Additional Resources
Government Agencies
Please find below a list of government agencies with a description of the tools they offer which you will find most beneficial for any immigration case you have pending.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is the government agency that oversees lawful immigration to the United States.
- Case Status – If you have a pending case with USCIS, you can enter your receipt number here to check on your case’s status.
- Processing Times – On this page you can find an estimate of how much time the office handling your case currently takes to process your type of application, petition, or request.
- E- Verify - E-Verify is an Internet-based system that compares information from an employee’s Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, to data from U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration records to confirm employment eligibility. If you are interested in searching for an E-Verify company, visit the E-Verify website
Department of State- Bureau of Consular Affairs
Consular Affairs (CA) is responsible for the welfare and protection of U.S. citizens abroad, for the issuance of passports and other documentation to citizens and nationals and for the protection of US. border security and the facilitation of legitimate travel to the United States.
- Apply for Employment Visa – If you plan to exit the country once you have been issued an I-797 approval you will need to apply for a visa. If you have received an I-797 with consular processing you will also need to apply for a visa in order to enter the US.
- Steps to follow: (1) Complete DS-160 form (2) Set up appointment with US consulate or embassy. *It is recommended for International employees to obtain the initial H visa at their home country. If visa is denied employee will be unable to reenter the US will need to travel back to his/her home country to re-apply for visa
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
CBP is responsible for regulating and facilitating international trade, collection import duties, and enforcing U.S. regulations, including trade, customs, and immigration.
- I-94 – apply or retrieve form I-94, Request Travel History and Check Travel Compliance
Social Security Administration
If you are hired for employment in the Unites states, you will need to apply for a Social Security Number (SSN) from this office
Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS)
If you need to obtain a driver’s license, state identification, vehicle registration and more visit this website.
Update Legal Status
It is the employee’s responsibility to always maintain a valid legal status, if you have renewed your work authorization documents or changed your status it is necessary you complete a new I-9 form and submit documents to Human Resources.
Human Resources office is located in the Administration Building Room 216. Office hours are Monday - Friday 8:00am – 5:00pm
Recommended Travel Documents:
When traveling outside the US we recommend to have the following documents:
- Original I-797
- Copy of H1-B petition filed with USCIS on your behalf
- Valid passport
- Valid visa
- I-94 printout
- Verification of employment letter
General Travel Tips
- Valid documents, including a valid visa, do not guarantee admission to the U.S. Admission is always granted at the discretion of the port of entry officer.
- Always use the most recently issued I-797 documents, visa, passport
- The I-94 Record changes each time you enter the U.S. When you re-enter, you will be issued an Electronic I-94 (except for trips under Automatic Revalidation or if you are arriving from a land border, which will still generate a paper I-94).
- Canadian citizens are usually issued just one I-94 record that is valid for multiple entries and departures.
For more information:
You may email questions to HRImmigration@utep.edu .