Department of Homeland Security
The Department of Homeland Security leverages resources within federal, state, and local governments, coordinating the transition of multiple agencies and programs into a single, integrated agency focused on protecting the American people and their homeland. More than 87,000 different governmental jurisdictions at the federal, state, and local level have homeland security responsibilities. Homeland Security is truly a “national mission.”
Some of the operational components within the Department of Homeland Security include:
- Citizenship & Immigration Service (CIS)
- Customs & Border Protection (CBP)
- Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA)
- Homeland Security Investigation (HSI)
- Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
- United States Coast Guard (USCG)
- United States Secret Service (USSS)
Within the US Embassy-San Salvador, DHS maintains two operational components.
Citizenship & Immigration Service (CIS)
The CIS office provides multiple services to US Citizens and receives personal inquiries Mondays and Wednesdays, between 7:30 and 9:30 a.m. at the USAID building adjacent to the Chancery. Cases under CIS jurisdiction include: asylum petitions, new born transportation letters for the children of legal permanent resident born out of the United States, lost/stolen legal permanent resident cards, I-601 waiver applications, I-94s not collected in the United States, and immigrant visa petitions for spouses and children under 21 of U.S. citizens who permanently reside in El Salvador.
The USCIS El Salvador processes I-601 waiver applications in the chronological order in which they are received. Currently, we are processing applications received on or before October 2011.
Homeland Security Investigation (HSI)
The largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security, HSI is responsible for identifying and shutting down vulnerabilities in the nation’s border, economic, transportation and infrastructure security. The agency was created by combining the law enforcement arms of the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) and the former U.S. Customs Service (USCS), to more effectively enforce our immigration and customs laws and to protect the United States against terrorist attacks. HSI does this by targeting illegal immigrants: the people, money and materials that support terrorism and other criminal activities. HSI is a key component of the DHS “layered defense” approach to protecting the nation. Within the US Embassy-San Salvador, HIS coordinates law enforcement efforts between the Government of El Salvador and HSI offices worldwide. Our staff includes Americans and Salvadorans working to advance our mutual interest
If you need their assistance, please come personally on the days and time indicated above.
Visit our homepage at http://www.dhs.gov