Immigration Enforcement: Actions Needed to Better Handle, Identify, and Track Cases Involving Veterans
Released: 2019-06-06T00:00:00

Letter

Background

Noncitizens in the Military

In most cases, a noncitizen must be a LPR to enlist in the U.S. Armed Forces. Special provisions of the INA authorize the naturalization of current and recently discharged service members. Qualifying military service includes active or reserve service in the U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, or service in a National Guard unit. A person who has served honorably in the U.S. Armed Forces for 1 year during peacetime may be eligible to apply for naturalization. In addition, during designated periods of hostilities, such as World War I and World War II and the current global war on terrorism, members of the U.S. Armed Forces who serve honorably in an active duty status, or as members of the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve, are eligible to apply for naturalization without meeting any minimum required period of service.

DOD determines if a service member meets the qualifying service requirement by certifying Form N-426, Request for Certification of Military or Naval Service, or by issuing Forms DD-214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, NGB-22, National Guard Report of Separation and Record of Service, or an equivalent discharge document. The information provided in those forms determines whether or not the service member completed all requirements for honorable service, including whether the service member served honorably and, if he or she has separated from service, whether his or her separation was under honorable conditions.

In order to naturalize, a member of the U.S. Armed Forces must also meet the requirements and statutory qualifications to become a citizen. Specifically, he or she must demonstrate good moral character and have sufficient knowledge of the English language, U.S. government, and history. Additionally, an applicant must show attachment to the principles of the Constitution and favorable disposition toward the good order and happiness of the United States. However, qualified members of the U.S. Armed Forces are exempt from other naturalization requirements, including application fees and requirements for continuous residence and physical presence in the United States.

DOD also has authority to expand military recruiting to certain nonimmigrants and other lawfully present aliens. Beginning in December 2008, the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) program allowed certain U.S. nonimmigrant visa holders, asylees, refugees, and individuals with Temporary Protected Status to enlist in the military if they possessed medical, language, and other types of skills deemed vital for military operations. DOD ended the MAVNI program in fiscal year 2016, citing counterintelligence concerns. Between 2008 and 2016, 10,400 individuals enlisted in the U.S. military through the MAVNI program, according to DOD data.

Immigration Enforcement

DHS is responsible for arresting, detaining, litigating charges of removability against, and removing foreign nationals who are suspected and determined to be in the United States in violation of U.S. immigration laws. Trial attorneys from ICE’s OPLA represent the U.S. government as civil prosecutors in immigration court removal proceedings. ICE’s ERO is responsible for arresting and detaining potentially removable foreign nationals pending the outcome of their immigration court cases and removing individuals subject to an immigration judge’s final order of removal. ICE’s HSI is responsible for investigating a range of domestic and international activities arising from the illegal movement of people and goods into, within, and out of the United States.

Individuals may be subject to removal for a wide variety of reasons, including entering the United States illegally, staying longer than their authorized period of admission, being convicted of certain crimes, or engaging in terrorist activity. LPRs are foreign nationals under U.S. immigration law and therefore may be subject to immigration enforcement and removal from the United States for reasons such as controlled substance violations or conviction of an aggravated felony.

Both HSI agents and ERO officers may encounter potentially removable individuals and are to decide whether to issue them a charging document, known as a NTA, ordering the individual to appear before an immigration judge to respond to removal charges. If the judge finds that the respondent is removable and not otherwise eligible for relief, the judge will issue an order of removal, subjecting the respondent to removal by ERO once the order is administratively final.

VA Benefits and Services

The VA is responsible for administering benefits and services, such as health care and disability compensation, to veterans in the United States and abroad, including veterans who have been removed from the United States. VA pays monthly disability compensation to veterans for disabilities caused or aggravated by military service, known as service- connected disabilities. Veterans with service-connected disabilities may also be eligible for other VA benefits and services, such as job training.

VA staff in regional offices process disability compensation claims. After a veteran submits a disability claim to VA, a VA Veterans Service Representative reviews the claim and assists the veteran with gathering relevant evidence, such as military service records, medical examinations, and treatment records from VA medical facilities and private providers. If necessary to provide support to substantiate the claim, VA will provide a medical examination, known as a Compensation and Pension (C&P) exam, to obtain evidence of the veteran’s disabilities and their connection to military service. Within the United States, medical providers who work for the Veterans Health Administration often conduct these exams. VA also contracts with private firms to perform these exams. Outside the United States, VA contracts with private firms to perform exams in 33 countries. In countries where VA contractors do not perform exams, VA coordinates with State staff at embassies and consulates to schedule exams with private providers.

Once VA receives the claim evidence, a Rating Veterans Service Representative evaluates the claim and determines whether the veteran is eligible for benefits, and if so, assigns a percentage rating. After a rating is assigned, VA provides VSO staff assisting a veteran with a claim up to 48 hours to review the claim decision prior to finalizing the decision. A Veterans Service Representative then determines the amount of the award, if any, and drafts a decision notice. A senior Veterans Service Representative then reviews and authorizes the award for release to the veteran. See figure 1 for details on the 5 phases of VA’s disability compensation claims process. From fiscal years 2013 through 2018, VA received over 8.9 million disability compensation claims from over 3.9 million veterans and awarded over $20.2 billion in benefits, according to VA data.

ICE Does Not Consistently Adhere to Its Policies for Handling Cases of Potentially Removable Veterans and Does Not Consistently Identify and Track Such Veterans

ICE Has Developed Policies for Handling Cases of Potentially Removable Veterans, but Does Not Consistently Adhere to Those Policies

ICE has developed policies that govern the handling of cases involving potentially removable veterans. When HSI agents and ERO officers learn that they have encountered a veteran, these policies require they conduct additional assessments, create additional documentation, and obtain management approval in order to proceed with the case. Specifically, in June 2004, ICE’s Acting Director of Investigations issued a memo giving the HSI Special Agent in Charge (SAC) in each field office the authority to approve issuance of a NTA in cases involving current service members or veterans. Similarly, in September 2004, ICE’s Acting Director of Detention and Removal Operations issued a memo giving the ERO Field Office Director (FOD) in each field office the authority to approve issuance of a NTA in cases involving current service members or veterans. In order to issue a NTA to a veteran, the SAC and FOD must consider, at a minimum, the veteran’s overall criminal history, evidence of rehabilitation, family and financial ties to the United States, employment history, health, and community service. The SAC and FOD must also consider factors related to the veteran’s military service, such as duty status (active or reserve), assignment to a war zone, number of years in service, and decorations awarded. To authorize issuance of the NTA, the SAC and FOD are to complete a memo to include in the veteran’s alien file and update ICE’s EARM database with a brief overview of the facts considered.

Additionally, in November 2015, ICE’s Director issued a policy establishing ICE’s procedures for investigating the potential U.S. citizenship of individuals encountered by ICE. The policy states that prior military service is one of several indicators that an individual could be a U.S. citizen. Therefore, before issuing a NTA to a veteran or anyone with an indicator of potential U.S. citizenship, the ICE component that first encounters the individual (either HSI or ERO) is to conduct a factual examination, legal analysis, and a check of all available DHS systems, such as USCIS’s Person-Centric Query Service, to assess whether the individual is a U.S. citizen. ERO or HSI (whichever conducted the factual examination) and OPLA’s Office of Chief Counsel must jointly prepare a memorandum that assesses the individual’s citizenship status and recommends a course of action, then submit that memorandum for review and approval by ICE headquarters. The policy also requires that a copy of the memorandum be placed in the individual’s alien file.

Our analysis of removed veterans’ alien files found that ICE does not consistently follow these policies. Specifically, ICE policies require agents and officers to document the decision to issue a NTA to a veteran, but do not require agents and officers to identify and document veteran status when interviewing potentially removable individuals. Our analysis found that ICE did not satisfy the 2004 requirement for FOD approval in 18 of 87 (21 percent) cases that OPLA’s check box indicated involved veterans who were placed into removal proceedings and ERO data indicated had been removed from fiscal years 2013 through 2018. Our analysis also found that ICE did not meet the requirements of the 2015 policy requiring elevation to headquarters in 26 of the 37 cases (70 percent) of the cases for which the policy applied. Further, in December 2018 HSI officials told us that HSI has not been adhering to either the 2004 or the 2015 policies because they were unaware of the policies prior to our review. HSI officials stated that they do not distinguish between veterans and nonveterans when conducting administrative or criminal investigations or when deciding whether to issue a NTA. ERO officials stated that the absence of documentation in the alien file does not necessarily indicate that officers did not adhere to the policies; however, as noted above, the policies specifically require ICE to add documentation to the alien file. Because ICE did not consistently follow these policies, some veterans who were removed may not have received the level of review and approval that ICE has determined is appropriate for cases involving veterans. Taking action to ensure consistent implementation of its policies for handling cases of potentially removable veterans, such as issuing guidance or providing training, would help ICE better ensure that potentially removable veterans receive appropriate levels of review and consideration prior to the initiation of removal proceedings.

ICE Has Not Developed a Policy to Identify and Document All Military Veterans It Encounters

ICE has not developed a policy to identify and document all military veterans it encounters. According to ERO officials, when ERO officers encounter an individual, they interview that individual and complete the Form I-213, “Record of Deportable/Inadmissible Alien,” which documents information on, among other things, the individual’s country of citizenship and most recent employer. Officials stated that ERO officers would generally learn about the individual’s veteran status during that interview. However, ICE does not have a policy requiring agents and officers to specifically ask about and document veteran status. According to ERO officials, ERO does not need such a policy because ERO’s training for new officers, the Basic Immigration Enforcement Training Program, instructs officers to ask about veteran status when interviewing potentially removable aliens. The Basic Immigration Enforcement Training Program includes one lesson plan and one practice exercise stating that the I-213 “Record of Deportable/Inadmissible Alien” should include information on military service, as applicable. The lesson plan also includes a list of mandatory questions that ERO officers must ask in every encounter with an alien; however, that list of mandatory questions does not include any questions about military service. Further, the I-213 “Record of Deportable/Inadmissible Alien” does not have a specific field to indicate veteran status, and ERO’s cover sheet that supervisors use to review the legal sufficiency of NTAs does not contain information about veteran status.

For cases processed by HSI, HSI officials stated that agents would generally learn about the individual’s veteran status through the initial interview or through background checks or other information obtained in the course of an HSI investigation. However, during the course of our review, HSI officials stated that there was no policy requiring agents to ask about or document veteran status because, as discussed above, HSI does not handle veterans’ cases differently from other cases.

Without mechanisms in place to identify and document veterans, ICE is not positioned to determine whether or not individuals it encounters are potentially veterans and for which individuals the 2004 and 2015 policies discussed above for handling cases of potentially removable veterans should be applied. Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government state that management should design control activities—that is, the policies, procedures, techniques, and mechanisms that enforce management’s directives to achieve the entity’s objectives. ICE officials told us that the 2004 and 2015 policies are intended to provide guidance and direction to ICE agents and officers for handling cases of potentially removable veterans. ICE officials believe that these policies could be updated with additional guidance to agents and officers to ask about and document veteran status during interviews of potentially removable individuals. Without developing and implementing a new policy or revising its 2004 and 2015 policies to require agents and officers to ask about and document veteran status, ICE has no way of knowing whether it has identified all of the veterans it has encountered and, therefore, does not have reasonable assurance that it is consistently implementing its policies and procedures for handling veterans’ cases.

ICE Does Not Maintain Complete Electronic Data on Veterans Who Have Been Placed in Removal Proceedings or Removed

Because ICE has not developed a policy to identify and document all military veterans it encounters, ICE does not maintain complete electronic data on veterans who have been placed in removal proceedings or removed. In the instances in which ICE agents and officers learn that they have encountered a veteran, none of the three ICE components who encounter veterans—ERO, OPLA, and HSI—maintain complete electronic data on the veterans they identify. ERO does not have a specific field for tracking veterans in its database, EARM. According to ERO officials, ERO officers can note veteran status on the Form I-213, “Record of Deportable/Inadmissible Alien,” but ERO does not have the ability to electronically search those notes to identify all of the veterans it has encountered. ERO officials stated that they do not maintain data on veteran status because they do not specifically target veterans for enforcement operations. OPLA has a check box tracking veteran status in its database, PLAnet, but the field is not mandatory. PLAnet also includes a case notes section, where an OPLA attorney may choose to document veteran status information. OPLA officials stated that the reliability of the veteran status box and case notes depends on the diligence of the attorney inputting the case information into PLAnet. HSI officials stated that they do not track veteran status at all because, as discussed above, veteran status does not affect their handling of cases.

Our analysis of removed veterans’ alien files identified limitations with the only electronic data on veteran status ICE maintains—OPLA’s check box in the PLAnet database. Specifically, though OPLA’s check box indicated that all 87 of the aliens whose files we reviewed were veterans, we found that 8 of the 87 individuals (9 percent) did not serve in the U.S. Armed Forces, according to the information in their alien files. After reviewing these cases, OPLA officials stated that the individuals were incorrectly designated as veterans due to human error. OPLA officials stated that OPLA does not require attorneys to systematically track veteran status information in PLAnet because the database is not intended to be a data repository, but rather serves as a case management system for OPLA attorneys. OPLA officials stated that the official record of the alien’s case is the paper alien file.

Because ICE does not maintain complete electronic data on potentially removable veterans it encounters, ICE does not know exactly how many veterans have been placed in removal proceedings or removed, or if their cases have been handled according to ICE’s policies. Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government state that management uses quality information to make informed decisions and evaluate the entity’s performance in achieving key objectives and addressing risks. Quality information is appropriate, current, complete, accurate, accessible, and provided on a timely basis. While tracking veteran status in the paper alien file may allow ICE to review whether a specific individual is a veteran, it does not provide the type of complete and accessible electronic data that would allow the agency to systematically evaluate its performance in adhering to its policies. Maintaining complete electronic data on veterans it encounters would assist ICE in determining the extent to which the agency has adhered to its policies for handling cases involving potentially removable veterans. For example, ICE could obtain quality information through a mandatory field, such as a check box to track veteran status.

Available Data Indicate that Approximately 250 Veterans Were Placed in Removal Proceeding or Removed from the United States from Fiscal Years 2013 through 2018

Based on the limited information available in OPLA’s PLAnet database, approximately 250 veterans were placed in removal proceedings or removed from the United States from fiscal years 2013 through 2018. As noted above, ICE does not maintain complete electronic data on veterans it encounters. While OPLA’s PLAnet includes some data on veterans who have been placed in removal proceedings, because the entry of veteran status data in PLAnet is not mandatory, there could be additional veterans who were placed in removal proceedings or removed during the timeframe of our review who were not noted in PLAnet or included in our analysis, as discussed below.

We reviewed the data that were included in PLAnet on veterans who were placed in removal proceedings from fiscal years 2013 through 2018 and identified approximately 250 military veterans. This includes those individuals for whom the check box indicating veteran status was checked in PLAnet but, as noted above, does not represent complete data on all possible veterans placed in removal proceedings during the time period we reviewed. Among the approximately 250 individuals who were noted in PLAnet as veterans in removal proceedings, the most common countries of nationality were Mexico (about 40), Jamaica (about 30), El Salvador (about 10), Trinidad and Tobago (about 10), Germany (about 10), and Guatemala (about 10). At the end of fiscal year 2018, about 115 had been ordered removed, about 25 had been granted relief or protection from removal by an immigration judge, and about 5 had their cases administratively closed. The remainder of the cases were still open as of November 2018.

From fiscal year 2013 through 2018, ERO had removed 92 of the approximately 250 military veterans from the United States, of which 90 were foreign nationals with one or more criminal convictions, according to ERO data. Nine of the removed veterans had service-connected disabilities recognized by VA, including four removed veterans who had service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder. Based on our review of the alien files of 87 of the individuals that OPLA’s check box indicated were veterans and ERO indicated had been removed, we identified the following characteristics:

26 veterans (30 percent) received an honorable discharge; 26 (30 percent) received a general discharge under honorable conditions; 13 (15 percent) received an other than honorable discharge; 8 (9 percent) received an uncharacterized discharge; 3 (3 percent) received a bad conduct discharge; 2 (2 percent) received a dishonorable discharge; 8 (9 percent) had no evidence of military service in their alien file; and 1 (1 percent) did not have a discharge characterization listed in the alien file.

74 veterans (85 percent) were LPRs, 6 (7 percent) were citizens of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau who enlisted under the Compact of Free Association, 6 (7 percent) did not have evidence of lawful status, and 1 (1 percent) was a recipient of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

26 veterans (30 percent) had previously applied for naturalization with USCIS; 3 of whom submitted multiple applications. Seventeen of those naturalization applications were denied by USCIS, 9 were administratively closed, and 2 were withdrawn.

68 veterans (78 percent) were ordered removed because of at least one aggravated felony conviction, while the remaining 19 (22 percent) were ordered removed for non-aggravated felony convictions. Of the convictions ICE cited on the 87 veterans’ NTAs: 32 veterans had drug-related convictions; 20 had convictions related to sexual abuse, of which 18 involved minors; 21 had convictions related to homicide, assault, or attempted homicides or assaults; 16 had theft-related convictions; and 9 had convictions related to firearms, explosives, or explosive material.

USCIS and DOD Have Policies Facilitating the Naturalization of Noncitizen Service Members and Veterans; the Number of Service Members Applying for Naturalization Has Decreased

USCIS and DOD Have Policies Facilitating the Naturalization of Noncitizen Service Members and Veterans

USCIS and DOD have policies facilitating the naturalization of noncitizen service members and veterans, and both agencies provide informational resources to noncitizen service members seeking naturalization. USCIS facilitates the application and naturalization process for current and recently discharged members of the U.S. Armed Forces through a dedicated Military Naturalization Unit, which processes military naturalization applications and assists field officers with administrative naturalization tasks overseas, among other things. USCIS interviews and naturalizes active-duty service members abroad at certain U.S. embassies, consulates, and military installations. To provide information to noncitizen service members and veterans, USCIS maintains a toll-free “Military Help Line” and an e-mail box exclusively for members of the military and their families and publishes an “Immigration 101” presentation for relevant stakeholders, including DOD personnel on military bases. In addition, USCIS provides DOD with a checklist of required documents for military naturalization applications and communication guidelines for naturalization application inquiries, according to USCIS officials.

DOD determines whether a service member meets the qualifying service requirement for naturalization by certifying whether the service member has served “honorably,” and if he or she has separated from service, whether their separation was under honorable conditions. Additionally, according to DOD officials, every military installation generally designates a naturalization advisor within its Legal Services Office. The advisor, among other things, assists service members with preparation of their naturalization application packets and serves as an intermediary with USCIS staff. For example, at many Army installations, the Army Community Services Office typically performs this function.

The Number of Noncitizen Service Members Applying for Naturalization Declined by 72 Percent from Fiscal Years 2017 to 2018

Although USCIS approved military naturalization applications at a fairly consistent rate from fiscal years 2013 through 2018, the number of applications received declined sharply from fiscal years 2017 to 2018, resulting in a decrease in the number of service members approved for naturalization in fiscal year 2018. From fiscal years 2013 through 2018, USCIS received 54,617 military naturalization applications; USCIS approved 46,835 (86 percent) and denied 3,410 (6 percent). Applicants’ most common countries of nationality were the Philippines (6,267 or 11 percent), Mexico (5,760 or 11 percent), Jamaica (3,510 or 6 percent), China (3,213 or 6 percent), and the Republic of Korea (2,982 or 5 percent). While the number of military naturalization applications was relatively stable between fiscal years 2013 and 2017, applications declined by 72 percent from fiscal year 2017 to fiscal year 2018, from 11,812 in fiscal year 2017 to 3,291 in fiscal year 2018, as shown in figure 2. As a result of this decline in applications, the number of service members approved for naturalization also declined, from 7,303 in fiscal year 2017 to 4,309 in fiscal year 2018.

USCIS and DOD officials attributed the decline in military naturalization applications to several DOD policy changes. First, DOD suspended the MAVNI program in September 2016, which reduced the number of noncitizens joining the military. According to DOD officials, due to counterintelligence concerns, DOD suspended the program at the end of fiscal year 2016 and decided not to renew the program in fiscal year 2017. Second, in October 2017, DOD issued policies expanding background check requirements for LPR and MAVNI recruits. The policies specify that LPRs must complete a background check and receive a favorable military service suitability determination prior to entering any component of the U.S. Armed Forces. According to DOD officials, due to backlogs in the background check process, these new recruits were delayed in beginning their service, and officials stated that it may take DOD up to a year to complete enhanced requirements for certain recruits. DOD officials stated that they believe background check backlogs will decrease by the end of fiscal year 2019 and, as a result, the number of noncitizen service members eligible to apply for naturalization will increase. Third, in October 2017, DOD increased the amount of time noncitizens must serve before DOD will certify their honorable service for naturalization purposes. Under the new policy, noncitizens must complete security screening, basic military training, and serve 180 days for a characterization of service determination. Previously, DOD granted that determination in as little as a few days of service.

USCIS made several changes to its military naturalization processes in response to or in tandem with DOD’s policy changes. First, in July 2017, USCIS determined that the completion of DOD background checks was relevant to MAVNI recruits’ eligibility for naturalization. USCIS thus began requiring currently-serving MAVNI recruits seeking military naturalization to complete all required DOD background checks before USCIS interviewed them, approved their applications, or administered the Oath of Allegiance to naturalize them. Second, in January 2018, USCIS ended its initiative to naturalize new enlistees at basic training sites. This initiative, known as the “Naturalization at Basic Training Initiative”, began in August 2009 as an effort to conduct outreach to new enlistees at the Army’s five basic training sites and provide noncitizen enlistees an opportunity to naturalize prior to completion of basic training. Because of DOD’s October 2017 policy change increasing the amount of time noncitizens must serve before they are eligible for a characterization of service determination, noncitizen service members no longer meet the requirements for naturalization while they are completing basic training. As a result, USCIS closed naturalization offices in Fort Sill, Fort Benning, and Fort Jackson.

USCIS’s processing time for military naturalizations also increased, from an average of 5.4 months in fiscal year 2017 to 12.5 months in fiscal year 2018, according to USCIS data. USCIS officials attributed this increase to the backlog in DOD background checks for MAVNI recruits, as well as an increased volume of naturalization applications from non-military applicants.

Removal Alone Does Not Affect Eligibility for VA Benefits and Services, but Living Abroad Affects Eligibility and Access to Certain Benefits and Services

Removal Alone Does Not Affect Eligibility for VA Benefits and Services; Veterans Living Abroad are Eligible for Fewer Benefits and Services than Those Living In the United States

Citizenship status, including immigration enforcement or removal history, does not affect a veteran’s eligibility for VA benefits and services, according to VA officials. As a result, veterans who have been removed by ICE are entitled to the same VA benefits and services as any other veteran living abroad.

Although being removed for violation of immigration law does not in and of itself affect eligibility for VA benefits and services, living abroad affects eligibility for certain benefits and services, as shown in table 1. These differences pertain to all veterans living abroad, including both veterans who have been removed by ICE and veterans who choose to reside abroad.

Removed veterans may face additional obstacles in receiving certain benefits for which they are otherwise eligible because they may be barred from traveling to the United States. For example, a removed veteran may not be able to attend a hearing to appeal a VA disability rating decision because VA conducts those hearings exclusively in the United States. Additionally, a removed veteran may not be able to obtain certain Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment services if the veteran is unable to travel to the United States for medical referrals and case management.

Veterans Living Abroad Face Challenges Accessing Certain Benefits and Services

Veterans living abroad, including removed veterans, may experience challenges accessing certain benefits and services, including slower disability claim processing and Foreign Medical Program (FMP) claim reimbursement, difficulties related to the scheduling and quality of C&P exams, and difficulties communicating with VA.

Claims and Reimbursement Processing Timeliness

According to VA officials, VA’s processing time for disability compensation claims for veterans living abroad (foreign claims) has improved since fiscal year 2013. For example, in fiscal year 2013, VA processed foreign claims in an average of 521 days and in fiscal year 2018, VA’s processing time for foreign claims decreased to an average of 131 days. However, as of September 2018, VA was not meeting its timeliness goal of 125 days for processing foreign claims and VA took an average of 29 days longer to process foreign claims than domestic claims. VA officials attributed the longer processing times for foreign claims to unreliable foreign mail systems and issues with retrieving and translating foreign records, among other things. From fiscal years 2013 through 2018, VA received disability compensation claims from 26,858 veterans living abroad and awarded over $85 million in benefits, according to VA data.

According to VA officials, VA’s processing time for health care claims reimbursements to veterans or their medical providers for treatment of service-connected conditions through FMP has also improved. For example, in October 2018, FMP was processing 53.8 percent of claims in 40 days compared to 70 percent of claims in 40 days in March 2019. However, as of March 2019, VA was not meeting its timeliness goal to process 90 percent of claims reimbursements through FMP in 40 days. FMP officials attributed these delays to the loss of four staff positions in April 2017, as well as FMP assuming responsibility for claims from the Philippines in October 2017. To improve FMP’s processing timeliness, FMP officials stated that VA funded three new full-time equivalent positions for fiscal year 2019. From fiscal years 2013 through 2018, VA reported receiving 373,916 claims reimbursements from veterans and providers living abroad and awarding over $169 million in claims reimbursements.

Scheduling and Quality of C&P Exams

According to both VA and VSO officials, veterans living abroad, including removed veterans, face challenges related to the scheduling and quality of C&P exams. As previously noted, veterans living abroad do not receive C&P exams from VA medical providers, but may receive exams from either a VA contractor or, in countries where VA does not have contractors, from a private provider scheduled by the U.S. embassy or consulate. From fiscal years 2013 through 2018, VA completed over 27,000 exams abroad through contractors and 6,800 exams through U.S. embassies and consulates, according to VA data.

For contract exams, as of March 2019, VA had contractors in 33 countries and U.S. territories. This included Mexico, Germany, Belize, Canada, the Dominican Republic, the Federated States of Micronesia, the United Kingdom, the Philippines, Thailand, Costa Rica, Korea, and Poland, which were among the most common countries of nationality for removed veterans in our analysis. VA officials stated that contract C&P exam locations are determined by historical and pending claims data. Moreover, VA contractors abroad are generally located near military installations or areas in which VA determined there is a large veteran population.

For embassy-scheduled exams, both VA and VSO officials told us that the effectiveness of coordination between VA and the embassies varies by country. For example, VA staff told us that they have been unable to schedule exams through embassies in Iraq or Afghanistan. State officials told us that processes for scheduling C&P exams and communicating with VA vary depending on the location, activity, and size of the embassy or consulate. State officials also told us that access to specialized providers to conduct exams, including mental health or audio exams, depends on the location of the embassy or consulate.

In addition, both VA and VSO officials told us that veterans who receive embassy-scheduled exams from private providers abroad may receive lower-quality exams than veterans who live in the United States. For example, providers abroad may misinterpret VA exam requirements due to language barriers or unfamiliarity with U.S. medical terminology. These providers also do not have access to veterans’ service records, and therefore cannot assess whether a particular condition is service- connected. For these reasons, VA officials told us that VA staff submit C&P exams completed by private providers abroad to the VA Medical Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for an additional medical opinion. According to VA officials, VA is improving the scheduling and quality of C&P exams by expanding the number of countries where veterans may receive exams from VA contractors.

Veterans Living Abroad Face Challenges Communicating with VA

According to VA and VSO officials, veterans living abroad experience challenges communicating with the VA. For example, staff from all four VSOs we interviewed stated that unreliable foreign mail systems and differences in time zones make it challenging for veterans to communicate with the VA, particularly because VA uses paper mail to communicate with veterans living abroad. In addition, VA and VSO officials also told us that veterans living abroad may face challenges applying for and managing their benefits through an online portal maintained by VA and DOD, eBenefits. VA requires veterans to register for a “premium account” in order to access all of the functions of eBenefits, such as applying for benefits online and checking the status of a claim, among other things. To be eligible for a “premium account,” veterans must first verify their identity with DOD. If the veteran provides valid government identification (e.g. driver’s license) and documentation of a financial account (e.g. checking account), DOD may be able to verify the veteran’s identity through an online registration process and VA may be able to verify the veteran’s identity by telephone. If a veteran is unable to verify their identity in this manner, the veteran must verify their identity in-person at a VA regional office in the United States. Therefore, removed veterans who cannot travel to the United States would not be able to obtain a “premium account” if they had not previously registered prior to their removal. VA officials stated that these processes are intended to ensure compliance with National Institute of Standards and Technology guidance for online credentialing.

Conclusions

Throughout U.S. history, noncitizens have contributed to the United States through service in the Armed Forces. Through its policies, ICE has established that these noncitizen veterans warrant special consideration in the event that they become subject to immigration enforcement and removal from the United States. However, because ICE did not consistently adhere to these policies, some veterans who were removed may not have received the level of review and approval that ICE has determined is appropriate for cases involving veterans. Moreover, without developing and implementing a new policy or revising its 2004 and 2015 policies to require ICE agents and officers to ask about and document veteran status while interviewing potentially removable individuals, ICE has no way of knowing whether it has identified all of the veterans it has encountered and, therefore, does not have reasonable assurance that it is consistently implementing its policies and procedures for handling veterans’ cases. Further, maintaining complete electronic data on veterans it encounters would also allow ICE to better assess whether ICE has adhered to its policies for handling cases involving potentially removable veterans.

Recommendations for Executive Action

We are making the following three recommendations to ICE:

The Director of ICE should take action to ensure consistent implementation of ICE’s policies for handling cases of potentially removable veterans. (Recommendation 1)

The Director of ICE should develop and implement a policy or revise its current polices to ensure that ICE agents and officers identify and document veteran status when interviewing potentially removable individuals. (Recommendation 2)

The Director of ICE should collect and maintain complete and electronic data on veterans in removal proceedings or who have been removed. (Recommendation 3)

Agency Comments and Our Evaluation

We provided a copy of this report to DHS, VA, DOD, and State for review and comment. DHS provided written comments, which are reproduced in full in appendix I and discussed below. DHS, VA, and DOD also provided technical comments, which we incorporated as appropriate. State indicated that it did not have any comments on the draft report.

In its comments, DHS concurred with our three recommendations and described actions planned to address them. With respect to our first recommendation that ICE should ensure consistent implementation of its policies for handling potentially removable veterans, DHS concurred stating that ICE plans, among other things, to update its guidance and training materials to include information about military service. With respect to our second recommendation that ICE should develop and implement a policy or revise its current policies to ensure agents and officers identify and document veteran status when interviewing potentially removable individuals, DHS concurred, stating that ICE plans to review and clarify existing guidance on the issuance of NTAs to veterans. DHS also concurred with our third recommendation that ICE collect and maintain complete and electronic data on veterans in removal proceedings or who have been removed. Specifically, DHS stated that ICE plans to add data elements for veteran status to its existing systems. The actions described above, if implemented effectively, should address the intent of our recommendations.

We are sending copies of this report to the appropriate congressional committees, the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Acting Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State, and other interested parties. In addition, this report is available at no charge on the GAO website at http://www.gao.gov.

If you or your staff have any questions about this report, please contact me at 202-512-8777 or gamblerr@gao.gov. Contact points for our Office of Congressional Relations and Public Affairs may be found on the last page of our report. GAO staff who made key contributions to this report are listed in appendix II.

Appendix I: Comments from the Department of Homeland Security

Appendix II: GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgements

Appendix II: GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgements Error! No text of specified style in document.

GAO Contact

Staff Acknowledgments

In addition to the contact named above, Meg Ullengren (Assistant Director), Ashley Davis, Eric Hauswirth, Khaki LaRiviere, Sasan J. “Jon” Najmi, Claire Peachey, Mike Silver, Natalie Swabb, and James Whitcomb made key contributions to this report.