[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 74 (Wednesday, April 17, 2013)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 22770-22771]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-08985]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

8 CFR Parts 103 and 208

[CIS No. 2481-09; DHS Docket No. USCIS-2009-0022]
RIN 1615-AB83


Immigration Benefits Business Transformation, Increment I; 
Correction

AGENCY: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of 
Homeland Security.

ACTION: Correcting amendment.

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SUMMARY: On August 29, 2011, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) 
published a final rule to amend DHS regulations to enable U.S. 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to transform its business 
processes. In this notice, we are correcting three technical errors.

DATES: The effective date of this correcting amendment is April 17, 
2013.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jason J. Johnsen, Office of 
Transformation Coordination, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, 
Department of Homeland Security, 633 Third St. NW., Washington, DC 
20529-2210; telephone (202) 233-2515.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On August 29, 2011, DHS issued a final rule titled, Immigration 
Benefits Business Transformation, Increment I, which amended more than 
fifty parts of title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations and finalized 
seven interim rules. 76 FR 53764 (Aug. 29, 2011). The final rule 
removed form titles, number references, and position titles. It also 
removed obsolete and expired regulatory provisions and corrected 
provisions that were affected by statutory changes.\1\
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    \1\ In addition, before the rule took effect, DHS reviewed the 
public comments in the docket of this final rule and corrected 
several errors and omissions in a correction that was effective on 
the same date as the rule. 73 FR 73475 (Nov. 29, 2011) (effective 
Nov. 28, 2011).
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Need for correction

    DHS amended 8 CFR in the final rule, wherever possible, to:
    1. Remove references to official position titles used within DHS or 
used in the past by the former Immigration and Naturalization Service 
(INS). These titles include director, district director, and 
commissioner, as well as position descriptions, such as examiner or 
adjudicator. 76 FR 53764, 53767.
    2. Replace references to the terms ``application'' and ``petition'' 
with the newly defined term ``benefit request.'' Id.
    3. Remove information about internal processing, administrative 
filing requirements, filing locations, and procedures. Id.
    DHS inadvertently neglected to revise the language in 8 CFR 
103.2(b)(18) to reflect these changes. DHS is correcting that oversight 
by replacing individual job titles with ``USCIS'' in 8 CFR 
103.2(b)(18). Delegations of authority to fulfill various 
responsibilities with respect to benefits requests are set forth in 
internal USCIS guidance. In addition, this correcting amendment 
replaces, ``application or petition'' with ``benefit request.''
    In addition, the August 2011 final rule amended the definition of 
``Service'' to mean, ``U.S. Citizenship and

[[Page 22771]]

Immigration Services, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and/or U.S. 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as appropriate in the context in 
which the term appears.'' 76 FR 53764, 53780. Where a section of the 
regulations was determined to pertain to an action that may have been 
taken by INS, or a function that is within the purview of or shared 
with another component, the term ``the Service'' was retained or 
inserted. Id.
    DHS made one erroneous amendment in the August 2011 final rule with 
regard to the use of ``USCIS'' in lieu of ``the Service.'' In 8 CFR 
part 208, the term ``the Service'' was revised to read ``USCIS,'' 
including in 8 CFR 208.24(f), which deals with the termination of 
asylum or withholding of deportation or removal by an Immigration Judge 
or the Board of Immigration Appeals. Termination of asylum is an 
authority shared between the Department of Justice and USCIS, but USCIS 
has no role in removal proceedings beyond the issuance of a notice to 
appear in accordance with 8 CFR 208.24(e) and (g). The current, 
recently-amended regulatory language incorrectly provides, however, 
that USCIS has the responsibility in removal proceedings to establish 
grounds of termination, whereas that is the responsibility of U.S. 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Therefore, this notice corrects 
that error by removing one incorrect reference to ``USCIS'' in 8 CFR 
208.24(f) and replacing it with ``the Service.''

List of Subjects

8 CFR Part 103

    Administrative practice and procedure, Authority delegations 
(Government agencies), Freedom of information, Immigration, Privacy, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Surety bonds.

8 CFR Part 208

    Administrative practice and procedure, Aliens, Immigration, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Correction

    Accordingly, for the reasons set out in the preamble, chapter I of 
title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations is corrected by making the 
following correcting amendments:

PART 103--IMMIGRATION BENEFITS; BIOMETRIC REQUIREMENTS; 
AVAILABILITY OF RECORDS

0
1. The authority citation for part 103 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301, 552, 552a; 8 U.S.C. 1101, 1103, 1304, 
1356, 1365b; 31 U.S.C. 9701; Pub. L. 107-296, 116 Stat. 2135 (6 
U.S.C. 1 et seq.); E.O. 12356, 47 FR 14874, 15557, 3 CFR, 1982 
Comp., p. 166; 8 CFR part 2.


0
2. Section 103.2 is amended by revising paragraph (b)(18) to read as 
follows:

Subpart A--Applying for Benefits, Surety Bonds, Fees


Sec.  103.2  Submission and adjudication of benefit requests.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (18) Withholding adjudication. USCIS may authorize withholding 
adjudication of a visa petition or other application if USCIS 
determines that an investigation has been undertaken involving a matter 
relating to eligibility or the exercise of discretion, where 
applicable, in connection with the benefit request, and that the 
disclosure of information to the applicant or petitioner in connection 
with the adjudication of the benefit request would prejudice the 
ongoing investigation. If an investigation has been undertaken and has 
not been completed within one year of its inception, USCIS will review 
the matter and determine whether adjudication of the benefit request 
should be held in abeyance for six months or until the investigation is 
completed, whichever comes sooner. If, after six months of USCIS's 
determination, the investigation has not been completed, the matter 
will be reviewed again by USCIS and, if it concludes that more time is 
needed to complete the investigation, adjudication may be held in 
abeyance for up to another six months. If the investigation is not 
completed at the end of that time, USCIS may authorize that 
adjudication be held in abeyance for another six months. Thereafter, if 
USCIS determines it is necessary to continue to withhold adjudication 
pending completion of the investigation, it will review that 
determination every six months.
* * * * *

PART 208--PROCEDURES FOR ASLYUM AND WITHHOLDING OF REMOVAL

0
3. The authority citation for part 208 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 8 U.S.C. 1101, 1103, 1158, 1226, 1252, 1282; Title 
VII of Pub. L. 110-229; 8 CFR part 2.

Subpart A--Asylum and Withholding of Removal


Sec.  208.24  [Corrected]

0
4. Section 208.24 is amended in paragraph (f), the second sentence, by 
removing the term ``USCIS'' and adding in its place the term, ``the 
Service''.

Christina E. McDonald,
Associate General Counsel for Regulatory Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2013-08985 Filed 4-16-13; 8:45 am]
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