In early October, Judge Jeffrey S. White of the US District Court for the Northern District of California temporarily blocked further implementation of section 2 of the June 22 presidential proclamation (PP 10052) that suspended entry into the US for H-1B highly-skilled workers, H-2B nonagricultural workers, J-1 exchange visitors including interns, trainees, teachers, camp counselors, and au pairs, and L international intracompany transfers, and all their dependents. This injunction is not nationwide and only applies to plaintiffs and members of the plaintiff groups. In his opinion, Judge White criticized the June 22 presidential proclamation noting it did not address the issue it was supposed to fix, namely helping the domestic economy by providing more job opportunities for Americans. “[T]he Proclamation completely disregards both economic reality and the pre-existing statutory framework. Furthermore, without any consideration of the impact on American firms and their business planning, the Proclamation abruptly changed the scope of immigration policy in the United States.”
Read moreCNN: “Judge blocks administration from implementing 'public charge' rule for immigrants during pandemic”
Last week, on July 29, 2020, Judge George Daniels of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York blocked the government from “enforcing, applying, implementing, or treating as effective,” the “public charge” rule during the COVID-19 pandemic. Separately, the court also blocked the government from implementing or taking any actions to enforce or apply the 2018 FAM Revisions, the DOS Interim Final Rule on Visa Ineligibility on Public Charge Grounds (84 FR 54996, 10/11/19), or the President’s October 4, 2019 Proclamation, “Suspension of Entry of Immigrants Who Will Financially Burden the United States Healthcare System in Order to Protect the Availability of Healthcare Benefits for Americans,” during the COVID-19 pandemic. These injunctions apply nationwide.
Read moreCan I Travel to the US? COVID-19-Related Travel Restrictions and Issues
What a strange and unpredictable year this has been! As countries start to open up their borders to international travelers, the most common question we have been getting over the last few months has been, "Can I travel to the US?" Unfortunately the very lawyerly answer is: "It depends." It depends what country you are coming from. It depends if you have a visa and in what visa category you intend to travel to the US. It depends on whether you have a Green Card. It depends on whether you have a legal permanent resident or US citizen relative. It may even depend on what exactly you intend to do in the US. Below we will try to unravel some of these issues but in many cases there are no clear answers. One caveat: the information about travel to the US is changing on an almost daily basis, therefore more than ever before, if you intend to travel to the US, it is vitally important you check with an immigration lawyer for specific advice on your individual circumstances.
Read moreLosing Our Dreams
We Are All Human Beings
OPINION: USCIS Updates Policy for Adjudicating Nonimmigrant Worker Extension Petitions
For over a decade, filing an extension of nonimmigrant status has been fairly routine in most cases. On Monday, October 23, 2017, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a new policy memorandum that instructs its officers to apply the “same level of scrutiny to both initial petitions and extension requests for certain nonimmigrant visa categories.”
Read moreOasis: LGBTQ Wellness Center for Latinos and Immigrants
As the largest minority group in the US, Latinos/Hispanics are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. To help deal with this crisis, the Latino Commission on AIDS, a nonprofit based in New York City, founded Oasis, which “provides compassionate, comprehensive and culturally competent wellness services to the LGBT community in New York City.” Operating for nearly a year now, Oasis provides vital HIV and Hep C testing, PrEP counseling, workshops, as well as related programs and services for those in the Latino/Hispanic and immigrant communities.
Read moreImmigrants: Beware of Scams
US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) this week issued a notice warning immigrants to be aware of scams targeting foreign nationals over the phone and email:
Don’t be one of the victims! Scammers may call or email you, pretending to be a government official. They will say that there is a problem with an application or additional information is required to continue the immigration process. They will then ask for personal and sensitive details, and demand payment to fix any problems.
USCIS notes that their officials and representatives will never ask for payment over the phone or in an email. If they require payment for any reason, USCIS will mail a letter on official stationery specifically requesting payment.
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