Lee Francis Cissna, born July 5, 1966, in Silver Spring, Maryland, is an American lawyer and government official whose career has moved between the Foreign Service, Capitol Hill, and the senior leadership of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). His tenure at USCIS was notable for consequential administrative decisions that drew wide public attention, including the revision of the agency’s own mission statement in February 2018.
Key facts
- Born: 5 July 1966
- Birthplace: Silver Spring
- Occupation: official
- Education: Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Columbia University; Georgetown University Law Center; School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Early Career and Foreign Service
Before moving into legislative or executive roles, Cissna served as a Foreign Service Officer. His earliest postings took him to the U.S. Consulate in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and then to the U.S. Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden, a pair of assignments that span very different regions and cultures. The broad geographic range was typical of the Foreign Service career track rather than a product of any particular specialization.
Legislative Work on Immigration
While serving on the staff of Senator Charles Grassley, Cissna helped draft two significant pieces of legislation. The first was the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2015, which would have tightened requirements for those high-skilled worker visa categories. The second was the American Job Creation and Investment Promotion Reform Act of 2015, which included integrity measures for the EB-5 immigrant investor program.
An investigation by ProPublica found that during the same period on Grassley’s staff, Cissna drafted dozens of letters under the senator’s name to Department of Homeland Security officials. Grassley sent the agency at least 93 letters on immigration matters during that stretch, six times as many as in the two years before Cissna joined the staff.
USCIS Directorship
Cissna was Senate-confirmed as Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, placing him at the head of the federal agency responsible for processing immigration benefits applications. In February 2018, under his leadership, USCIS removed the phrase ‘nation of immigrants’ from its mission statement, a change that attracted considerable public and press attention, in part because Cissna is himself the son of a Peruvian immigrant.
Despite running an agency whose work centers on immigration filings, Cissna reportedly appeared in court only twice after law school, in both instances representing asylum seekers pro bono.
His departure came as part of a broader removal of senior Department of Homeland Security officials. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and Acting ICE Director Ronald Vitiello were also ousted in the same period.
Return to Government Service
On October 3, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed that Cissna had returned to the department, taking up a position in its Office of Policy division. The role was a career official post, the same type of position he had held before receiving his Senate-confirmed appointment as USCIS Director.
Did you know
- Despite leading an agency charged with processing immigration applications, Cissna reportedly appeared in court only twice after law school, both times representing asylum seekers pro bono. (dlgvisa.com)
- Though Cissna oversaw the removal of “nation of immigrants” from USCIS’s mission statement in February 2018, he is himself the son of a Peruvian immigrant and stated at his confirmation hearing that “the immigrant experience has always been a fundamental part of my family life.” (washingtonpost.com)
- Cissna’s earliest career postings as a Foreign Service Officer included the U.S. Consulate in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and the U.S. Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden, two countries with little obvious connection, reflecting the broad geographic range expected of Foreign Service officers. (millermayer.com)
Data sources
Data updated: 2026-10-30