Posts From August, 2019

The attorneys general from Virginia and Washington co-lead a lawsuit filed Wednesday over the Trump administration’s new “public charge” policy. Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico and Rhode Island are also included in the lawsuit. In their complaint,  one of the states’ arguments is that the rule is an “abuse […]

Alabama filed a lawsuit last year challenging the practice of including all people in the census regardless of status, seeking to make the routine practice illegal. The district judge allowed other parties to intervene in the lawsuit, fearing that the federal government will not wholeheartedly defend it. 15 states and multiple major cities argued in a […]

Though the agency has had authority to make visits since May 2016, ICE has just begun site visits concerning students in the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). The purpose of the visits would be to “guard against adverse impacts on U.S. workers,” and could include individual interviews with personnel, a […]

The last day the Seoul field office will be open to the public is August 16, 2019, so as of August 17, no more new Forms I-600A, Application for Advance Processing of Orphan Petition, or Forms I-600, Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative, will be accepted. Instead, prospective U.S.-citizen adoptive parents should file Form I-600A […]

USCIS announced that it will cease operations in 13 international field offices and 3 district offices between now and August 2020. This means that the 7 that will continue operating are the offices in Beijing and Guangzhou, China; Nairobi, Kenya; New Delhi, India; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Mexico City, Mexico; and San Salvador, El Salvador. The first […]

CBP is planning to upgrade its systems using facial recognition and other technologies. The agency seeks to replace its security system with a biometric one, using fingerprints and face scans instead of passwords. The goal is to make officers more mobile and able to make decisions to admit or refer travelers with a “single touch point,” […]

USCIS has updated Form I-485 along with I-485 Supplement A and I-485 Supplement J. The edition date for the new version is 7/15/2019, but the 12/17/2018 version will still be accepted. – Weekly Immigration Briefing by Olivia Hester, Immigration Law Analyst at Docketwise

Federal law requires those applying for lawful permanent resident (LPR) status to prove they will not become a burden to the U.S. government. Starting in October, USCIS will add a new factor to the analysis: in addition to weighing household income, health, and education level, the agency will also consider prior use of public assistance. Immigrants rights […]

After Wednesday’s ICE raids in Mississippi, hundreds of immigrant workers have been released. 680 people were arrested by ICE officers on Wednesday throughout the state of Mississippi, but by Thursday morning more than 300 had been released. Officials said on Wednesday that people who met certain conditions, such as being pregnant or having not faced immigration proceedings before, would […]

An Iraqi national from Detroit has died after being deported to Iraq, a country he had never been to. Jimmy Aldaoud, an Iraqi national who was born in Greece and spent most of his life in the United States, has died after being deported to Iraq. Jimmy had never been to Iraq nor did he speak Arabic and […]