Congress passes bill extending Special Immigrant Visa program for Iraqi nationals

USCIS has announced that Congress passed a bill extending the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program for Iraqi nationals who worked for or on behalf of the US government. On 4 October 2013, President Obama signed this bill into law. The SIV program provides immigration benefits to Iraqi nationals employed by (or on behalf of) the US government in Iraq for a period of at least one year between 20 March 2003 and 30 September 2013. The program is an extension of a prior program that recently expired.