Local USCIS Office in Anchorage, Alaska
In the U.S., it’s the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that handles all immigration cases except the asylum ones. The USCIS comes under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and has a presence across the country and territories.
The physical location of the federal agency where it processes immigration applications is called a field office. Each field office has its own field director. There can be multiple field offices within a State. In terms of organization, the USCIS uses a system of Districts. There are a total of 26 Districts and a district may have jurisdiction over counties in more than one States. Above the districts are the Regions – four in total (Western, Central, Southeast, and Northeast).
If you’re unsure about the location of a field office then the office locator tool of the agency is a good way to finding that location. The tool provides up-to-date information using your zip code as a reference. Of course, the information may also be available on secondary websites and search engines, but it may not show the current address of the office.
The Anchorage Field Office
The Anchorage field office is in the Seattle District and Western Region at the following location:
Anchorage (ANC) 620 East 10th Avenue Suite 102 Anchorage, AK 99501
The USCIS has certain rules for visitors that you should follow. For example, you’re not allowed to take photos/videos inside the office, except for Citizenship ceremonies.
Case Processing Times
The time the USCIS provides you for the case is based on historical data. The federal agency uses two different methods for processing times. Here are some examples of the new technique for the Anchorage field office.
- Naturalization (N-400): 12 to 17.5 months
- Certificate of Citizenship (N-600): 6.5 to 14.5 months
- Citizenship and Issuance of Certificate Under Section 322 (N-600K): 10 to 22.5 months
Note that the times for the same form types may be different at different offices. The agency provides these processing times on their site. You can search by selecting your field office and form type. If your form is in the new format then the first and second values you see are the months for processing 50% and 93% of the applications respectively.
E-Request Section
The e-request section of the agency’s site not only allows you to ask about case delays, but it also helps you ask about other issues, including a missing email or document, a typo on the document provided to you, and disability accommodation for your meeting at the field office.
Online Tools
Note that that USCIS encourages information seekers to look for information on their official site. If the topic is not covered or they need any case-specific information, then the phone service and local office are the other options.
The online tools and options include, but are not limited to, online form filing (available for several form types), case processing and case status checker, office/class/doctor locator, multilingual resource center, citizenship test material, form filing fee calculator, and a virtual assistant answering automated help.