DHS Started Expediting Visa Extensions from Ebola Countries in August

AUSTIN, Texas -- As Ebola continued to ravage communities in West Africa this summer, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a division under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced "immigration relief measures" for citizens of three countries affected by the deadly virus.

The relief measures, announced on the USCIS website as "Ebola Outbreak-related Immigration Relief Measures to Nationals of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone Currently in the United States," on August 15, 2014, include the following:
Change or extension of nonimmigrant status for an individual currently in the United States, even if the request is filed after the authorized period of admission has expired;
Extension of certain grants of parole made by USCIS;
Expedited adjudication and approval, where possible, of requests for off-campus employment authorization for F-1 students experiencing severe economic hardship;
Expedited processing of immigrant petitions for immediate relatives (currently in the United States) of U.S. citizens;
Expedited adjudication of employment authorization applications, where appropriate; and
Consideration for waiver of fees associated with USCIS benefit applications.

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