USCIS will be publishing a final rule on August 14, 2019, in the Federal Register, that expands the list of public benefits that make a foreign national ineligible to obtain permanent residence and/or an immigrant or nonimmigrant visa. The Immigration and Nationality Act makes inadmissible and therefore (1) ineligible for…
Today, July 16, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice issued a joint interim Final Rule that has been published in the Federal Register and is effective immediately. The interim Final Rule aims to place additional restrictions on the asylum application process and limit the eligibility of…
Photo: CafeCredit The Trump administration is mobilizing to strictly enforce laws that require the reimbursement of funds from an alien’s financial sponsor, where the alien has requested certain types of public benefits from a government agency. The White House has issued a memorandum stating that, “Financial sponsors who pledge to…
Ken Cuccinelli Photo by Gage SkidmoreSource: Flickr New developments in the world of immigration have just emerged. The director of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), L. Francis Cissna, has been forced to resign. Cissna has served under the Trump administration since October 2017. During his tenure, Cissna…
On May 10, 2019, USCIS made important updates to its policy manual regarding public services which appear in PA-2019-03. USCIS has clarified its policy regarding responses to service requests. It is the goal of USCIS to respond to a service request within 15 calendar days from the date the service…
On August 8, 2018, DHS issued a policy memorandum directing USCIS to change the way in which the agency counted the days of unlawful presence for F, M, and J status violators. Under that policy memorandum, F, M, and J nonimmigrants who accrued more than 180 days of unlawful presence…
The White House recently issued a Presidential Memorandum to strengthen asylum procedures and safeguard the asylum system against fraud. The Presidential Proclamation specifically orders the Attorney General and Secretary of Homeland Security to take several measures to enhance the security of the asylum system by July 28, 2019. These measures…
Great news! Our office has begun to receive our first I-797 receipt notices in the mail for petitions that were filed with premium processing in the lottery. So far, our office has received four such receipt notices for individuals who filed under the advanced degree exemption. All four of these…
Photo by Thomas Hawk, Flickr Extension of TPS Designation for Yemen The Department of Homeland Security has announced an extension of the TPS designation of Yemen for a period of 18 months, from September 4, 2018 to March 3, 2020. Re-registration is limited to persons who have previously registered for…
Several months ago, we reported that the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) amended its policy regarding the issuance of Notice to Appear (NTA) documents in removal proceedings. During the month of June, USCIS released a policy memorandum indicating the agency’s intent to revise NTA policy to better align…