U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services: Additional Actions Needed to Manage Fraud Risks
Fast Facts
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services investigates potential immigration fraud. For example, USCIS investigates concerns that some marriages are formed to evade U.S. immigration law and illegally obtain immigration benefits, such as permanent residence.
USCIS uses a staffing model to estimate how many immigration officers it needs for its antifraud workload. But, the model doesn't adequately reflect operating conditions and some data may be inaccurate due to inconsistent data entry practices.
Regular evaluation of agency antifraud efforts could better inform where agency resources are most needed. Our recommendations address this and more.
Highlights
What GAO Found
Each year, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) processes millions of applications and petitions for persons seeking to visit or reside in the U.S. or become citizens. USCIS's Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS) leads efforts to combat fraud and detect national security and public safety threats posed by applicants. Each year, FDNS completes thousands of administrative investigations into benefit fraud concerns.
USCIS Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS) Fraud Cases Completed, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2021
USCIS uses a staffing model to estimate the number of Immigration Officers needed to handle FDNS's projected workload. However, the FDNS staffing model's assumptions do not reflect operating conditions. Also, due to inconsistent data entry practices, the data used in the staffing model do not accurately reflect FDNS staff workloads. Conducting additional analyses to identify factors that affect FDNS's workload and issuing guidance to clarify data entry practices would improve the accuracy of the staffing model's estimates.
USCIS has conducted fraud risk assessments for three immigration benefit types in response to prior GAO recommendations. However, USCIS does not have a process for regularly conducting these assessments because no USCIS entity is responsible for leading them. Implementing a process for conducting fraud risk assessments would help FDNS better understand its fraud risks. In addition, while FDNS has documented some of its antifraud activities, it has not developed an antifraud strategy to guide their design and implementation and the allocation of resources to its highest-risk areas. Implementing a process for developing an antifraud strategy could help FDNS ensure that it has an appropriate balance of antifraud activities to address its fraud risks.
Since fiscal year 2016, USCIS has implemented several changes to its antifraud activities. These changes include adding new activities, modifying ongoing activities, and developing technology tools to support operations. However, FDNS has not evaluated its antifraud activities for efficiency and effectiveness. Implementing a process for risk-based evaluation of antifraud activities would provide FDNS greater assurance that it is effectively preventing, detecting, and responding to potential fraud.
Why GAO Did This Study
To help ensure the integrity of the immigration system, FDNS develops policies and procedures for detecting benefit fraud, national security, and public safety concerns related to immigration benefit applications. It also conducts administrative investigations in those areas, among other activities. For example, FDNS investigates concerns that the marriages that form the basis of family-based immigration benefits are not bona fide, or that international students are not meeting attendance criteria to maintain their nonimmigrant status.
A 2020 House Appropriations Committee report included a provision for GAO to review USCIS fraud detection operations. This review describes FDNS's workload and evaluates, among other things, USCIS processes to determine staff resource needs; efforts to assess fraud risks and develop an antifraud strategy; and efforts to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of antifraud activities. GAO analyzed USCIS documents and data on FDNS operations from fiscal years 2016 through 2021 and interviewed officials.
This report has been updated since an earlier version was published on September 19, 2022.
Recommendations
GAO is making six recommendations to USCIS, including that it identify factors affecting its workload; implement additional data entry guidance; and implement processes to regularly conduct fraud risk assessments, develop an antifraud strategy, and conduct risk-based evaluations of the effectiveness of antifraud activities. DHS concurred with the recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| United States Citizenship and Immigration Services | The Director of USCIS should identify the factors that affect FDNS's workload to ensure the staffing model's assumptions reflect operating conditions. (Recommendation 1) |
In September 2022, we reported that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS) process for estimating its Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) staff resource needs was not fully consistent with leading practices and may affect its ability to accurately estimate future staff needs. Specifically, the staffing model for FDNS did not reflect actual operating conditions. Though USCIS had taken some steps to mitigate the effect on the staffing model's estimates, additional analyses to better understand the factors that drive FDNS's workload and clarifications to its data entry guidance would improve the accuracy of the staffing model's estimates. We recommended that USCIS identify the factors that affect FDNS's workload to ensure the staffing model's assumptions reflect operating conditions. USCIS concurred with our recommendation and stated it would conduct the relevant analyses after its new case management system-which was implemented in June 2023-was in place for a year. In September 2024, USCIS estimated it would complete the relevant analyses by the end of the year. We will continue to monitor USCIS's efforts to address this recommendation.
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| United States Citizenship and Immigration Services | The Director of USCIS should develop and implement additional guidance on FDNS data entry practices for fields used as staffing model inputs to ensure consistency and produce quality and reliable data. (Recommendation 2) |
In September 2022, we reported that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS) process for estimating its Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) staff resource needs was not fully consistent with leading practices and may affect its ability to accurately estimate future staff needs. Specifically, inconsistent data entry practices raised questions about the extent to which some of the data used in the staffing model accurately or credibly reflect FDNS's workload and productivity. We recommended that USCIS develop and implement additional guidance on FDNS data entry practices for fields used as staffing model inputs to ensure consistency and produce quality and reliable data. USCIS concurred with our recommendation. In August 2023, USCIS reported that FDNS had developed and distributed guidance via email to FDNS case management system users to establish consistent data entry procedures. For example, the guidance specifies when staff should create a new entry for requests for assistance and when to convert a referral to a case. These clarifications should help ensure consistency in data entry and improve the quality and reliability of the data.
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| United States Citizenship and Immigration Services | The Director of USCIS should develop and implement a process—including clearly defining roles and responsibilities—for regularly conducting fraud risk assessments and documenting fraud risk profiles for the immigration benefits USCIS is responsible for adjudicating. (Recommendation 3) |
In September 2022, we reported that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) could better ensure FDNS's antifraud efforts are effective and efficient by taking a more strategic and risk-based approach to managing fraud risks. This approach would include developing and implementing processes with clearly defined roles and responsibilities for conducting regular fraud risk assessments and documenting fraud risk profiles. We recommended USCIS develop and implement a process-including clearly defining roles and responsibilities-for regularly conducting fraud risk assessments and documenting fraud risk profiles for the immigration benefits USCIS is responsible for adjudicating. USCIS concurred with our recommendation. In August 2023, USCIS reported it had completed draft documentation outlining a framework for how USCIS will conduct fraud risk assessments and develop fraud risk profiles, and convened a working group to review, edit, and validate the framework. In September 2024, USCIS reported the draft framework had undergone revisions and because of the time required to coordinate reviews across the agency, updated the expected implementation date to December 2024. We will continue to monitor USCIS's efforts to address this recommendation.
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| United States Citizenship and Immigration Services | The Director of USCIS should develop and implement a process for developing and regularly updating an antifraud strategy that is aligned to the agency's fraud risk assessments. (Recommendation 4) |
In September 2022, we reported that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) could better ensure FDNS's antifraud efforts are effective and efficient by taking a more strategic and risk-based approach to managing fraud risks. We recommended USCIS develop and implement a process for developing and regularly updating an antifraud strategy that is aligned to the agency's fraud risk assessments. USCIS concurred with our recommendation. In March 2023, USCIS reported it had drafted an antifraud strategy based on the GAO's Fraud Risk Framework and fraud risk assessment principles set forth by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, and that the strategy was undergoing leadership review, as of August 2024. Citing the coordination required to implement the strategy across USCIS, in August 2024, USCIS also revised the estimated implementation date to December 2024. We will continue to monitor USCIS's efforts to address this recommendation.
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| United States Citizenship and Immigration Services | The Director of USCIS should develop and implement a process—including clearly defining roles and responsibilities—for risk-based evaluation of the effectiveness and efficiency of antifraud activities. (Recommendation 5) |
In September 2022, we reported that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) could better ensure FDNS's antifraud efforts are effective and efficient by taking a more strategic and risk-based approach to managing fraud risks, including assessing antifraud activities through periodic evaluations. We recommended USCIS develop and implement a process-including clearly defining roles and responsibilities-for risk-based evaluation of the effectiveness and efficiency of antifraud activities. USCIS concurred with our recommendation. USCIS also acknowledged the need to implement the recommendations to develop fraud risk assessments and an antifraud strategy prior to evaluating the effectiveness of antifraud activities. In August 2024, USCIS revised the estimated completion date to December 2024 because of ongoing efforts to address related recommendations. We will continue to monitor USCIS's efforts to address this recommendation.
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| United States Citizenship and Immigration Services | The Director of USCIS should develop outcome-oriented performance metrics, including baselines and targets as appropriate, to monitor the effectiveness of its antifraud activities. (Recommendation 6) |
In September 2022, we reported that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) could better ensure FDNS's antifraud efforts are effective and efficient by taking a more strategic and risk-based approach to managing fraud risks, including ongoing monitoring of performance measures. We recommended that USCIS develop outcome-oriented performance metrics, including baselines and targets as appropriate, to monitor the effectiveness of its antifraud activities. USCIS concurred with our recommendation. USCIS also acknowledged the need to implement the recommendations to develop fraud risk assessments, an antifraud strategy, and a risk-based evaluation approach first in order to align outcome-oriented performance measures with the agency's antifraud goals. In August 2024, USCIS revised the estimated completion date to December 2024 because of ongoing efforts to address related recommendations. USCIS We will continue to monitor USCIS's efforts to address this recommendation.
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