posted on: January 28, 2022
The Biden administration has expanded students eligible for Optional Practical Training (OPT) in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. DHS published on January 21, 2022 a Federal Register notice announcing that “The Secretary of Homeland Security is amending the DHS STEM Designated Degree Program List [for OPT] by adding 22 qualifying fields of study.” This policy […]
posted on: January 25, 2022
The State Department announced a new rule that will waive fees for visa applicants who were denied because of the Muslim and refugee ban. Under the new rule, an immigrant visa applicant who has an approved immigration petition may reapply for a visa without paying the fees if they were refused a visa under the Muslim […]
posted on: January 3, 2022
As President Biden’s first year in the White House ends, his record on immigration shows modest policy changes. While the Biden administration ended the construction of the border wall, much of the Trump-era immigration policies remained. Biden has retained Title 42, a pandemic-related policy mandating the expulsion of migrants as a public health precaution. During Biden’s […]
posted on: January 3, 2022
According to a new study, migrants seeking asylum often have a greater chance of succeeding if they are from certain parts of the country. From 2016 to 2021, Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University analyzed six years of immigration courts statistics nationwide. TRAC found that the asylum denial rate tended to be lower in […]
posted on: December 21, 2021
Collaboration between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has led to increased surveillance of Arab and Muslim immigrants, particularly at our borders. This is not necessarily tied to whether someone is considered a potential national security threat—but whether a person exercises their right to decline to act as […]
posted on: December 17, 2021
USCIS is temporarily waiving the requirement that a civil surgeon sign Form I-693, no more than 60 days before an applicant filed an application for the underlying immigration benefit. The rule will be waived until September 30, 2022. The temporary waiver will help applicants who have been affected by COVID-19 and related processing delays. Many applicants will […]
posted on: December 17, 2021
USCIS is revoking a November 2020 policy memorandum requiring interviews of all petitioners filing Form I-730 Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition. USCIS will revert to its prior practice of making case-by-case determinations on whether to interview Form 1-730 petitioners. The policy memorandum requiring in-person interviews imposed significant burdens on refugee and asylee populations. USCIS can still perform efficient fraud […]
posted on: December 3, 2021
There has been a dramatic backlog in green card interviews. In October, it was reported that there were 468,891 pending interviews which minimally decreased by November, with 461,125 pending interviews remaining. The U.S. Department of State has yet to significantly increase its number of monthly interviews. Wait times have surged since the coronavirus pandemic in March […]
posted on: September 28, 2021
Due to the dangerous conditions in Afghanistan, and the incredibly limited State Department resources available, one option for Afghans needing to leave Afghanistan is Humanitarian Parole. Humanitarian Parole can be requested by someone outside of the United States who is seeking temporary entrance to the U.S. for urgent humanitarian reasons. Requesting Humanitarian Parole at a […]
posted on: September 20, 2021
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced that, effective Oct. 1, 2021, applicants subject to the immigration medical examination must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before the civil surgeon can complete an immigration medical examination and sign Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record. We are updating our policy guidance in accordance with the […]
