Profile: Immigration and Naturalization Services

Welcome to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

On March 1, 2003, service and benefit functions of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) transitioned into the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). USCIS is responsible for the administration of immigration and naturalization adjudication functions and establishing immigration services policies and priorities. These functions include:

• adjudication of immigrant visa petitions;
• adjudication of naturalization petitions;
• adjudication of asylum and refugee applications;
• adjudications performed at the service centers, and
• all other adjudications performed by the INS.
• Fifteen thousand (15,000) federal employees and contractors working in approximately 250 Headquarters and field offices around the world comprise the USCIS.

This About Us section of USCIS.gov (see the buttons on the left) provides information to introduce you to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services within the Department of Homeland Security. It also provides information about various administrative and management functions and responsibilities now within DHS that were once in the former Immigration and Naturalization Service.

From this section, Congressional offices can still find out how to file a request for information. You can also learn how to file an immigration-related Freedom of Information/Privacy Act (FOIA) request.