Posts From September, 2019

The net increase in the amount of immigrants in the U.S. for 2018 was 200,000, the lowest growth since 2008. The number also represents a 70% drop compared to 2017. An expert called the change “remarkable” and cited Trump administration policies as the cause, since a sharp drop in the immigration is rare when the economy […]

14 human rights groups demanded that ICE released all LBGTQ and HIV-positive detainees, since the government has shown that it will not provide enough medical and mental health care. The groups also insisted that ICE cancel contracts with privately-run detention centers that also treat LGBTQ and HIV-positive detainees inadequately. The letter also calls for ICE to have […]

The Senate voted 54-41 for a resolution to reject the national emergency and therefore stop the emergency funding for the border wall. The funding was to be reallocated from the military, and 127 military projects would be affected. The Democrats all voted to end the national emergency and were joined by 11 Republicans. However, the Senate […]

The government has failed to comply with a 2013 law requiring it to decide on visas for the Special Immigrant Visa program (SIV) within nine months. Many Afghan and Iraqi applicants, who risked their lives assisting U.S. troops, have been waiting years on visa decisions. A judge ruled in federal court that the U.S. broke the […]

Last week, El Salvador signed a “cooperative asylum agreement” with the U.S. As of Monday, details have been released showing the countries agreed to send asylum seekers who passed through El Salvador before the U.S. back to El Salvador. El Salvador would then make its own asylum determination. In exchange, the United States will assist […]

The U.S. signed a deal with Honduras on Wednesday to curb the amount of asylum seekers to the U.S. The deal is very similar to the deals with Guatemala and El Salvador. Those agreements seek to send asylum seekers back to those countries if they passed through them without seeking asylum and made their way to […]

Normally, CW-1 petitions must be filed before the worker’s current period of validity expires. For a short time, USCIS will accept petitions filed for the 2020 fiscal year even if the previous petition validity has expired. The requirements are that 1) the petition is correctly filed with an approved Temporary Labor Certification (TLC) with a start date […]

USCIS announced on September 23 that individuals with “Temporary Protected Status (TPS) under Syria’s designation” must re-register by November 22, 2019 to maintain their status through March 31, 2021. Re-registration procedures are available here. Applicants must submit Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status. Applicants may also apply for employment authorization at the same time with Form […]

The White House announced Thursday that it drastically lowered the refugee cap to 18,000 for the upcoming fiscal year. This is one of the lowest levels since the start of the refugee program, and already down from 30,000 last year. The State Department announced the cut was based on the “current burdens” on the immigration […]

The newly running tent courts in Southern Texas have faced criticism for their lack of public access, long-distance judges, lack of interpreters, and unclear procedures for attorneys. Trump administration officials defended the tent courts, saying the secrecy was needed for “security” and the tent courts are needed to reduce the backlog. Indeed, the goal of the tent […]