USCIS Fully Implements Secure Mail Initiative

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that it has fully implemented the Secure Mail Initiative (SMI), which uses U.S. Postal Service (USPS) priority mail with delivery confirmation to deliver certain immigration documents.

Under a partnership between USCIS and the USPS, the SMI enables USCIS to confirm delivery of permanent resident cards and documents pertaining to travel and employment authorization. SMI provides applicants the ability to track the status of their documents with USPS tracking information, and USPS says they can expect prompt delivery. Those who receive notices of approval may contact USCIS’s Customer Service Center at 800-375-5283 to request tracking information for their documents. USCIS customer service representatives will provide callers with their USPS tracking number and current USPS delivery status.

USCIS said that applicants should wait at least two weeks after receiving their approval notice before calling for information regarding their cases. When requesting tracking information, callers must also provide information from the receipt notice they received when they submitted their initial application. After receiving the tracking number from the USCIS Customer Service Center, applicants may track the delivery status by visiting the USPS website at http://www.usps.com and entering the USPS tracking number into the “Track & Confirm” field.

USCIS first piloted the initiative in July 2008, delivering all re-entry permits and refugee travel documents using USPS priority mail with delivery confirmation. USCIS has also used SMI processes since July 2009 for re-mailing all permanent residence cards, as well as employment authorization and travel documents returned by USPS to USCIS as undeliverable.