Task Force Argo

Some people show up when the stakes are high and the pressure is real. Daniel Elkins was one of those people for Task Force Argo long before anyone else was willing to stand with us. Today, this Green Beret and his family are facing a battle no one prepares for. His wife, Lauren, is battling glioblastoma, a grade 4 brain cancer, the most aggressive there is. It is considered terminal, with most prognoses measured in 1–5 years. If you’re able, please consider supporting them. They deserve every bit of strength and community we can offer.

SFT Emergency Relief Crowdfunding Program All Lauren Ever Wanted Was to Be Sloan's Mom. Sloan is twenty-two months old. She weighs about thirty pounds now. For the next six months, her mother is not allowed to pick her up.

Many are asking why their employment authorization is delayed. We are sharing a glimpse of what is happening.

Public Law 119-21 "One Big Beautiful Bill" was signed into law on July 4, 2025. This law authorized fee collections, mandated new fees, changed spending authority, and directed USCIS to expand or modify operations. USCIS is not funded through congressional appropriations. USCIS is a fee-funded agency. Public Law 119-21 directly increases USCIS revenue.

Additionally, Public Law 119-21 addresses the bottleneck in the DHS security for the comprehensive re-review, potential interview, and re-interview of all aliens from high-risk countries of concern who entered the United States on or after January 20, 2021 as triggered by the 2025 Presidential Proclamations and Executive Orders.

The comprehensive re-review USCIS implementation of Public Law 119-21 "Hold and Review of USCIS Benefit Applications Filed by Aliens from Additional High-Risk Countries," can be found here: https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/policy-alerts/PM-602-0194-PendingApplicationsAdditionalHighRiskCountries-20260101.pdf

Afghan cases take longer because of the required security checks. As depicted in the image, Congress funded more staff in 2025, and processing should improve later in 2026 and become much faster in 2027.

An expedite request for an employment authorization document may be submitted through your Member of Congress to USCIS when there is clear, documented, and time‑sensitive hardship that places the individual or their family at risk. In these situations, congressional offices can ask USCIS to review the application more quickly due to the serious humanitarian impact of continued delay. While this support can help elevate the urgency of the case, the outcome remains at USCIS’s discretion and cannot be guaranteed. More information on expedite requests can be found here: https://www.uscis.gov/forms/filing-guidance/expedite-requests

Today we remember our American Heroes who never came home.

‼️Please review this if you are a green card applicant. USCIS Policy Memorandum dtd May 21, 2026

Titles: Adjustment of Status is a Matter of Discretion and Administrative Grace, and an Extraordinary Relief that Permits Applicants to Dispense with the Ordinary Consular Visa Process

“…While aliens who were inspected and admitted or paroled may request adjustment of status, as a general matter the discretionary approval of such a request is extraordinary given
Congress’s intent that aliens should depart once the purpose for which they sought parole or nonimmigrant admission from DHS has been accomplished…”

Please consult an immigration attorney if you are pending an adjustment of status.
https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/memos/PM-602-0199-AdjustmentOfStatusAndDiscretion-20260521.pdf

www.uscis.gov

Social media is asking for us to make a "Bike To Work Day" post. Nah. We'd rather stand with our Afghan allies.

Yeah… we know it’s rough as h3ll right now.

Nothing about this moment is clean or easy, and anyone who’s been downrange can feel it in their gut. To our Afghan brothers and sisters, our allies who had our backs when it counted, we see what you’re going through. We know what it’s like when everything feels stacked against you and the silence gets loud.

We’re still here. Still paying attention. Still in this with you. When we have updates, you will see them here.

FYI, we are an all-volunteer effort and here we are 1,723 days later. If you can, please support our work by donating through one of the many different ways found on our website: https://www.taskforceargo.org/donate

All of our work is listed throughout our website, but feel free to sign up for our newsletter here: https://www.taskforceargo.org/contact-us

You can even email us at [email protected] and we will share what we know with you, come speak at one of your events, or let you know about the families that need your support in the United States and those left behind.

Do not be misled.

No visas are being issued for Afghan nationals or citizens of other travel‑banned countries at this time. The State Department’s recent SIV report to Congress identified 5,970 SIV numbers reserved for future principal applicants. However, unless a National Interest Exemption is granted, every completed visa interview will result in an automatic denial under the 2025 presidential proclamations that mandate refusal of entry and visa issuance.

Please consult an immigration lawyer if you require more information on a National Interest Exemption.

State Department Report:https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Report-An-Update-to-the-Status-of-the-Afghan-Special-Immigrant-Visa-Program-007276-HRC1390.pdf

Presidential Proclamation: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/12/restricting-and-limiting-the-entry-of-foreign-nationals-to-protect-the-security-of-the-united-states/

Please review the link provided if you are in need of a Pro Bono Immigration Attorney. The Department of Justice resource was last updated March 16, 2026.

https://www.justice.gov/eoir/list-pro-bono-legal-service-providers

Green Card delays do not protect anyone. They destabilize families, drain local economies, and trap people who have followed every rule. Timely processing is not a luxury; it is a responsibility. Right now, nationals from 39 countries face a blanket freeze on Green Card adjudication, stretching an already 12 to 24‑month wait into an open‑ended limbo. Across the country, immigrants who have paid every fee, submitted every document, and passed every background check find themselves in a legal purgatory.

They cannot travel to reunite with family, accept promotions, change jobs without risking their status, or even obtain a driver’s license in states that require proof of lawful presence. A delay is never neutral; it hardens into a barrier, a slow‑moving illness that steals time.

For families, the consequences cut even deeper. Children grow up watching their parents navigate a system that treats them as temporary, even after years of contributing to their communities. Economically, the damage is measurable: employers lose talent, communities lose tax revenue, and families lose income. A delayed Green Card is not just a personal hardship; it drags on the American economy and spreads like an epidemic of systemic blockages, a spreading affliction that only action can cure, restoring stability and hope.

The deepest wound is psychological. Living in uncertainty erodes a person’s sense of belonging. It sends a message that no matter how hard you work or how long you wait, your future can be paused indefinitely. That message contradicts the values America claims to uphold: fairness, dignity, and the belief that those who contribute deserve a chance to thrive.

And the cure for increased scrutiny is not paralysis. It is precision. A process strengthened, not stalled. Bravo to Judge George L. Russell, who on April 27, 2026, ruled that USCIS does not have discretion to decide not to adjudicate at all. May the 83 plaintiffs in this lawsuit be the guiding light for all other immigrants who are suffering and in need of a class-action lawsuit to restart Green Card processing and their lives.

USCIS released the following today:
DHS Announces Consequences for Unpaid Annual Asylum Fees

On July 22, 2025, USCIS published a Federal Register notice implementing a filing fee for Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal, and an Annual Asylum Fee (AAF) to be paid each calendar year an asylum application remains pending.

AAF
In an effort to satisfy the statutory mandate that DHS require payment of the AAF, if an alien does not pay the AAF within 30 days of notification, USCIS will reject their pending asylum application. If an alien does not have legal status in the U.S., USCIS will also initiate the alien’s removal.

If USCIS rejects an alien’s asylum application:
-USCIS will deny any pending Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, based on the asylum application; and
-Aliens who were approved to work based on the pending application will lose work authorization immediately.

Additional Updates
This rule also implements additional requirements outlined in H.R. 1:
Form I-589 filing fee: USCIS will now keep the filing fee for Form I-589 if the agency rejects the form as improperly filed.

TPS employment authorization: USCIS is updating regulations limiting the employment authorization period for those under TPS to one year or the remaining TPS designation period, whichever is shorter.

Form I-102, Application for Replacement/Initial Nonimmigrant Arrival-Departure Document, filing fee: The rule establishes a minimum $24 fee to file Form I-102, in addition to other required fees.

This is effective May 29, 2026. USCIS will reject any Form I-102 without the proper filing fee if it is postmarked on or after May 29, 2026 and will reject pending Form I-589 asylum applications for aliens who fail to pay the AAF effective May 29, 2026. DHS will receive public comments submitted on or before June 29, 2026.

***Please consult an immigration lawyer.***