Medical Disability Waiver
Section 312(b) of the INA states that, the English and the Civic examination "shall not apply to any person who is unable because of physical or developmental disability or mental impairment to comply therewith." Federal regulation, 8 CFR 312.2, requires that a medical professional must establish that the applicant has a "medically determinable" physical or developmental disability or mental impairment in order for the applicant to qualify for the disability exception. Form N-648 is the application for Medical Disability waiver under Section 312 of the INA that a qualified medical doctor, psychiatrist, or psychologist must fill out on behalf of the applicant. The N-648 is filed concurrently with the N-400 application for naturalization, or provided to the Adjudicating Officer at the time of interviewing.
Form N-648 allows certain aliens to apply for partial or full medical disability waivers based on the DSM-IV, a list of medical conditions and codes of various medical conditions that is qualified for a Medical Disability Waiver Application. Depending on the alien's medical condition, evaluations by qualified physicians (A psychologist, psychiatrist, or medical doctor who has qualified training and experience) under form N-648, and supporting documents, the USCIS would decide to either accept or to reject the application. If the medical disability waiver application is accepted, the Service may waive the civic test (history/government test), the English Language exam (spoken and written), or both.
Medical Disability Application for Full Waivers
For some aliens, if the N-648 is accepted, full waivers must be granted. Full waivers would allow the alien to be naturalized even if the alien does not speak or write English and does not know U.S. history and government. It is essential for applicants to know if full waivers are granted, applicants should be aware that they should not answer (or try to answer) any direct questions by the USCIS. Doing so may jeopardize their application and the USCIS may determine that the Applicant's N-648 Medical was a fraud. The example below will illustrate this issue:
Example – An applicant applied for naturalization. In conjunction to his N-400 application, the Applicant also applied for Medical Disability Waiver. Dr. XYZ evaluated Applicant and determined that Applicant suffered from severe dementia. Based on his evaluation, Dr. XYZ completed and signed form N-648 on behalf of Applicant. At the naturalization interview, the Applicant asked the Adjudicating Officer (AO) to waive the English and the Civic tests. The AO agreed but asked if Applicant would like to take the tests in his native language instead. Applicant agreed, and deliberately, the AO asked very simple questions that a person with common knowledge would be able to answer, and the Applicant passed all three tests (the English speaking test, the written test, and the civic test). The AO told the Applicant, "Congratulations," and that a notice will be sent home. Four weeks later, the Applicant received a denial notice letter from USCIS. The letter stated that Applicant's application was deny because the Applicant and his doctor committed fraud. Why?
- Dementia is a mental illness under DSM-IV that would not allow the Applicant to retain languages and new information. Therefore, the Applicant should not have been able to learn about U.S. history and government irrespective of whatever the language being tested. Thus, if the Applicant was able to learn new information in his native language, then he must not have suffered from Dementia.
Medical Disability Application for Partial Waivers
Some aliens may apply for partial waivers, depending on their disability. Aliens who are deaf or who are medically qualified blindness may apply for partial waivers. Depending on the alien's disability and condition, the alien may be waived from the English tests or the civic test. In some situation, such as blindness, the applicant's attorneys may ask for full waivers, and in the alternative, ask for partial waiver if full waiver is not granted. Again, applicants must be careful as to what is on the medical waiver. Always consult a qualified Immigration Lawyer.
Because USCIS is extreme wary of fraudulent applications, the attorneys at Smith & Garg, LLC are extremely careful in screening clients who want to apply for medical disability waivers. After careful evaluations through personal consultations, we will recommend the Client to see a medical doctor, psychologist, psychiatrist if he/she does not have a current treating doctor. We would screen out potential fraud applicants and select potential qualified applicants who do not know or understand the benefits provided under INA section 312. It is essential for all N-400 naturalization applicants, especially those who are qualified under N-648 application for Medical Disability Waiver, to contact an experienced and reputable attorney for guidance. Mr. Steven Tuan Pham had previously provided N-648 application seminar and sensitivity training to USCIS naturalization officers in April of 2007. Mr. Pham is an experienced naturalization attorney that is respected by the Vietnamese community, the South Asian communities, and the Houston USCIS District Office. Mr. Pham will be able to help in filing your applications. Please contact one of our immigration attorneys at http://www.houston-immigration-lawyers.com for more information and assistance in filing your immigration applications.
