Immigration

 On Wednesday, the Fourth Circuit ruled that immigration judges have a legal duty to fully develop the record in cases before them, adding that this mandate is particularly important for immigrants appearing in their court without an attorney. The court noted that the INA’s mandate that immigration judges “administer oaths, receive evidence, interrogate, examine and cross-examine” […]

When President Biden took office, he inherited a legal immigration system that was teetering on the brink of collapse. Delays within U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) have reached historic levels and some work permit applications are taking so long to process that thousands are losing their jobs. A new report from the American Immigration Council reveals how the Biden administration […]

On Thursday, the Supreme Court found that in order for an immigrant to be deported, the government must properly notify the individual on one document, rather than across several. While a technical issue, the ruling could affect hundreds of thousands of immigration cases. In a nutshell, a notice to appear (NTA) will be considered deficient […]

The Biden administration will begin issuing a policy that limits who ICE and CBP can arrest in courthouses. DHS Secretary Mayorkas said the new policy is because “[E]nsuring that individuals have access to the court advances the fair administration of justice, promotes safety for crime victims and helps to guarantee equal protection under the law.” […]

 On Monday, two federal government memos were issued stating that U.S. immigration enforcement agencies will no longer use the term “illegal alien” in official communications to refer to immigrants in the country. Specifically, ICE and CBP will discontinue the use of words “alien,” “illegal alien,” and “assimilation” from internal policy documents and communications with the public. Immigrant […]

 On Wednesday, the House passed legislation that would limit executive authority to issue future travel bans like the one imposed by former President Trump against several Muslim-majority countries. The legislation, abbreviated to the NO BAN Act, would explicitly prohibit religious discrimination in immigration-related decisions. Any immigration restrictions could only be issued by the executive branch if there […]

Once again, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has extended the response time flexibility, initially announced on March 30, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This flexibility applies to applicants and petitioners responding to any of the following, issued from March 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021: Requests for evidence Continuations to request evidence (N-14) Notices […]

Effective immediately, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is permanently ending enforcement of the public charge rule finalized by the Trump Administration in August 2019. This stems from successful legal challenges to the final rule, and the Biden Administration’s decision to cease the federal government’s opposition to the lawsuits. By eliminating the 2019 rule, […]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — President Joe Biden on Wednesday lifted a freeze on green cards issued by his predecessor during the pandemic that lawyers said was blocking most legal immigration to the United States. Former President Donald Trump last spring halted the issuance of green cards until the end of 2020 in the name of […]

On Dec. 1, 2020, USCIS implemented a revised naturalization civics test (2020 civics test) as part of a decennial test review and update process. USCIS determined the 2020 civics test development process, content, testing procedures, and implementation schedule may inadvertently create potential barriers to the naturalization process. This action is consistent with the framework of the Executive Order […]