Citizenship and Immigration Services, United States, is a U.S. government agency that oversees immigration services, including the review and processing of citizenship applications and requests for work permits. The agency, sometimes called USCIS, regulates the entry of aliens (noncitizens) into the United States. USCIS was created by the Homeland Security Act of 2002, and it began operations in March 2003. It is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
USCIS oversees the process of naturalization—that is, the legal procedure through which a person from a foreign country becomes a citizen of the United States. The agency also handles immigration documents and records, including visas and arrival-departure records.
From 1891 to 2003, immigration and citizenship services were provided by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). The INS was dissolved in March 2003, and many of its responsibilities were transferred to USCIS. Other responsibilities of the INS were moved to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), both of which are also in the Department of Homeland Security.
