Interview with Officer Holguin

Name: Officer Holguin
How long have you worked with the immigration system?


3 years as a field officer at this immigration office, five years as a custom and border patrol agent, and one and a half years at the Phoenix lock box (where people send in their applications).

Can you give a brief outline of your day to day work?


7-4:30: Provide accurate and timely information to customers, who are applying for a Green Card or naturalization. I give forms and information, but no legal advice.

What problems do applicants face?


Sometimes a Green Card cannot be delivered to the applicant because they failed to change their address (if they have moved). If the Green Card cannot be delivered, then it gets sent back to the headquarters in Lincoln, Nebraska. The delivery is then attempted two more times. If the Green Card is lost (not sent back to headquarters) then the applicant has to pay for a new one, which is $450. Usually the Green Cards are tracked because they are expensive.

If the Green Card is so hard to get, and so expensive, why is it mailed out. Wouldn't it be better for the applicant to come to the immigration center to get it?

It has always been mailed out. Now they are trying to convert everything into digital files. We called this new technology transformation immigration.

As for the Green Card applications, who decides who gets a Green Card and who does not?

A level 2 judicature decides by going through the person's files, checking their fingerprints, basically making sure the person is not a criminal. Then they check to see if the person meets the criteria to receive a Green Card, in which ever way they applied for one (i.e marriage, employment, family). It's all about the policies and law. The officer must follow a certain procedure. They do the checks and balances.

What do you like about the process?

It's a very fair process that treats people with respect. We try to process as many applications as possible. People are coming here for a better life. In order to better serve the people, we reserve every Thursday as a training day.