Who can act as a witness in an immigration interview?

When a person has an appointment for an immigration interview with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, they may require a witness to be present. There are certain restrictions as to who may or may not act as a witness for the purposes of the interview.

One important thing to note is that witnesses are not permitted to simultaneously act as an interpreter for the person obtaining an interview. Witnesses are permitted to provide a testimony in the interview, provide the immigration interviewing officers with letters of support, testimony, or an affidavit regarding the case.

There also may be certain situations in which a witness can act as an interpreter to assist the interviewee in translating the interview between English and the interviewee’s native language. In order for this to take place, the interviewing officer must establish good cause as well as obtain approval from his or her supervisor. Good cause can be established in situations when there is confidential information regarding medical conditions or abuse that should be protected, developmental disabilities, there is a rare language that is hard to find an interpreter for, or the interview is taking place in a remote region that has no other qualified interpreters.

If you have questions about acting as a witness in an immigration interview with USCIS, contact an experienced immigration attorney today.

John Sesini is an experienced immigration attorney with offices in Green Bay and Milwaukee Wisconsin. If you have any questions regarding these matters, please contact the Sesini Law Group, S.C. and obtain your initial consultation.

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