This webpage is a collection of information and links related to the research subject of visa applications (and appeals) and the Church of Scientology.
Passport and visa fraud are federal felonies. Penalties are: 10 years (for a first offense if not tied to terrorism or drug trafficking), 15 years for fraud with other criminal links, 20 years for fraud related to drug trafficking, 25 years for fraud related to international terrorism.
USCIS appeals decisions re Scientology
- Summary of USCIS appeals decisions in a PDF file (a work in progress) This work is courtesy of a helpful critic of Scientology. Last revised 9-March-2010.
2010
101220.02 remanded
2007
070124.02 denied
070124.03 denied
070124.04 denied
070306.01 denied
070328.01 denied
070425.03 denied
070601.01 approved
070829.01 approved
071005.02 denied2006 *
060109.02 approved
060110.04 approved
060117.01 denied
060117.05 dup
060117.04 approved
060117.08 dup
060120.04 approved
060120.10 dup
060120.05 approved
060123.01 approved
060123.04 dup
060123.02 approved
060123.05 dup
060203.01 denied
060203.03 dup
060203.02 denied
060203.04 dup
060221.01 approved
060303.01 approved
060307.01 approved
060330.01 approved
060330.02 approved
060330.03 approved
060410.01 denied
060502.01 denied
060503.01 remanded
060503.02 approved
060508.01 approved
060510.02 approved
060510.03 approved
060515.01 approved
060524.03 approved
060602.04 denied
060602.08 dup
060801.01 remanded
060809.01 denied
060809.09 denied
060809.19 dup
060811.01 approved
060829.01 dismissed
060829.02 denied
060918.01 denied
061010.02 denied
061010.03 denied
061011.01 denied
061017.01 approved
061102.03 denied2005 *
050301.03 remanded
050301.09 dup
050317.08 denied
050317.25 dup
050325.02 remanded
050325.04 dup
050816.04 approved
050816.09 dup
050916.01 approved
050916.03 dup
050928.03 approved
050928.06 dup
050930.01 approved
051110.01 remanded
051110.05 dup
051110.02 remand #2
051110.06 dup
051114.06 approved
051114.13 dup
051118.01 denied
051118.02 dup
051121.01 approved
051121.07 dup
051121.02 approved
051121.08 dup
051121.03 approved
051121.09 dup
051121.05 approved
051121.11 dup
051123.01 denied
051123.07 dup
051123.02 denied
051123.08 dup
051123.03 denied
051123.09 dup
051123.04 denied
051123.10 dup
051123.06 remanded
051123.12 dup
051202.01 approved
051202.02 dup
051213.01 approved
051213.04 dup
051216.13 approved
051216.26 dup
051222.01 remanded
051222.11 dup
051222.02 remanded
051222.12 dup
051222.03 remanded
051222.13 dup
051223.01 denied
051223.04 dup
051223.02 denied2004
040802.02 denied
040816.02 denied
040816.04 remanded
040909.01 remanded
040909.03 denied
040913.06 denied
041008.06 remanded2003
030821.23 denied
2002
020621.05 denied
Sorted by last digits of application # **
- 1669: 052212.03 052212.13
- 1669: 52212.13
- 34370: 051011.01 051011.05
- 34370: 51011.05
- 50646: 60211.03
- 50671: 101220.02
- 50782: 60305.01
- 50988: 061701.04 061701.08
- 50988: 61701.08
- 51377: 53009.01
- 51442: 52312.02
- 51570: 051609.03 061609.01
- 51570: 61609.01
- 51633: 60305.02
- 51644: 72803.01 060809.01
- 51786: 051612.13 051612.26
- 51786: 51612.26
- 52027: 61710.01
- 52147: 61004.01
- 52222: 70510.02
- 52511: 052311.02 052311.08
- 52511: 52311.08
- 52591: 63003.01
- 52614: 60805.01
- 52690: 060206.04 060206.08 072908.01
- 52690: 60206.08
- 52690: 72908.01
- 52698: 32108.23
- 52735: 63003.03
- 53013: 60703.01
- 53210: 61005.03
- 53215: 61010.02
- 53230: 052111.05 052111.11
- 53230: 52111.11
- 53232: 61110.01
- 53269: 72504.03
- 53336: 051011.02 051011.06 052503.02 052503.04
- 53336: 51011.06
- 53336: 52503.02
- 53336: 52503.04
- 53430: 052312.01 052312.04 062908.01
- 53430: 52312.04
- 53430: 62908.01
- 53455: 062001.05 062001.11
- 53455: 62001.11
- 53568: 061701.01 061701.05 062405.03
- 53568: 61701.05
- 53568: 62405.03
- 53658: 61010.03
- 53805: 051411.06 051411.13
- 53805: 51411.13
- 53813: 052212.01 052212.11
- 53813: 52212.11
- 53840: 61505.01
- 53870: 052111.01 052111.07
- 53870: 52111.07
- 53900: 61001.04
- 53910: 052111.03 052111.09
- 53910: 52111.09
- 53915: 060302.01 060302.03 072401.02
- 53915: 60302.03
- 53915: 72401.02
- 53931: 052111.02 052111.08
- 53931: 52111.08
- 53947: 050212.01 050212.02
- 53947: 50212.02
- 54028: 62102.01
- 54059: 61108.01
- 54066: 70106.01
- 54092: 052311.01 052311.07 072401.04
- 54092: 52311.07
- 54092: 72401.04
- 54113: 60303.01
- 54137: 052311.06 052311.12
- 54137: 52311.12
- 54164: 052311.03 052311.09
- 54164: 52311.09
- 54165: 052212.02 052212.12
- 54165: 52212.12
- 54274: 61005.02
- 54304: 051312.01 051312.04
- 54304: 51312.04
- 54314: 051703.08 051703.25
- 54314: 51703.25
- 54383: 22106.05
- 54444: 052809.03 052809.06
- 54444: 52809.06
- 54509: 60901.02
- 54514: 062001.04 062001.10
- 54514: 62001.1
- 54575: 051811.01 051811.02 060908.09 060908.19
- 54575: 51811.02
- 54575: 60908.09
- 54575: 60908.19
- 54719: 052311.04 052311.10 062908.02
- 54719: 52311.1
- 54719: 62908.02
- 54812: 062301.02 062301.05
- 54812: 62301.05
- 54972: 63003.02
- 55114: 062301.01 062301.04
- 55114: 62301.04
- 55354: 060302.02 060302.04 072401.03
- 55354: 60302.04
- 55354: 72401.03
* Some of the 2005 & 2006 decisions have duplicates. The “blacked out” portions may be different. It is unclear why these duplicates appear in the system.
** Decoding the receipt number: The first 3 characters represent which service center is processing your case: EAC=Vermont , WAC=California, LIN=Nebraska, SRC=Texas. The next two digits represent the fiscal year (which runs from Oct 1 through Sept 30) in which your case was received (example: 00 is 2000 ). The next three digits represent the computer workday of that fiscal year on which the fee was taken.
Communications from Scientology to USCIS
- COSFSO (Flag) attempts to get USCIS to designate Flag as a religious college (“Petition for Approval of School for Attendance by Non-immigrant Students”)
030109: appeal is denied
040224: Flag’s attempt to reopen the case is denied
INS Form I-17 - 070623 CofS Kenneth Long to USCIS
- 070625 CofS Glen Stilo to USCIS
- 070625 CofS Jeanne Reynolds to USCIS
- 071116 CofS Jeanne Reynolds to USCIS
- 080729 Letter from “churches” to USCIS
Other dox
- 901129 Pub. L. 101-649 Immigration Act of 1990 (link) [Shows the entire 1990 regulations for R-1 visas: SEC. 151. & SEC. 209.]
- 990326 US General Accounting Office: Issues concerning the Religious Worker Visa program
- 060000 A short guide for religious visa applicants and their religious institutions, prepared by Catholic Religious Immigration Group [Here’s a 2006 manual issued by the Catholic Church. This is an example of how R-1 visas were correctly used by a legitimate church, as a comparision to CofS fraudulant use of R-1 visas.]
- 000629 US General Accounting Office: Testimony: Observations on the Issuance of Visas for Religious Workers
- 060700 USCIS Office of Fraud Detection and National Security: Religious Worker Benefit Fraud Assessment Summary
- 070419 USCIS Proposes Revisions for Religious Worker Visa Classifications
- 071210 DHS (Dept of Homeland Security) Statement of Regulatory Priorities [search in doc for word “religious”]
- 081106 U.S. Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual Volume 9 – Visas [This is the document that foreign US Embassies use to examine R-1 visa applications. It is not just the USCIS regulations, but the current overview of R-1 visa regulations.]
- 081126 USCIS: Special Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Religious Workers; Special Immigrant Nonminister Religious Worker Program Act; Final Rule and Notice (text version)
- 081126 USCIS: summary of the final rule and notice of same date
- 081209 USCIS: amendment to the final rule and notice of same date
- 090204 USCIS: Non-minister category of Special Immigrant Religious Workers to expire on March 6, 2009
Research resources and links
- uscis.gov US Citizenship & Immigration Service
- VisaPro.com US Immigration Services online. Lots of articles.
- regulations.gov Regulations.gov is your one-stop Web site to find, view, and comment on Federal regulations and other Federal actions.
- 070102 Immigration Newswire: USCIS Advises on Period of Admission for H-4 and L-2 Nonimmigrants
- 880315 Matter of Church of Scientology International, 19 I&N; Dec. 593
- 080415 Republican Study Committee, Legislative Bulletin, refer to “H.R. 5570�Religious Worker Visa Extension Act of 2008”
- 000629 2000 Religious Worker Visa programs. Hearing before the subcommittee on Immigration and Claims, Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives (June 29, 2000)
- 080000 “The ABC�S Of Immigration: R-1 Religious Worker Visas” from www.visalaw.com; an overview of the new regulations, in plain English.
- Here are the brand new USCIS forms which Scientology will have to fill out, to try to import foreign Sea Org members. These include the changes from the new R-1 visa regulations. Form I-129 is used for non-immigrant workers, and form I-130 is used for immigrant workers. Scientology will typically file both forms at the same time. I-129 is good for a maximum of 5 years.
- 080919 USCIS Interoffice Memo, “Handling of Non-Minister Special Immigrant Religious Worker Petitions Affected by the October 1, 2008 Sunset Date”
- 081121 USCIS Fact Sheet, “USCIS Publishes Final Rule for Religious Worker Visa Classifications”
- Freedom of Information Act: Annual Report 2008 and FOIA Electronic Reading Room
- Scientology and Religious Workers Visas, by Jeff Jacobsen
Title 8 of Code of Federal Regulations (8 CFR)
The immigration code as it relates to “religious worker visas” is 8 C.F.R. � 204.5 .
- Current version is on USCIS website; the complete 8 CFR. Click and scroll to find “Sec. 204.5 Petitions for employment-based immigrants”. Then see section “(m) Religious workers”.
- 2003 edition (a copy for archive and comparison)
- 2007 edition (a copy for archive and comparison)
- 2008 final rule from DHS/USCIS (Special Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Religious Workers)
News links
- 081107 Washingtonpopst.com Immigration to Go Paperless: Agency Plans Electronic Overhaul of Case-Management System
- 081128 USA IMMIGRATION NEWS US Immigration: Significant Changes to Religious Worker Visa Classifications. Friday, 28 November 2008
- 081211 National Catholic Reporter New rules delay religious workers’ visas. By Patricia Zapor, Catholic News Service Published: December 11, 2008
Case study: Michael Pociej
- 970423 Deportation Order for Michael Pociej from April 23rd, 1997
- 030212 Church of Scientology of Los Angeles v. Ashcroft et al. Filed 02/12/03
- Post-1989: Scientologist Online website of Michael Pociej (original link)
Case study: Artur Solomonyan
- Seven news articles related to Artur Solomonyan who had entered the USA on a Scientology-related visa but was arrested for brokering weapons. “Solomonyan entered the United States six years ago on a cultural exchange visa claiming he was a religious worker for the Church of Scientology, according to law enforcement officials, also speaking on condition of anonymity. He was living on the proceeds of Medicare fraud and other scams as he carried out the weapons scheme, the officials said.”
- Jeff’s blog has a comment wondering if Scientology sells religious worker visas to people who are otherwise having a hard time getting into the US.
- Scientology and Religious Workers Visas, by Jeff Jacobsen