On July 9, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled in Wang v. Blinken that family members must be counted toward the annual cap of about 10,000 EB-5 green cards. Plaintiffs had argued that the immigration statute is ambiguous and could also be...
Topic: Immigration Updates
USCIS Extends and Redesignates Yemen for TPS, Suspends Certain Requirements for Yemeni F-1 Students
On July 9, 2021, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the extension and resignation of Yemen for temporary protected status (TPS). On the same date, DHS announced the suspension of certain regulatory requirements for Yemeni F-1 nonimmigrant students who...
National Interest Exceptions Extended to One Year, Embassies Report
U.S. embassies in London and Berlin have reported that "all National Interest Exceptions (NIE) are now valid for 12 months and multiple entries as long as you are traveling for the same purpose for which you originally received [a National Interest Exception (NIE)]."...
OFLC Completes Randomization Process, Publishes List of Randomized H-2B Applications for Employers Seeking H-2B Workers Starting October 1, 2021
The Department of Labor's Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) completed the process to randomly assign to analysts for review and processing all H-2B applications submitted during the three-day filing window (July 3-5, 2021) requesting an October 1, 2021,...
USCIS Announces Updated Receipt Guidance for I-9 Process
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced updated guidance on receipts for the I-9 employment authorization verification process: When employees present a receipt showing that they applied to replace a List A, B, or C document that was lost, stolen,...
Miller Mayer’s Steve Yale-Loehr Quoted re EB-5 Program Lapse
Miller Mayer immigration attorney Steve Yale-Loehr was quoted by the Associated Press in "Key Part of U.S. Residency Program for Investors Set to Expire," which appeared in many outlets. He said that the EB-5 regional center program provides valuable benefits to the...
State Dept. Provides Guidance on COVID-19 Restrictions and Exceptions, Including National Interest
The Department of State released guidance on June 24, 2021, on restrictions and exceptions under four presidential proclamations that suspend entry into the United States of noncitizens who were physically present in any of 33 countries during the 14-day period...
USCIS Releases Guidance Following June 30 Expiration of EB-5 Regional Center Program
The EB-5 immigrant investor regional center program expired on June 30, 2021. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services released related guidance on July 1, 2021, noting that the lapse does not affect EB-5 petitions filed by investors who are not seeking a visa under...
District Court Vacates Final Rule Affecting Wages for H-1B, PERM Workers; OFLC Updates Implementation
On June 23, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued an order in Chamber of Commerce v. DHS, vacating the final rule, "Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Aliens in the United States"...
Biden Administration Kicks Off Cross-Agency Naturalization Campaign
On July 2, 2021, the Biden administration announced an interagency campaign to promote naturalization "to all who are eligible." Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said that the strategy "will ensure that aspiring citizens are able to pursue...
