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New Developments in U.S. Immigration Court
February 14, 2020 | Blog | By Molly P O'Shea
The Trump administration has introduced a number of new rules, regulations, and policies intended to maximize efficiency within the EOIR. Employers, legal counsel, and any individual in immigration court proceedings should be aware of these updates, due to their potentially adverse impact on the independence of immigration judges and respondents’ due process rights as they navigate the legal system.
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“B” Visitor Visa Rule Amended to Combat Administration’s Concern Over “Birth Tourism”
January 27, 2020 | Blog | By William Coffman
On January 24, 2020 the US Department of State published a rule that amends part of the regulations governing the issuance of “B” visitor visas. This regulatory amendment now establishes a rebuttable presumption that an applicant for a “B” visitor visa, who a consular officer believes will give birth during her visit to the US, is applying for the visa and traveling to the US for the primary purpose of securing US citizenship for the child.
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Department of State Announces Visa Reciprocity Changes
January 21, 2020 | Blog | By Lindsey Steinberg
The United States Department of State (DOS) recently made a number of significant changes to visa “reciprocity” tables. Reciprocity involves either additional fees, or shorter validity periods (or both) for visa applicants from certain countries and for certain visa classifications.
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New Policy Guidance on Good Moral Character Determinations
January 10, 2020 | Blog | By Lindsey Steinberg
If a permanent resident plans to become a U.S. citizen, he or she should be aware that certain behaviors could have an adverse affect. The Immigration and Nationality Act lists establishing Good Moral Character as a requirement for naturalization. There are some crimes which, if a person has been convicted of at any time during his or her life, disqualifies him or her from becoming a U.S. Citizen.
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Increased Challenges for the H-1B
November 25, 2019 | Blog
Anyone who works in legal or HR and handles work authorizations for their employees will agree that hiring foreign nationals or international transfers has become much more difficult under the current administration and its interpretation of President Trump’s Hire America/Buy America (BAHA) Policy, which he issued by Executive Order in April 2017. The latest statistics issued by USCIS confirm the difficulty of processing H-1B Petitions over the past three years.
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A Victory for Digital Privacy Rights at the U.S. Border
November 19, 2019 | Blog | By Susan Cohen
In a historic decision on travelers’ rights to privacy at the U.S. border, U.S. District Court Judge Denise Casper in Boston ruled that suspicionless searches at U.S. ports of entry (airports and border crossings) of travelers’ electronic devices violate the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
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DACA: Updates and Options for Dreamers
November 11, 2019 | Blog | By Lauren Watford
This November, the United States Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on the case that will decide the fate of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. This program, established through executive action, has offered a temporary reprieve from removal (deportation) to nearly 800,000 students and young professionals raised in the United States. While the program protects a generation categorically denied opportunity to gain legal status, it is very limited in scope. Remarkably, DACA does not confer any immigration status itself nor offer a separate pathway to any other status including permanent residency.
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Implementation of Updated USCIS Forms Enjoined by Federal Court
October 14, 2019 | Blog
USCIS Forms Expiring on October 15
October 10, 2019 | Blog
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that effective October 15, 2019, various forms will be updated to coincide with the recent issuance of a final rule on the public charge ground of admissibility (section INA 212(A)(4)) published by the Department of Homeland Security on August 14, 2019.
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Processing Delays Expected to Continue For All Trusted Traveler Program Applications
September 4, 2019 | Blog
Processing Delays Expected to Continue For All Trusted Traveler Program Applications
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USCIS to Close Majority of its International Offices
August 22, 2019 | Blog | By Susan Cohen
On August 9, 2019, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that over the course of the coming year it will shutter all but 7 of its 23 international offices. Offices in Beijing, Guangzhou, Nairobi, New Delhi, Guatemala City, Mexico City, and San Salvador will remain open. In March of this year, Trump administration officials had announced that the administration was planning to close all the international offices. The recently-announced decision to keep some of them open is therefore a departure from the original plan.
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Visa Backlog Blues
July 12, 2019 | Blog | By Susan Cohen
DOL to Implement New System for PERM Prevailing Wage Requests
June 7, 2019 | Blog
On June 10, 2019 the Department of Labor (DOL) will implement their new system for Applications for Prevailing Wage Determinations (Form ETA-9141). The DOL has developed the Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) System as part of their technology modernization initiative. The current system, iCERT, is decades old and the DOL believes it is not keeping pace with customer demands. The DOL will continue to accept Form ETA-9141 through the current system, iCERT, until 11:59 p.m. EST on June 9, 2019. All new Applications for Prevailing Wage Determinations must be submitted through FLAG beginning on June 10th.
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Decreased Privacy in the Visa Application Process
June 5, 2019 | Blog | By Susan Cohen
On June 1, 2019 the Department of State (DOS) announced that it would immediately begin requiring visa applicants to the United States to provide additional personal information on U.S. visa applications, including social media information, and all email addresses and phone numbers used over the prior five year period. Up to 15 million visa applicants around the world could be affected by these new questions on the visa application forms.
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Iranian Students in America: A Fraught Legacy of Goodwill
May 10, 2019 | Blog | By Zack Navabi
When Must an Employer Amend an Approved L-1 Visa Petition?
January 22, 2019 | Blog | By Susan Cohen
There are two relevant questions that must always be answered in considering whether or not to file an amended petition: (1) what does the law strictly require? and (2) what is the risk to the organization of not filing the amended petition?
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Fall 2018 Regulatory Agenda Signals Immigration Priorities for Federal Agencies
November 15, 2018 | Blog | By William Coffman, Molly O’Malley
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Labor (DOL), and Department of State (DOS) released their fall 2018 Regulatory Agendas. Issued twice per year (fall and spring), this notice forecasts possible regulations that may be promulgated in the coming months.
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8 Best Practices for Managing U.S. Immigration Compliance in 2018 (Part 5 of 5)
September 24, 2018 | Blog | By Susan Cohen
In this five-part series, we highlight three important USCIS policy changes and provide eight best practice tips in light of the ever-tightening U.S. immigration environment. This is the fourth installment in the series. Click to read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.
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8 Best Practices for Managing U.S. Immigration Compliance in 2018 (Part 4 of 5)
September 21, 2018 | Blog | By Susan Cohen
In this five-part series, we highlight three important USCIS policy changes and provide eight best practice tips in light of the ever-tightening U.S. immigration environment. This is the fourth installment in the series. Click to read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
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8 Best Practices for Managing U.S. Immigration Compliance in 2018 (Part 3 of 5)
September 17, 2018 | Blog | By Susan Cohen
In this five-part series, we highlight three important USCIS policy changes and provide eight best practice tips in light of the ever-tightening U.S. immigration environment. This is the third installment in the series.
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Viewpoint Editors
Susan J. Cohen
Member / Founder and Chair Emeritus, Immigration Practice
William L. Coffman
Special Counsel
Angel Feng
Special Counsel
Douglas Hauer
Member
Maryanne Kline
Practice Group Associate
Cassie Ramos
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