The U.S. Department of State announced on March 18, 2020, that it has suspended all routine visa services, including immigrant and nonimmigrant visa appointments, in most countries worldwide. It is not yet known how long the...more
Effective March 18, 2020, all U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) field offices are temporarily closed to the public. USCIS has suspended all routine in-person services at its field offices, asylum offices, and...more
For the second straight year, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will implement a staggered approach to premium processing for the H-1B cap season. For fiscal year (FY) 2021, USCIS will make premium processing...more
Beginning March 16, 2020, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) began allowing certain travelers the opportunity to make a Satisfactory Departure request directly at a port of entry if, due to COVID-19–related travel...more
The global COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact international travel to the United States as well as the availability of U.S. consular services around the world. The following is a summary of the latest updates...more
The continuing spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) throughout the United States has caused employers to consider implementing contingency plans to help curb the spread of the disease and protect their workforces. Many...more
3/17/2020
/ Business Travel ,
Consulate ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
H-1B ,
State of Emergency ,
Traveling Employee ,
U.S. Embassies ,
US Department of State ,
Visas
On March 11, 2020, the Trump administration issued a proclamation suspending the entry of foreign nationals from 26 European countries (known as the Schengen Area) into the United States. The suspension is intended to help...more
In a 5–4 decision on February 21, 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in Wolf v. Cook County, Illinois (No. 19A905) in favor of staying an Illinois district court’s injunction blocking the Trump...more
3/4/2020
/ Concurrent Litigation ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Irreparable Harm ,
Order to Stay ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Public Charge ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump Administration ,
US Department of State ,
USCIS ,
Wolf v Cook County
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has suspended New Yorkers’ eligibility to apply for or renew their enrollment in four Trusted Traveler Programs (TTPs) administered by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The...more
On February 2, 2020, the United States joined a growing list of countries that have implemented travel restrictions for those at risk of transmitting the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV). Below is a summary of the measures...more
2/6/2020
/ Airline Passengers ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
China ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Presidential Proclamations ,
Public Health ,
Travel Restrictions ,
Traveling Employee ,
Workplace Safety
On January 31, 2020, the Trump administration expanded the list of countries affected by Presidential Proclamation 9645, more commonly referred to as “Travel Ban 3.0.” Nigeria, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Sudan, and...more
On January 30, 2020, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will begin implementing the new public charge regulations on February 24, 2020. The regulations broadly expand the list of public...more
On January 27, 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled 5-4 in favor of allowing the Trump administration to begin applying its revised public charge rule. The rule’s implementation was blocked in October 2019 by...more
1/30/2020
/ Appeals ,
Department of Homeland Security v New York ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Green Cards ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Pending Litigation ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Charge ,
Residency Status ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump Administration ,
Updated Forms
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that it would begin accepting electronic registrations for H-1B candidates subject to the annual quota for fiscal year (FY) 2021 on March 1, 2020. The...more
On January 4, 2020, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) detained and questioned more than 60 individuals of Iranian descent at a Washington State border crossing as they attempted to return to the United States from Canada....more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently adopted new policy guidance altering the way immigration officers evaluate criminal sentences and make good moral character determinations. These changes may impact a...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed that it will implement the new electronic H-1B registration system for the upcoming cap season. Employers seeking to file cap-subject H-1B petitions will be...more
On November 26, 2019, a federal court in Oregon issued a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration from implementing a presidential proclamation that would have required immigrant visa applicants to...more
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has proposed a new fee schedule designed to mitigate an approximate $1.3 billion shortfall in the annual budget of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). According to DHS,...more
On November 12, 2019, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral argument on the legality of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) decision to terminate Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), an Obama-era...more
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced that it will automatically extend the validity of temporary protected status (TPS) documents and work authorization for qualified beneficiaries from El Salvador, Haiti,...more
11/14/2019
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
El Salvador ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Form I-9 ,
Haiti ,
Honduras ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Injunctions ,
Nepal ,
Nicaragua ,
Sudan ,
Temporary Protected Status ,
Time Extensions
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has finalized plans to charge employers a $10 registration fee for each H-1B petition they submit for registration in the agency’s new electronic H-1B registration system. The...more
On November 2, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon issued a temporary restraining order, blocking the Trump administration from enforcing a recent presidential proclamation requiring health insurance for...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that it will once again use the Dates for Filing chart from the November 2019 Visa Bulletin to determine which applicants may file their adjustment of status...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that on December 2, 2019, its premium processing fee will increase from $1,410 to $1,440 for certain employment-based petitions. The $30 increase will apply to...more