The office is open, with a focused USCIS mission
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced on September 3, 2026, that its new international field office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, would begin operations on September 9. The office gives USCIS personnel a direct presence for the agency's immigration work in Ethiopia.
USCIS identified three initial functions: verifying foreign documents, investigating suspected fraud and collecting DNA samples when family relationships must be confirmed. The announcement says those functions were historically supported through coordination with the Department of State.
An international USCIS office is not a consular visa window
The opening does not transfer immigrant- or nonimmigrant-visa interviewing from the U.S. Embassy to USCIS. The Department of State remains responsible for visa processing, while USCIS and the State Department perform different roles in many family, humanitarian and employment cases.
It also does not create a general walk-in service. USCIS says services at the Addis Ababa office are available only by appointment. An applicant should not travel to the office based solely on a case status, a document request or a private adviser's instruction.
DNA collection follows an agency-directed process
DNA testing in an immigration case is not a substitute for ordinary civil records and should not be arranged independently unless the responsible agency has directed the process. USCIS international-office guidance explains that a qualifying laboratory normally coordinates the collection appointment and sends the sample through the controlled chain of custody.
A private home test or an unapproved laboratory result may not satisfy the agency's evidentiary process. Keep the agency notice, laboratory correspondence, appointment confirmation and identity documents together, and follow the instructions for the exact people asked to appear.
Use the notice—not the new office headline—to choose the next step
- Read the latest notice to identify whether USCIS, the National Visa Center or a U.S. embassy currently controls the case.
- Use only the official USCIS international-office page or appointment system for appointment instructions.
- Do not send original civil documents or DNA samples to an address that was not provided through an official channel.
- Continue meeting every response, interview and medical deadline shown in the case-specific notice.
- Treat requests for money in exchange for an appointment as a warning sign; USCIS appointments are free.
What the announcement does not yet establish
The September 3 announcement does not say that every USCIS form can be filed at the Addis Ababa office, that pending cases have been transferred there, or that applicants may choose the office instead of the filing location printed on a form page. Filing routes continue to depend on the benefit request and the official instructions.
Information checked September 18, 2026. Because USCIS said it would add office-specific service and appointment information to its international-office directory, people with Ethiopia-based matters should recheck that directory before acting.