I-134a-004_rev_sptstmt

SUPPORTING STATEMENT FOR

Online Request to be a Supporter and Declaration of Financial Support

OMB Control No.: 1615-0157

COLLECTION INSTRUMENT(S): Form I-134A

A. Justification

1. Explain the circumstances that make the collection of information necessary. Identify any legal or administrative requirements that necessitate the collection. Attach a copy of the appropriate section of each statute and regulation mandating or authorizing the collection of information.

Section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5)) provides the Secretary of Homeland Security with the discretionary authority to parole noncitizens into the United States temporarily, under such reasonable conditions that the Secretary may prescribe, only on a case-by-case basis for “urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.” See INA sec. 212(d)(5)(A), 8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5)(A); see also 6 U.S.C. 202(4) (charging the Secretary with the responsibility for “[e]stablishing and administering rule…governing…parole”).

U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) uses this collection to obtain information from individuals who want to initiate consideration for certain parole processes on behalf of nationals of certain countries and their immediate family members. Under these parole processes, certain U.S.-based supporters may submit this online form on behalf of a beneficiary to demonstrate that the potential supporter has sufficient financial resources and access to those funds to support the beneficiary for the duration of the beneficiary’s temporary stay in the United States.

The potential supporter will also indicate why they think the potential parolee warrants a discretionary grant of parole based on urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit. The supporter’s response may be used by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to prioritize the request or by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) later in consideration of the parole determination. 

If USCIS determines that the information submitted on the Form I-134A indicates that the potential supporter has demonstrated sufficient financial resources to support the beneficiary for the duration of the beneficiary’s temporary stay in the United States, DHS will initiate certain biographic security screening and may ultimately issue the beneficiary advance travel authorization to travel to the United States to seek parole.

2. Indicate how, by whom, and for what purpose the information is to be used. Except for a new collection, indicate the actual use the agency has made of the information received from the current collection.

USCIS uses Form I-134A to determine whether certain U.S.-based individuals have sufficient financial resources and access to those funds to support the beneficiary named on the Form I-134A for the duration of their temporary stay in the United States, as well as to obtain information concerning whether the beneficiary merits a favorable exercise of discretion under the statutory parole standard. Currently, Form I-134A is used for the Uniting for Ukraine (U4U) process, the processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV), and the Cuban, Colombian, Ecuadorian, Guatemalan, Haitian, Honduran, and Salvadoran family reunification parole (FRP) processes.

Form I-134A is filed by a U.S.-based individual (the potential supporter) to request to be a supporter, agree to provide financial support to the beneficiary named on the form during the beneficiary’s period of stay in the United States, and to provide information concerning why the beneficiary warrants a discretionary grant of parole.

Under the U4U and the CHNV processes, multiple U.S.-based supporters may join together to support a beneficiary, and organizations, businesses, and other entities can provide some or all of the necessary support to the beneficiaries applying. In those instances, an individual is required to file and sign the Form I-134A and should submit evidence demonstrating the identity of, and resources to be provided by, the additional supporters, or entity, and attach a statement explaining the intent to share responsibility to support the beneficiary among individuals or an entity's commitment to support the beneficiary. However, under the FRP processes applicable to Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras, only one supporter, the petitioner of the approved Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, may file Form I-134A on the behalf of a beneficiary.

Form I-134A is filed online and is only available for use for the U4U and CHNV processes, and the FRP processes applicable to Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras. This information collection supports the action being taken by the Secretary of Homeland Security to expand the ability for certain U.S.-based individuals to request to be a supporter of a beneficiary seeking to be paroled into the United States. Biographic information about the beneficiary provided on Form I-134A will be used for biographic security screening and advance travel authorization from DHS (OMB Control Number 1651-0143) for eligible nationals. Prior to the transmission of this biographic information from USCIS to CBP for this purpose, the beneficiary will be requested to confirm electronically the accuracy of the biographic information provided on their behalf by the respondent.

3. Describe whether, and to what extent, the collection of information involves the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses, and the basis for the decision for adopting this means of collection. Also describe any consideration of using information technology to reduce burden.

This information collection provides the most efficient means for gathering and processing information about whether U.S.-based individuals, and, where applicable to the specific parole process, multiple supporters or organizations have sufficient financial resources to support the named beneficiary for their period of temporary stay in the United States. The form also collects biographic information about the beneficiary to be used for biographic security screening and advance travel authorization from DHS (OMB Control Number 1651-0143) for eligible nationals, and information concerning why the beneficiary warrants a discretionary grant of parole. Form I-134A is filed online only by certain U.S.-based individuals on behalf of noncitizens seeking parole into the United States for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit under the designated parole processes.

Respondents who are agreeing to support a beneficiary who is not seeking consideration under one of the designated parole processes associated with this information collection will use the paper-version of USCIS Form I-134 (OMB Control Number: 1615-0014), available as a fillable PDF on the USCIS website at uscis.gov/i-134. Once completed, the fillable PDF can be printed, signed, and submitted to USCIS by mail. Form I-134 can also be filed with the Department of State (DOS). See www.travel.state.gov for more information on filing.

USCIS uses various tools to collect feedback from end users of USCIS information collections. These tools include surveys or focus groups designed to collect general information, as well as public feedback submitted to USCIS either in response to an official solicitation of public comments from Federal Register publications or submitted proactively through USCIS’ robust external outreach activities with stakeholders (see, e.g. www.uscis.dhs.gov/outreach). USCIS also performed usability testing on USCIS Forms I-765, N-400, and I-485 (the three highest-filing forms) with the goal of studying cross-cutting issues that impact the responding public across the entirety of the USCIS collections of information USCIS.  In addition to feedback from external stakeholders, our analysis considers consultation with internal agency stakeholders regarding such activities including, but not limited to, document submission, evidentiary requirements, and like activities. USCIS extensively engages with various program, policy, and intake teams for feedback on the information collections.  USCIS analyzes the results of all of these efforts to identify necessary modifications to the collection tools approved for use under the Paperwork Reduction Act. Such modifications could include clarifying edits, potential question removal, and instructional updates, all intended to further support the respondent’s experience in complying with a collection of information. The collection of information proposed in this current submission is the cumulative result of all of this analysis and studies conducted.  

The original creation of USCIS Form I-134A was done as an emergency submission in support of persons who had to quickly leave their home countries due to world events.  USCIS monitored the submission process, analyzed the feedback that it received from respondents, as well as input from internal assessment of user experience and made changes as a result.  For example, USCIS determined that an intending beneficiary had multiple sponsors filing Form I-134A on their behalf, which caused increased workload for USCIS and confusion for the intending beneficiary. As a result of this assessment, USCIS made instructional updates to clarify current requirements.  As another example, usability assessments and feedback led to changes to the data entry functionality for the beneficiary’s email address and passport data for comprehensive identity verification and to improve direct communications with the respondent. USCIS has provided a synopsis of the edits associated with the processes to the information collection within the Copy Deck Table(s) of Changes (TOC) for each edition of the I-134A (ICR Reference Numbers: 202212-1615-029, 202306-1615-004, 202311-1615-005, 202208-1615-007, and 202204-1615-008). 

4. Describe efforts to identify duplication. Show specifically why any similar information already available cannot be used or modified for use for the purposes described in Item 2 above.

A search of DHS systems revealed no duplication and no similar data collected. The requirement that certain family-based immigrants and employment-based immigrants must show they have adequate means of financial support and are not inadmissible under the public charge ground, which is documented on USCIS Form I-864, Affidavit of Support Under Section 213A of the INA, is inapplicable to parole in general and to these parole processes specifically.

5. If the collection of information impacts small businesses or other small entities (Item 5 of OMB Form 83-I), describe any methods used to minimize burden.

An individual may request to be a supporter with funding from organizations that may be small businesses or other small entities; however, the supporter must be an individual who commits to the support obligations. Thus, DHS is providing no distinct Form I-134A submission process for cases in which a small business may be providing financial assistance to the individual supporter.

6. Describe the consequence to Federal program or policy activities if the collection is not conducted or is conducted less frequently, as well as any technical or legal obstacles to reducing burden.

If the information is not collected, USCIS would not be able to determine whether certain U.S.-based supporters have sufficient financial support to cover the expenses for noncitizens seeking to come to the United States temporarily for the duration of their stay in the United States. Collection of the information will also enhance USCIS and CBP’s case-by-case determination as to whether the beneficiary warrants a discretionary grant of parole.

7. Explain any special circumstances that would cause an information collection to be conducted in a manner:

• Requiring respondents to report information to the agency more often than quarterly;

• Requiring respondents to prepare a written response to a collection of information in fewer than 30 days after receipt of it;

• Requiring respondents to submit more than an original and two copies of any document;

• Requiring respondents to retain records, other than health, medical, government contract, grant-in-aid, or tax records for more than three years;

• In connection with a statistical survey, that is not designed to produce valid and reliable results that can be generalized to the universe of study;

• Requiring the use of a statistical data classification that has not been reviewed and approved by OMB;

• That includes a pledge of confidentiality that is not supported by authority established in statute or regulation, that is not supported by disclosure and data security policies that are consistent with the pledge, or which unnecessarily impedes sharing of data with other agencies for compatible confidential use; or

• Requiring respondents to submit proprietary trade secret, or other confidential information unless the agency can demonstrate that it has instituted procedures to protect the information's confidentiality to the extent permitted by law.

This information collection is conducted in a manner consistent with the guidelines in 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(2).

8. If applicable, provide a copy and identify the data and page number of publication in the Federal Register of the agency’s notice, required by 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting comments on the information collection prior to submission to OMB. Summarize public comments received in response to that notice and describe actions taken by the agency in response to these comments. Specifically address comments received on cost and hour burden.

Describe efforts to consult with persons outside the agency to obtain their views on the availability of data, frequency of collection, the clarity of instructions and recordkeeping, disclosure, or reporting format (if any), and on the data elements to be recorded, disclosed, or reported.

Consultation with representatives of those from whom information is to be obtained or those who must compile records should occur at least once every 3 years - even if the collection of information activity is the same as in prior periods. There may be circumstances that may preclude consultation in a specific situation. These circumstances should be explained.

On September 12, 2023, USCIS published a 60-day notice in the Federal Register at 88 FR 62586. USCIS did receive two comments after publishing that notice. USCIS did not make changes to the form and instructions as a result of these comments. USCIS’s responses to the public comments can be found in the following attachment shown in the Supplementary Documents: I-134A 60-Day Public Comment Response Matrix.

On November 16, 2023, USCIS published a Notice of implementation of a family reunification parole process for Ecuadorians in the Federal Register at 88 FR 78762. USCIS sought emergency approval under 5 CFR 1320.13 for the changes to the USCIS Form I-134A, which the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved on November 16, 2023, with a term clearance that USCIS incorporate these emergency changes in its 30-day notice for public comment.

On February 28, 2024, USCIS published a 30-day notice in the Federal Register at 89 FR 14674. USCIS did receive comments after publishing that notice. USCIS did not make changes to the form and instructions as a result of these comments

9. Explain any decision to provide any payment or gift to respondents, other than remuneration of contractors or grantees.

USCIS does not provide any payment for the benefit sought.

10. Describe any assurance of confidentiality provided to respondents and the basis for the assurance in statute, regulation or agency policy.

There is no assurance of confidentiality.

This collection is covered under the following Privacy Impact Assessments:

• DHS/USCIS/PIA-051 - Case and Activity Management for International Operations (CAMINO);

• DHS/USCIS/PIA-003 - Integrated Digitization Document Management Program (IDDMP);

• DHS/CBP/PIA-024 - Arrival and Departure Information System;

• DHS/CBP/PIA-068 - CBP One Mobile Application;

• DHS/USCIS/PIA-056(a) - USCIS Electronic Information System (USCIS ELIS); and,

• DHS/USCIS/PIA-071 - myUSCIS Account Experience.

The collection is covered under the following System of Records Notices:

• DHS/USCIS/ICE/CBP-001 - Alien File, Index, and National File Tracking System of Records November 22, 2013, 78 FR 69983;

• DHS/USCIS-007 - Benefits Information System October 10, 2019, 84 FR 54622;

• DHS/USCIS-018 - Immigration Biometric and Background Check July 31, 2018, 83 FR 36950; and,

• DHS/CBP-024 - Intelligence Records System (CIRS) System of Records, December 14, 2020, 85 FR 80806.

11. Provide additional justification for any questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior and attitudes, religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered private. This justification should include the reasons why the agency considers the questions necessary, the specific uses to be made of the information, the explanation to be given to persons from whom the information is requested, and any steps to be taken to obtain their consent.

This information collection contains questions that are of a sensitive nature. Respondents must provide information and records about personal income and financial resources. The supporter will also indicate why they think the potential parolee warrants a discretionary grant of parole based on urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit. This information is necessary to establish that the U.S.-based individual named on Form I-134A has sufficient financial resources to cover the beneficiary(ies) expenses during their temporary stay in the United States, as well as why the beneficiary should warrant a favorable exercise of discretion for parole.

USCIS seeks to collect the respondent’s U.S. social security number (SSN) to facilitate and expedite the confirmation of the sufficiency of the filing of Form I-134A. USCIS personnel conduct background and security checks on U.S.-based individuals seeking to support foreign nationals who may be eligible for one of the designated special parole processes. The information is collected to determine whether the respondent has demonstrated that they have sufficient financial resources to support the beneficiary(ies) during their temporary stay in the United States. The SSN information is used to establish and corroborate the U.S.-based individual’s declared identity, as not all respondents who file Form I-134A have a passport or A-number. Additionally, some of the U.S.-based individuals seeking to be a supporter may create multiple separate USCIS online accounts to file online Forms I-134A on behalf of beneficiaries and there is not a unique identifier to link these accounts. In addition, in this limited circumstance the SSN is critical to linking USCIS online accounts to help determine whether the respondent has sufficient resources to support each beneficiary on whose behalf the respondent has submitted a Form I-134A. Collecting the respondent’s SSN is a critical tool for making accurate sufficiency decisions.

This collection requests respondent’s sex/gender to evaluate and determine if the U.S.-based individual seeking to be a supporter poses a public safety or national security risk to the person for whom they are applying to support. USCIS will use this biographic identifier to query the holdings of interagency and intelligence community partners, and as needed, to query state, local, or international agencies. Name, date of birth (DOB), and sex are the three most important identifiers for biographic searches or queries. Sex will be used to verify identity and to confirm information relates to the individual when records are found. This is applicable to nearly all required and as needed (ad hoc) system checks. DHS also searches public and private sector databases that use sex as an identifier. USCIS has found multiple instances of predominantly male supporters submitting Form I-134A to support much younger female and child beneficiaries. The sex data element will be critical in our efforts to make sure the parole processes that require the Form I-134A are not used to facilitate human trafficking. Inclusion of this data element will allow DHS to quickly identify, through systematic checks, trends, and other indicators in the filings of Form I-134A supporters and proposed beneficiaries that may reveal patterns commonly associated with human trafficking and transnational criminal activity. This will provide DHS additional tools to identity potential cases that require further investigation prior to confirmation of a Form I-134A or for which DHS may initiate an interview with a prospective supporter to ascertain the bases for their agreement to financially support certain individuals. Finally, the capture of the sex data element is also consistent with the U.S. recognition policy for certain passports and identity documents issued by those foreign countries that allow an individual to indicate a non-binary assignment or gender-neutral option.

12. Provide estimates of the hour burden of the collection of information. The statement should:

• Indicate the number of respondents, frequency of response, annual hour burden, and an explanation of how the burden was estimated. Unless directed to do so, agencies should not conduct special surveys to obtain information on which to base hour burden estimates. Consultation with a sample (fewer than 10) of potential respondents is desirable. If the hour burden on respondents is expected to vary widely because of differences in activity, size, or complexity, show the range of estimated hour burden, and explain the reasons for the variance. Generally, estimates should not include burden hours for customary and usual business practices.

• If this request for approval covers more than one form, provide separate hour burden estimates for each form and aggregate the hour burdens in Item 13 of OMB Form 83-I.

• Provide estimates of annualized cost to respondents for the hour burdens for collections of information, identifying and using appropriate wage rate categories. The cost of contracting out or paying outside parties for information collection activities should not be included here. Instead, this cost should be included in Item 14.

		A	B	C (=AxB)	D	E (=CxD)	F	(=ExF)
Type of Respondent	Form Name / Form Number	#. of Respondents ****	#. of Responses per Respondent	# of Responses	Avg. Burden per Response (in hours)	Total Annual Burden (in hours)	Avg. Hourly Wage Rate*	Total Annual Respondent Cost
Individuals and Households	Form I-134A ***	1,205,600	1	1,205,600	2.11	2,543,816	$43.45	$110,528,805
Total				1,205,600		2,543,816		$110,528,805

* The above Average Hourly Wage Rate is the May 2022 Bureau of Labor Statistics average wage for All Occupations of $29.76 times the wage rate benefit multiplier of 1.46 (to account for benefits provided) equaling $43.45. The selection of “All Occupations” was chosen because respondents to this collection could be expected from any occupation.

** The estimated number of respondents includes receipts of Form I-134A by both USCIS and Department of State.

*** The beneficiary named on the Form I-134A will be asked to confirm electronically that the biographic information provided on the Form I-134A by the respondent/supporter is accurate. USCIS does not anticipate that this will pose more than a negligible burden on the beneficiary but will seek comment on this assumption.

**** DHS estimates that 1,120,000 respondents or prospective supporters will submit Form I-134A for parolees as part of Uniting for Ukraine, and the Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans over the next 12-month period.

DHS estimates that up to 85,600 respondents or prospective supporters will submit Form I-134A for parolees annually under the new and updated FRP processes for Cuba, Colombia, El Salvador, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras. This likely represents a maximum and the number of respondents in later years may be lower, depending on the number of approved Forms I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, and factors such as visa availability and foreign policy priorities.

13. Provide an estimate of the total annual cost burden to respondents or record keepers resulting from the collection of information. (Do not include the cost of any hour burden shown in Items 12 and 14).

• The cost estimate should be split into two components: (a) a total capital and start-up cost component (annualized over its expected useful life); and (b) a total operation and maintenance and purchase of services component. The estimates should consider costs associated with generating, maintaining, and disclosing or providing the information. Include descriptions of methods used to estimate major cost factors including system and technology acquisition, expected useful life of capital equipment, the discount rate(s), and the time period over which costs will be incurred. Capital and start-up costs include, among other items, preparations for collecting information such as purchasing computers and software; monitoring, sampling, drilling and testing equipment; and record storage facilities.

• If cost estimates are expected to vary widely, agencies should present ranges of cost burdens and explain the reasons for the variance. The cost of purchasing or contracting out information collection services should be a part of this cost burden estimate. In developing cost burden estimates, agencies may consult with a sample of respondents (fewer than 10), utilize the 60-day pre-OMB submission public comment process and use existing economic or regulatory impact analysis associated with the rulemaking containing the information collection, as appropriate.

• Generally, estimates should not include purchases of equipment or services, or portions thereof, made: (1) prior to October 1, 1995; (2) to achieve regulatory compliance with requirements not associated with the information collection; (3) for reasons other than to provide information or keep records for the government; or (4) as part of customary and usual business or private practices.

There are no capital, start-up, operational or maintenance costs associated with this collection of information. There is no fee cost to respondents for filing these requests. USCIS estimates that respondents will not incur any costs associated with the electronic filing of this information.

14. Provide estimates of annualized cost to the Federal government. Also, provide a description of the method used to estimate cost, which should include quantification of hours, operational expenses (such as equipment, overhead, printing, and support staff), and any other expense that would not have been incurred without this collection of information. Agencies also may aggregate cost estimates from Items 12, 13, and 14 in a single table.

The estimated cost to the Government is $77,942,040. This figure is calculated by multiplying the estimated number of respondents (1,205,600) by the time required to adjudicate the form (1 hour), which is multiplied by the average hourly rate of USCIS adjudicators ($64.65), for a total of $77,942,040.

15. Explain the reasons for any program changes or adjustments reporting in Items 13 or 14 of the OMB Form 83-I.

On November 16, 2023, USCIS published a Notice of implementation of a family reunification parole process for Ecuadorians in the Federal Register at 88 FR 78762. USCIS sought emergency approval under 5 CFR 1320.13 for the changes to the USCIS Form 134A, which OMB approved on November 16, 2023, with a term clearance that USCIS incorporate these emergency changes in its 30-day notice for public comment.

USCIS incorporates all of those approved changes and respondents into this revision action as well as adding the USCIS standard Compliance and Monitoring language in the instructions. There is no change to the total estimated annual respondents, time burden and cost burden.

16. For collections of information whose results will be published, outline plans for tabulation, and publication. Address any complex analytical techniques that will be used. Provide the time schedule for the entire project, including beginning and ending dates of the collection of information, completion of report, publication dates, and other actions.

This information collection will not be published for statistical purposes.

17. If seeking approval to not display the expiration date for OMB approval of the information collection, explain the reasons that display would be inappropriate.

USCIS will display the expiration date for OMB approval of this information collection.

18. Explain each exception to the certification statement identified in Item 19, “Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submission,” of OMB 83-I.

USCIS does not request an exception to the certification of this information collection.

B. Collections of Information Employing Statistical Methods.

There is no statistical methodology involved with this collection.

8