Guam News - Guam News

Guam - A Spokesperson for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has responded to complaints over the $360 dollar “advance parole” fee that the Immigration Service is charging to alien workers in the CNMI who want to come to Guam.

United Workers Movement-NMI president Rabby Syed has called the fee "absolutely unacceptable." He has also criticized USCIS for changing its policy without asking for comments from those that will be affected.

However, USCIS Spokeswoman Marie Sebrechts responds that "CW status is a CNMI-only transitional worker category.   No special benefit to travel anywhere else is attached to CW status."

READ Marie Sebrechts response in FULL below:

I would like to clarify the question of those with CW status  traveling to Guam and elsewhere in the United States. I would like to remind you that CW status is a CNMI-only transitional worker category.   No special benefit to travel anywhere else is attached to CW status.

However, we recognize that those in CW status may have a legitimate reason to seek to travel elsewhere in the United States, as they may have been allowed to do in the past as temporary visitors or parolees before acquiring the CNMI-only CW status, and USCIS has made provisions reasonably to accommodate this within the limitations of a CNMI-only status, just as we have done on a case-by-case basis since 2009.

The rule implementing the CW category permits nationals of the Philippines to travel through the Guam Airport en route to or from the CNMI.  In addition,  people with a B nonimmigrant visa or from a visa waiver country can receive permission from USCIS to travel to other parts of the United States.

Travel to the rest of the United States is also possible even for those who were not in a position before transition to do so -- that is, those without a B nonimmigrant visa or visa waiver-eligible nationality -- but they must file the I-131 as explained on the USCIS web site www.uscis.gov/cw, in order for USCIS to determine whether approval of the travel is appropriate.  

As a matter of law, when someone is granted status in the CNMI as a CW nonimmigrant, they can no longer be a parolee; the grant of status to CW replaces and ends any prior parole status the CW nonimmigrant had.    However, if someone has a previously issued and unexpired advance parole that provides for travel to Guam or other parts of the United States, then USCIS will consider authorizing such travel as a CW on a case by case basis without the need to file a new I-131.