USCIS to Reopen Some Local Offices on June 4, 2020

USCIS has announced that local offices are generally set to reopen June 4, 2020 for limited purposes only, including for interview appointments and naturalization oath ceremonies. The Seattle office (located in Tukwila) will reopen under the conditions described here on June 4^th. Note that some offices will not yet reopen, and also note that any office may close again quickly without much if any notice. Therefore, all persons with appointments should double check on the USCIS website closure page the day of their appointment. The page can be found here: https://www.uscis.gov/about-us/uscis-office-closings .

Appointment Notices

Note that if you previously had an interview appointment or naturalization oath ceremony notice, you will automatically receive a new appointment notice. If you are not sick and do not fall into the categories of people listed on the USCIS website page linked above (such as those ordered by a health care provider to self-isolate in the last 14 days), you may arrive for your interview 15 minutes prior to the scheduled time (30 minutes for naturalization oath ceremonies). Follow all signs and respect all barriers in the office to maintain social distancing.

If you had an Infopass appointment it will not be rescheduled automatically, but rather you will need to reschedule it by contacting the national customer service line, as you did to get the initial appointment.

Biometrics appointments are not reopening yet. If you had or need a biometrics appointment you must continue to wait until you receive a new appointment notice.

Abbreviated Ceremonies (Except July 4 Ceremony)

Note that naturalization ceremonies will be abbreviated. They will not include videos, for example, and will only comply with the minimum legal requirements.

However, the 4^th of July citizenship oath ceremony at Seattle Center is tentatively scheduled to take place as usual.* Notices for those who will be in that ceremony are going out. If you will be in that ceremony, you will receive your appointment notice.

The reopening of the local offices at least for interviews and naturalization oaths is welcome news so that those who had been waiting for long periods of time, even up to two years prior to the closure, may now continue to move forward with the normal procedure.

* June 8, 2020 Update – The annual July 4 ceremony originally scheduled to take place this year at the Seattle Center has been cancelled. Those who have an upcoming citizenship oath ceremony will be notified by mail as to where and when their oath ceremony will take place.

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USCIS to Reopen Some Local Offices on June 4, 2020

Appointment Notices

Abbreviated Ceremonies (Except July 4 Ceremony)

Visas & Immigration

Testimonials

Seattle Immigration Blog

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