I-134 Emergency Memo

U.S. Department of Homeland Security
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Office of Information Technology
Washington, DC 20529

Memorandum
TO:

Dominic Mancini
Deputy Administrator,
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget

THROUGH:

Eric Hysen
DHS Chief Information Officer

FROM:

Samantha Deshommes
USCIS Office of Policy and Strategy,
Regulatory Coordination Division, Chief

SUBJECT:

Request for Emergency OMB Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) Clearance – Form I-134,
Declaration of Financial Support

SAMANTHA L
DESHOMMES

Digitally signed by
SAMANTHA L DESHOMMES
Date: 2022.04.12 13:54:37
-04'00'

Purpose: USCIS is requesting emergency approval of the revision of USCIS Form I-134, Declaration of
Financial Support, which is an approved collection of information under 5 CFR 1320.13.
Background: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and consular officers of the U.S.
Department of State (DOS) use Form I-134 to determine whether, at the time of the beneficiary’s
application, petition, or request for certain immigration benefits, an alien has sufficient financial support
to pay for expenses for the duration of their temporary stay in the United States. U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS) is updating the Form I-134, instructions, and respondent burden to account
for the new population of individuals who will be applying for parole into the United States under section
212(d)(5)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), including Ukrainian beneficiaries seeking
parole who will need to submit a Form I-134 signed by an individual agreeing to financially support the
parole applicant. It also expands the filing options to include electronic-filing for certain populations
using the form. USCIS plans to announce implementation of this new filing option via the USCIS
website.

Discussion: Following Russia’s attack on Ukraine, DHS is creating a process for Ukrainian nationals to
request parole under section 212(d)(5)(A) of the INA.
The changes to the Form I-134 are essential to effectively support U.S. Customs and Border Protection
(CBP) in their efforts to adjudicate parole requests submitted by Ukrainians nationals. USCIS cannot
reasonably comply with the normal clearance procedures as it would delay the agency’s ability to provide
immediate support CBP in the emerging urgent humanitarian crisis.
Accordingly, USCIS revised the Form I-134 to reflect additional information data points for vetting and
processing individuals who will agree to financially support the parole applicant. Changes to the form
have been thoroughly reviewed and vetted by USCIS.
USCIS seeks emergency processing of the Form I-134 in accordance with 5 CFR 1320.13. USCIS
certifies that the requirements of 5 CFR 1320.13(a) are met and that:
•
•

The collection of information is needed immediately and is essential to the mission of the agency.
The use of normal clearance procedures is reasonably likely to prevent or disrupt the collection of
information.

USCIS greatly appreciates the timely consideration of this request.
Recommendation: Please sign decision memo requesting emergency approval of this collection of
information under 5 CFR 1320.13.