the OneDrive documents for missing EADs/SS cards. Local resettlement staff should reach out directly to the issuing organizations (for I-94s, CBP; for EADs, USCIS; for SS cards, SSA). Full instructions for locating missing documents and correcting documents with errors are in the USCCB APA Documentation Issues and Next Steps guide on MRSConnect (must be logged into MRSConnect to see this resource). 

Reminder: Webinar + Q&A: TPS for Afghans & the One-Year Asylum Filing Deadline 

We are excited to announce that USCCB and CLINIC will co-host an upcoming Webinar + Q&A on the topic of TPS for Afghans and exceptions to the one-year filing deadline for asylum. We hope to see you there! 

Date and Time: Friday, June 10 | 12-1:30pm ET 

Target Audience: Resettlement Staff and Legal Service Providers 

Link to Register: Here 

Learning Objectives:  

• Recognize and successfully appeal to exceptions to the one-year filing deadline for asylum 
• Understand the eligibility, application process, and benefits of TPS for Afghans 
• Employ key considerations and screening strategies for determining if and when to apply for TPS 
• Identify informational resources and how to access technical legal support

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