As of January 31, 2020, employers should begin using a new version of the Form I-9 (version 10/21/2019, expires 10/31/2022). U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) says the old form will become obsolete on April 30, 2020. Employers may use the old form...
USCIS Changes Adjudication Process for EB-5 Visa Petitions to ‘Visa Availability Approach’
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a process change for Form I-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Investor, "from a first-in, first-out basis to a visa availability approach." "Changing our approach from a first-in, first-out adjudication...
Trump Administration Suspends U.S. Entry, With Exceptions, of Nationals From Six New Countries
On January 31, 2020, the Trump administration announced suspension of entry into the United States for nationals of six new countries, with some exceptions: Burma (Myanmar), Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Sudan, and Tanzania, "until those countries address their...
Trump Administration Restricts U.S. Entry of Travelers From and Through China Due to Coronavirus Risk
On January 31, 2020, President Trump issued a proclamation effective February 2, 2020, restricting and limiting entry into the United States of "all aliens who were physically present within the People's Republic of China, excluding the Special Administrative Regions...
USCIS Announces Public Charge Rule Implementation Following Supreme Court Stay of Nationwide Injunctions
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will implement the Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds final rule on February 24, 2020, except in Illinois, where the rule remains enjoined by a federal court as of January 30, 2020. Earlier, on...
Public Charge and Applicants for Change/Extension of Nonimmigrant Status: Impact on F-1 Students
By Dan Berger, Julia Teele, Stephen Yale-Loehr, Lisa York, and Sandra Bruno Beginning February 24, 2020, a new federal regulation will change the way the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) looks at “public charge,” which is an evaluation of whether a...
Miller Mayer’s Steve Yale-Loehr Quoted re Iranian Student Turnbacks at Border, Public Charge Ruling
Miller Mayer immigration attorney Steve Yale-Loehr was quoted by Newsweek in "CBP Accused of Acting 'Above the Law' After Forcing Iranian Student With Visa to Board Flight Back Home, Despite Emergency Stay." Steve said he was disturbed to hear not only about the...
OFLC to Decommission iCERT Labor Certification Registry
The Department of Labor's Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) is alerting employers and other interested stakeholders that the iCERT System Labor Certification Registry, which provides public access to labor certification decisions in the PERM, LCA, H-2A, and...
USCIS Reopens, Extends Comment Period for Fee Increases
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reopened and extended to February 10, 2020 the comment period on its proposed rule raising certain fees for immigration services and benefits. Details: Federal Register notice,...
USCIS Announces Termination of Iranian Eligibility for E-1 and E-2 Nonimmigrant Classification Based on Treaty
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on January 23, 2020, that nationals of Iran and their dependents are no longer eligible to change to or extend their stays in E-1 or E-2 nonimmigrant status on the basis of the 1955 Treaty of Amity, Economic...
