USCIS
New USCIS Policy Places Certain Students and Exchange Visitors at Serious Risk of Being Barred from the United States
In another attempt to restrict legal immigration, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a policy change to the way foreign students and exchange visitors accrue unlawful presence—a legal term used to describe any time spent in the United States after a foreign national’s period of authorized stay… Read More
Undocumented Parents Trying to Reunite With Their Children May Face Deportation Under New Proposal
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may soon be checking the immigration status of all potential sponsors of children who arrive unaccompanied at the U.S border, as well as any adult members of the potential sponsor’s household. The new proposal to expand screening likely will have a chilling effect… Read More
Is USCIS Exceeding Its Authority as It Attempts to Restrict “Specialty Occupation” Workers?
As U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) begins adjudicating H-1B petitions subject to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 “cap,”—the annual limit on the number of visas that will be made available for newly-hired foreign workers in “specialty occupations”—employers can expect attacks on this popular category to continue. Congress… Read More
Court Ensures That Asylum Seekers Will Receive a Fair Opportunity to Apply for Asylum
A federal court judge in Seattle ordered the government to notify asylum seekers that they are required by law to file their asylum applications within one year of their entry, and to adopt and implement a procedure that will ensure that applicants are able to file their asylum applications… Read More
Congress Reaches A Deal to Fund Government for the Year Without Solution for Dreamers
This week Congress passed a $1.3 trillion bill to fund the federal government for the rest of the fiscal year, running through September 30, 2018. Though the legislation includes record levels of immigration enforcement, detention beds, and additional funds related to a border wall, the bill failed to provide President… Read More
Immigration Enforcement Priorities Have Been Abandoned—and That’s Bad News for Everyone
In order to effectively fight crime, law-enforcement officers must gain the trust of the communities they intend to serve. Trust encourages victims of crime, as well as potential witnesses, to come forward and help solve cases and prosecute criminals. However, according to our latest analysis, the Trump administration has abandoned… Read More
The March 5 DACA Deadline Is Here—What Does It Mean for Dreamers?
When President Trump terminated the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative last fall, he only allowed those whose DACA was due to expire before March 5 an opportunity to renew. March 5, 2018 then became the de facto deadline that the president and Congress said… Read More
Removal of ‘Nation of Immigrants’ from USCIS Mission Ignores Agency’s Mandate and American History
Francis Cissna, Director of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), unveiled a new mission statement for the agency last week, notably deleting the words “a nation of immigrants” as well as other key principles central to the agency’s work. Given the sweeping changes underway in the enforcement… Read More
USCIS Changes to Asylum Interview Scheduling Allows Long-Pending Cases to Languish
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) made abrupt and sweeping changes to how the agency will schedule interviews for affirmative asylum applications. Rather than interviewing those who have been waiting months or years for their interview, asylum offices will now prioritize brand new filings ahead of all others waiting in… Read More
Lawsuit Asks Government to Stop Blocking Temporary Protected Status Holders from Applying for Green Cards
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is an important humanitarian protection for people who are in the United States when certain natural disasters or civil conflict strike their home countries, making it unsafe for them to return. Despite the fact that conditions in many of these countries have not improved since their… Read More
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