An informed gentleman from New York called the office this morning. He is petitioning to bring his mother to the U.S. She lives outside Lagos, Nigeria and has an interview at the U.S. Embassy next week. He has heard from friends that the U.S. Embassy may request an immigration DNA test, so he had some questions about the process.

I let him know that the Embassy in Nigeria often requests DNA testing for immigration when the consular officers feel that the families have not provided enough proof of a biological relationship. He wanted to be proactive, but the Embassy says not to complete the testing unless they ask for it. I disagree with that guideline, but there hasn’t been much progress to change it.

If and when the Embassy requests DNA testing for him and his mom, he’ll need to call a DNA company who provides AABB accredited results. He’ll be responsible for all costs included in the procedure; DNA testing, shipping and handling, country fees. His mom will be required to pay a small fee to the Doctor at the U.S. Embassy who collects the sample, but all other fees are paid by the petitioner.

The gentleman was delighted to hear that one company could handle the testing for him in New York and his mom in Nigeria. I was happy that he was happy. I wished him good luck, and hopefully the consular officer will find enough evidence, so a DNA test is not needed. Only time will tell.

For more information about the immigration DNA testing process check out our article, Five Steps of an Immigration DNA Test.

According to AP article, “US mulls DNA tests for some refugees”, the Obama administration is considering restarting a program it implemented in 2007 which required DNA testing for some refugee applicants. This could affect a large number of new I-730 petitions.

The original program in 2007 asked thousands of African refugees to prove relatedness to their family members in the U.S. According to the program results, only 20% of Kenyan cases were able to prove relationships.

The USCIS already requests immigration DNA testing for many family based I-130 petitions. If families are not able to prove relatedness using primary documentation such as birth certificates, or if the immigration officer suspects fraud for a different reason, then DNA testing is requested.

This brings into question the cultural differences in relatedness. While U.S. citizens see only biological relatives as brothers or sisters, it is not always the same in other nations. The issue of cultural difference is resolved with the U.S. immigration rules and regulations for family-based petitions. Rules clearly explain that petitioners and beneficiaries must be biologically related.

DNA testing for refugees, if implemented, will require petitioners to have their DNA collected in the U.S. and the refugee or asylee to be collected at the U.S. Embassy overseas. This testing process must be facilitated by an accredited DNA testing company in the U.S.

In essence, DNA testing for refugees will help enforce immigration law, and it is likely to dishearten many refugee families at the same time.

Picture Credit: Center For Refugee Studies

FAQ: “Can you help me determine if my brother is really my brother?”

The commonly asked question is followed by a slew of questions from one of our customer service representatives.

1. Do you believe you are full brother’s or half brother’s?

2. Do you believe you share a mother or a father?

3. Are either of your mother's available and willing to be tested?

4. Are any other known family members available and willing to be tested?

DNA relationship testing can be used as an effective tool at proving biological relationships. However, the conclusiveness of test results depends on a number of factor, the most important being the participants’ DNA profiles.

Ex. Sally and Mary believe they are half sisters, and that they share a father. The father is deceased, so a paternity test is not an option. Their mothers are not available for testing because they too are deceased. We have only one option to prove these girls are siblings.

Half vs. Unrelated Siblingship Test – We analyze and compare the DNA profiles of both women. This can lead to a couple outcomes. First, if they both have “common” genes, the results will be inconclusive, showing a probability of relatedness around 50%. Second, if they have “rare” genes, the results will be more conclusive since it is unlikely that unrelated people would share those genes.

If Sally and Mary believed they shared a mother, then we could do Mitochondrial DNA Testing. Mitochondrial DNA is passed down from mother to children, both boys and girls. However, only girls continue to pass it on to their children.

If Sally and Mary were men, then we could do Y-Chromosome DNA Testing. Y-Chrome DNA is passed down from fathers to sons. It continues through the male line, and it is not passed to females.

In Sally and Mary’s case, more participants would help the process, ideally one or both of their mothers. If not their mothers, one of their father’s sisters or brothers would help. The probability of getting a conclusive DNA test result in a half vs. unrelated sibling test is low, but it depends on the individuals being tested. They may share very rare alleles, making it very likely that they are related.

A CBS News Blog on Friday reported that the University of Akron will require all employees, staff, and contractors to submit DNA samples to university officials. Background checks and drug screens are common place employment practices, but never before has an employer required employees to give a DNA sample. There’s been some kickback from some staff members.

The theory behind DNA sample submissions makes sense. If there is ever a crime committed, the school can use the samples on file to eliminate potential suspects. It seems easier to collect samples before anything goes wrong, than to ask someone for a sample after a crime is committed. DNA sample submissions also act as a crime deterrent. If you knew your employer had your DNA on file, would you still commit a crime? I can see why the University wants this to happen.

However, after reading the school’s policy on the issue, it looks like they are only using the DNA samples to compare them to the federal CODIS database as part of the criminal background check. This would require the university to process each of the samples in a laboratory, instead of just keeping the swabs in a filing cabinet in case of emergency.

So, should this policy be allowed? Is it too invasive? Does it violate a person’s right to privacy? These questions are all up for debate.

School officials claim the policy violates a federal law which goes into effect on November 21st called the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA).

A university spokesperson stated that the DNA sample submission is not required. Employees are free to seek employment elsewhere.