On Halloween this year, the Biden administration’s final regulation on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) went into effect. The final version of this rule closely reflects the original executive order enacted in 2012 during the Obama Administration. So, what is deferred action? Deferred action is a longstanding immigration practice that is granted by the […]
On October 12, the path to citizenship for Venezuelan immigrants changed significantly: the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a new immigration procedure due to the surge in migration from Venezuela. In its effort to build a “fair, orderly, and secure immigration system,” the Biden-Harris administration has mandated that any Venezuelan who seeks to enter […]
On September 8, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a final rule on how DHS will enforce the public charge ground of inadmissibility. This rule clarifies what it means to be a “public charge”, and furthermore no longer punishes immigrants who choose to access government services. This move by the Biden Administration rolls […]
In recent weeks, the national news spotlight has been on immigration. Several Republican governors continue to send incoming migrants in buses to left-leaning cities, often without the understanding or consent of those involved. Without legal status, many of these migrants will be seeking defensive asylum to avoid being deported back to danger in their home […]
In August, the Roosevelt Institute published a new proposal which reimagines the U.S. immigration system as the most welcoming in the world to immigrants and refugees. Published as The Statue of Liberty Plan, tenets of the proposal include migration for economic and cultural renewal, sustaining the declining U.S. population, and combating authoritarianism. The plan proposes […]
Earlier this week USCIS had announced that applicants filing for lawful permanent resident status (LPR) are also able to apply for a Social Security number (SSN) or replacement card as part of their adjustment of status application process. How the system worked previously, were these individuals had to apply for a Social Security number at […]
USCIS recently released a Draft Guidance Memo regarding the “extreme hardship” threshold that must be established for Inadmissibility Waivers. The guidance is now in its comments period which ends on November 23, 2015. At that time USCIS will review the public comments and formally finalize the policy memo. The finalized policy memo will be released […]
USCIS recently announced that it will be re-balancing the workload distribution of certain Form I-140 petitions and employment based Form I-485 applications. The workload will be distributed between the Texas Service Center and the Nebraska Service Center. Starting October 19, 2015, if you are submitting a Form I-907 together with a Form I-140 petition for […]
The Visa Bulletin indicates when statutorily limited visas are available to prospective immigrants based on their individual priority date, which is generally the date when the applicant’s relative or employer properly filed the immigrant visa petition on the applicant’s behalf with USCIS. Availability of an immigrant visa means eligible applicants are able to take one […]
Pope Francis arrived in Washington D.C. last Tuesday September 22 for his first official visit as a pontiff. The Pope gave a speech at the White House welcoming ceremony and he later addressed the US Congress. His speeches were loaded with strong messages on the matter of immigration, in relation to both US immigration issues […]
