Keeping you informed on the latest immigration news.
DOS Launches ‘Welcome Corps’ for Private Sponsorship of Refugees
The Department of State (DOS), in collaboration with the Department of Health and Human Services, announced the launch of "Welcome Corps," a new private sponsorship program to welcome refugees arriving through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) and support...
ICE Unintentionally Releases Information on 6,000 Noncitizens in Custody
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced that on November 28, 2022, while performing routine website updates, it unintentionally posted a document on ICE.gov that included names and other personally identifiable information (PII), along with...
HHS Issues Poverty Guidelines for 2023
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued updated poverty income guidelines for 2023 to account for 2022's increase in prices as measured by the Consumer Price Index. Several federal programs use the poverty guidelines as an eligibility criterion. As in...
Visa Bulletin for February 2023 Includes Retrogressions in the Employment Third Preference ‘Other Workers’ Category, and ‘Certain Religious Workers’ Availability
The Department of State's Visa Bulletin for February 2023 includes the following information about retrogressions in the worldwide final action and application filing dates in the employment third preference "Other Workers" category: Higher than expected number use in...
Miller Mayer’s Steve Yale-Loehr Quoted re U.S. Immigration Policy, Labor Shortages
Miller Mayer immigration attorney Steve Yale-Loehr was quoted by Morningstar in "'We Need More People,' Says Fed's Powell. What Does That Mean for Immigration Reform?" Powell's remarks could be seen as part of a slow process that eventually results in long-awaited...
Supreme Court Declines to Resurrect Trump-Era Public Charge Rule
After the Trump administration's 2019 public charge rule was invalidated nationwide following a court battle and the Biden administration's dropping of its defense of the rule, Texas and 13 other states attempted to intervene and bring back the rule through...
Agencies Raise Penalties for Document Fraud and Employer Violations of the D-1, H-1B, H-2A, and H-2B Visa Programs
The Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) and Labor (DOL) have increased certain penalties for inflation, required by the Inflation Adjustment Act. DHS has raised penalties for document fraud, and penalties assessed against employers by U.S. Immigration and Customs...
Scheduling System for ‘Safe, Orderly and Humane Border Processing’ Goes Live
On January 12, 2023, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that the new scheduling function in the CBP One™ mobile application is now live. Non-U.S. citizens located in Central or Northern Mexico who seek to travel to the United States may use U.S....
DHS Extends and Redesignates Somalia for TPS for 18 Months
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the extension of temporary protected status (TPS) for Somalia for an additional 18 months, from March 18, 2023, through September 17, 2024. DHS also redesignated Somalia for TPS, allowing Somali nationals residing in...
Premium Processing To Expand for EB-1 and EB-2 Form I-140 Petitions and Certain Students and Exchange Visitors
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on January 12, 2023, that it is implementing the final phase of the premium processing expansion for Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, under the EB-1 and EB-2 classifications. Also, in March,...
