2019 Immigration Legal Updates

Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness Program Allows Those Who Held DED Status Since 2014 to Apply for Green Cards

December 20, 2019 Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (LRIF) allows certain Liberians with DED and living in the U.S. to apply for permanent residency (a green card).

New N-400 Naturalization Application Form Required by USCIS

December 16, 2019 Applying for U.S. citizenship? Be sure to use the 2019 new version of USCIS Form N-400.

USCIS Updates Guidelines and Form I-912 for Requesting a Fee Waiver

December 2, 2019. Applicants for immigration fee waivers can no longer qualify based solely on receipt of need-based public benefits.

USCIS Raises Fee for Premium Processing of Certain Applications to $1,440

November 29, 2019. Amount required to request speedy processing of USCIS Forms I-129 and I-140 goes from $1,410 to $1,440.

Polish Citizens Can Now Travel to the U.S. Using the Visa Waiver Program

November 11, 2019 Nationals of Poland can now enter U.S. for business or pleasure purposes without first obtaining a visa.

USCIS Fee Increases Coming, With Fewer Fee Waivers Available

November 8, 2019 DHS proposes increases to immigration application fees and discontinuation of fee waivers.

Get Up-to-Date Immigration Case Information With EOIR Phone Hotline

It has become crucial for non-citizens in removal proceedings to double check where their case is and when they might be called for a hearing.

New Health Insurance Requirement for Immigrant Visas Blocked Temporarily by Federal Judge

November 1, 2019 Federal judge blocks Trump's order to deny immigrant visas to entrants without an immediate source of health insurance in the United States.

Two DUIs Now a More Serious Problem When Applying for Naturalized Citizenship or Cancellation of Removal

October 25, 2019 Attorney General Barr decided, via a B.I.A. case called Matter of Castillo-Perez, that two or more DUI convictions during the required eligibility period creates a rebuttable presumption that the applicant lacks good moral character.

AG Barr Decision Renders Post-Conviction Relief Nearly Irrelevant for Immigration Purposes

October 25, 2019 Attorney General Barr decides in Matter of Thomas and Thompson that a state-court order that modifies, clarifies, or alters the term of imprisonment or sentence associated with a conviction will have no legal effect unless it was based on a procedural or substantive defect in the underlying criminal proceeding.

Major Immigration Form Changes Underway: Be Careful What You Submit!

October 15, 2019 Many major USCIS forms are about to be updated, but there could be a gap in what's available.

New "Public Charge" Rule Takes Aim at Temporary Visa Holders

October 15, 2019 Normally, public charge rules are applied most strictly in cases of people applying for immigrant visas or green cards. A new rule also, however, covers people in the U.S. with a temporary visa or status ("nonimmigrants") who would like to change or extend their status here.

Special Immigrant Juvenile Status Will Be Harder to Obtain After Recent USCIS "Clarification"

October 15, 2019 Recent Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) decisions, which have been adopted by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), apparently narrow the possibilities for who will be found eligible for SIJS.

New Guidelines Make Obtaining a U Visa as a Crime Victim in the U.S. Harder Than Ever

September 26, 2019. New USCIS procedures, backlogs, and various other factors make obtaining a U visa as a crime victim increasingly challenging.

Printing Error Affects Sample Form N-400 in Edition 9 of "Becoming a U.S. Citizen"

September 21, 2019: In Part 12 of Form N-400, answers to questions 45-50 should be "yes," unless you fall into a rare exception.

Green Card Holders' Spouses and Children Currently Eligible for Visa

August 1, 2019. Visa Bulletin is current for spouses and children (under 21) of U.S. lawful permanent residents. What does that mean for you?

New TPS Designation for Syria; and Extension Into 2024 for Current Syrian TPS Holders

** LEGAL UPDATE ** Syria was originally designated for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in 2012, by then-Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, in response to internal conflicts there. A TPS designation does not offer a permanent right to remain in the U.S., but it does offers citizens and

Who Would Be Most Affected By a Refugee Ban?

July 22, 2019. According to news reports, the U.S. government is considering effectively ending U.S. refugee admissions for 2020. Who would be most affected by this change?

Many Asylum Seekers Can Be Held Without Bond Under New Decision by AG Barr

July 15, 2019. Asylum seekers in “expedited removal” proceedings will not be eligible for release on bond while their cases await a decision in immigration court.

SEVIS Fees Increasing for U.S. Student and Exchange Visitors Visas

June 24, 2019. DHS raising SEVIS fees for F-1, M-1, and J-1 student and exchange visitor visa applicants.

Applicants for U.S. Visas Abroad Now Required to Provide Social Media Information

May 31, 2019 U.S. Department of State begins asking U.S. visa applicants at consulates abroad for information related to their social media use.

Sponsors May Be Held Financially Responsible for Immigrant's Use of Public Benefits

May 23, 2019 U.S. citizens and residents who petitioned an immigrant to come the U.S. are more likely than ever to be held financially responsible if that immigrant faces economic hardship.

Latest on DACA Initial Applications and Renewals

Opportunities are ongoing for people to at least reclaim DACA status, for young people brought to the United States by their parents, without having knowingly violated U.S. immigration laws.

Citizens of Israel Will Soon Be Eligible for E-2 Treaty Investor Visas

May 1, 2019 Because the United States and Israel signed a treaty investor agreement, Israeli citizens will be able to apply for E-2 treaty investment visas.

U.S. to Crackdown on Visitors from Countries with High Visa Overstay Rates

April 22, 2019 Nationals of countries with high visa overstay rates, especially people from certain African countries, might want to obtain a visa to travel to the U.S. as soon as possible, if they don’t have one already.

Marijuana Use or Production in States Where It's Legal Still Bars Naturalized U.S. Citizenship

April 19, 2019 Trump Administration expresses its intention to crack down on marijuana users who apply for naturalized U.S. citizenship.

USCIS Will Now Require In-Person I-130 Interviews for Minor Spouses (Under 18)

April 12, 2019 USCIS plans to begin scheduling in-person interviews before approving I-130 petitions in cases involving minor spouses (where one of them is under the age of 18).

Central American Minors Parole Program Making Brief Comeback, After Lawsuit, Settlement

April 12, 2019. After a federal judge found that the U.S. government's "mass rescission of conditional approvals for parole of 2,714" children who'd been cleared to enter the U.S. under something called the Central American Minors Program (CAM) was "arbitrary and capricious," the government agreed to a historic settlement.

USCIS Offering Data About H-1B Employers Online

April 1, 2019 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) launched a new H-1B Employer Data Hub as part of its efforts “to increase transparency in employment-based visa programs.”

Video Game Players Also Quality For “Athlete” Visas to the U.S. (P-1 and O-1)

March 27, 2019 For highly qualified gamers, however, it’s possible to get an employment-based type of visa in order to legally receive a salary in the United States.

Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Liberians Extended Into 2022

January 21, 2021 Just hours after Joe Biden was sworn in as President, he issued a memo extending the Liberian DED program through June 30, 2020,

USCIS Issues 2022 Poverty Guidelines: Raises Required Income Level for Family Sponsors of Immigrants

March 1, 2022. To overcome a possible finding that the immigrant is inadmissible as a likely public charge, the U.S. sponsor will need to show income and/or assets that exceed the annual Poverty Guidelines levels, which went up in 2022.

Noncitizens Can Be Held in Mandatory Detention Years After Criminal Conviction

March 19, 2019 The U.S. Supreme Court held that noncitizens with certain criminal convictions can be detained without the right to a bond hearing even if they have not reoffended and were not put into custody by immigration authorities for years after their offense.

TPS Holders From Nepal Need Not Leave U.S. in June 2019

March 12, 2019. A reprieve for Temporary Protected Status holders from Nepal.

USCIS No Longer Offers Online Self-Scheduling for InfoPass Appointments

March 1, 2019 USCIS began phasing out online self-scheduling for InfoPass appointments for certain field offices, and now plans to completely phase out online self-scheduling by September, 2019.

How Asylum Applicants Can Check Status of Case Online

You can use your asylum receipt code to see whether USCIS has received your case, whether your interview with an asylum officer has scheduled, or whether a decision was reached in your case.

New Proposal Would Require Women Seeking Citizenship to Register for Selective Service

January 23, 2019. Congress may add women to the list of those who must register for the Selective Service, which would have implications for naturalization applicants.

Getting J-1 Visa to Work as an Au Pair Riskier Than Applicants Realize

January 18, 2019 If you were an au pair in the U.S. on a J-1 visa between January 1, 2009, and October 28, 2018, keep an eye on the news and the email address you used then; lawyers may be in touch about your share of the settlement once it's finalized.