With President Biden’s inauguration just days away, we are all waiting to see what this will mean for the direction of the country going forward, and specifically, for immigration policy. Indeed, it seems like even the results of the election themselves have already helped to change the conversation around immigration, even before Biden has taken Read more about Immigration Policy Update: What You Need to Know[…]
DACA Update It would seem that, with the election behind us, we are finally beginning to see some good news for immigration policy. On December 4, 2020, Judge Nicholas Garaufis of the Eastern District of New York ordered the government to reinstate the DACA program fully and immediately! U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated Read more about December 2020 Newsletter[…]
Presidential Election We did it! Last month, we wrote about the incredible importance of the presidential election. Now, immigration advocates everywhere can breathe a sigh of relief and rejoice at the news that Joe Biden has won the presidency. This means we can likely look forward to four years of much more immigration-friendly policies, as Read more about November Newsletter 2020[…]
USCIS Fee Increase Blocked On September 29, a federal judge blocked the implementation of USCIS fee increases that were to take effect on October 2 by granting a motion for a preliminary injunction. Current fees remain in place until further legal action. Reach out to me today to prepare and file your application as soon Read more about October Newsletter 2020[…]
As expected, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused some serious disruptions to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) operations and the processing of immigration-related applications this year. Offices Reopening USCIS temporarily closed many of its offices on March 18th due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of June 4th, many USCIS field offices and asylum offices Read more about COVID-19 and Immigration Applications Update[…]
The Trump administration and USCIS are becoming more strict about people falsely claiming they are United States citizens. As of April 24, 2020, the USCIS policy manual was updated to reflect how these cases should be treated going forward. Here is what you need to know. According to the USCIS announcement: “Under the law, an Read more about USCIS Updates Policy on False Claims of U.S. Citizenship[…]
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, we are seeing a number of long-term implications for immigration policy. Here are some emerging issues you should be aware of. One of the biggest developments was the President’s proclamation from April, which effectively suspended immigration for many classes of applicants, citing the need to protect American jobs. We wrote Read more about How COVID-19 is Impacting Immigration Policy[…]
As you may have heard in the news, a couple of weeks ago President Trump made a declaration suspending many channels of legal immigration into the United States, effective as of April 23rd. It expires after 60 days, but “can be continued as necessary”. The President is unjustifiably using the pandemic as an excuse to Read more about The President Just Suspended Legal Immigration to the United States: What You Need to Know[…]
We have talked at length about the new public charge rule implemented by the Trump administration to put tighter restrictions on who is eligible for permanent residence. As of February this year, despite a number of legal challenges, the rule is now fully in effect. Definitions in the Final Rule The final rule defines “public Read more about The Public Charge Rule Is Now In Effect: How Applicants Can Prepare[…]
As with the previous two years of the Trump administration, 2019 was a tough year for immigration advocates. Between news of ICE raids across major United States cities, deplorable conditions at detention facilities on the border, and a number of large-scale policy battles, immigrants in this country could really use a break. This year saw Read more about 2019: Immigration Policy in Review & Our Hopes for 2020[…]