posted on: December 24, 2020
On Friday, the DOJ finalized substantial changes to the process for immigration appeals. The rule will limit the ability of immigration appellate judges to hear cases on their own accord, impose a time limit on appeals, and create a mechanism for lower immigration judges to seek reversal of appellate judges at the BIA by petitioning a political […]
posted on: December 23, 2020
On Tuesday, USCIS announced updated guidance expanding the discretionary criteria USCIS officers use to determine whether to interview applicants filing Form I-485 based on refugee or asylee status. The updated criteria are within the parameters of USCIS’ regulatory authority to determine, on a case-by-case basis, whether an interview is necessary to determine the admissibility of an alien […]
posted on: December 22, 2020
On Tuesday, the DOJ finalized policies that will narrow the window for migrants to apply for asylum and raise immigration court fees. The two policies, both set to take effect days before President-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated, mark the latest effort by the administration to make it more difficult – and more expensive – for foreign citizens […]
posted on: December 18, 2020
On Tuesday, DHS advanced a proposal to expand biometrics collections for immigrants and their American sponsors, amid criticism that the policy would threaten privacy rights. Under the proposed rule, released in September, the government would collect more types of biometric data from immigrants and from more people, including U.S. citizen sponsors and children. Currently, DHS […]
posted on: December 16, 2020
The Trump administration has used the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse to curtail many immigrant and nonimmigrant visa programs, including J-1 cultural exchange visitors. But with vaccines on the immediate horizon and a new Biden administration soon to take office, what should we expect for programs like the J-1 visa? Many visa programs have faced intense scrutiny […]
posted on: December 15, 2020
The Trump administration has finalized a sweeping regulation that will effectively end asylum protection in the United States. The regulation, which was proposed in June, is set to go into effect on January 11—only nine days before President Trump leaves office. If implemented, it will mean that very few people fleeing persecution will be able […]
posted on: December 14, 2020
On Friday, USCIS announced that an order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California vacated the “Strengthening the H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa Classification Program Interim Final Rule” (IFR). The Dec. 1 order prevents the IFR from taking effect, and also prevents DHS and USCIS from implementing the IFR. USCIS announced it will […]
posted on: December 11, 2020
USCIS announced on Monday that, as a result of an order from a federal judge in NY, it is reinstating the DACA program effective Dec. 7. As a result, USCIS is now accepting first time DACA applications, DACA renewals, applications for advance parole, extending one-year grants of deferred action under DACA to two years, and […]
posted on: December 10, 2020
On Tuesday, a federal judge ruled that the Trump administration cannot use the Covid-19 pandemic to justify sudden visa restrictions affecting thousands of professionals working in the U.S. on H-1B visas. On Oct. 6, the DHS and the Dept. of Labor issued new constraints on the H-1B visa program without going through the required notice and […]
posted on: December 9, 2020
On Wednesday, the ACLU filed a lawsuit against DHS, CBP, and ICE demanding the agencies release records regarding the Trump administration’s reported purchase of cellphone data to track locations of immigrants. The ACLU claims it has waited more than nine months for the agencies to produce the records through an FOIA request. The ACLU further claims […]
