State Department Secretary Rex Tillerson has directed all consular chiefs to determine which populations of visa applicants should be subject to additional “extreme” vetting. The March 15 direction is in response to President Donald Trump’s March 6 “Travel Ban” Executive Order and Presidential Memorandum on “extreme vetting.” The Memo directed the U.S. Attorney General
March 2017
Future of H-4 Work Permits Uncertain
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in US Immigration, USCIS
In 2015, the Obama Administration DHS issued the H-4 EAD Rule allowing certain spouses of H-1B holders to obtain EADs and work while waiting to become permanent residents. Soon thereafter, a group of high-tech workers, Save Jobs USA, filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia arguing that the DHS lacked…
Restrictions on Personal Electronic Devices, including Laptops, on Flights from 10 Airports
By Meredith K. Stewart on
Posted in US Immigration, USCIS
No personal electronic devices (PEDs) larger than a cellphone or smartphone, such as a laptop computer or e-reader, can be carried into the cabin of airplanes flying directly to the U.S. from 10 airports in the Middle East, North Africa, and Turkey, the DHS and TSA announced on March 21, 2017.
Following are the airports:…
Revised Travel Ban Blocked
By Amy L. Peck & Michael H. Neifach on
Posted in US Immigration, USCIS
Late on March 15, Judge Derrick Watson of the U.S. District Court in Hawaii issued a nationwide injunction blocking the revised travel ban Executive Order that was scheduled to take effect on March 16. In addition, on March 16, Maryland U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang, in a less sweeping order, granted a nationwide injunction…
Courts Hold Hearings on Administration’s Travel Ban
By Michael H. Neifach on
President Donald Trump’s revised Executive Order with its revised travel ban is scheduled to become effective just after midnight on March 16. While the revised Order regarding the travel ban is a bit of a retreat from the original, states have wasted no time trying to block the Order and hearings in two of these…
Gear Up for H-1B, L-1 Reforms
By Otieno B. Ombok on
Aiming to reform and reduce fraud and abuse in the H-1B and L-1 visa programs, bipartisan bills have been introduced in both Houses of the Congress. Outsourcers are the top users of H-1B visas. These companies are known to flood the H-1B visa lottery and make it more difficult for other companies to obtain the…
Revised Travel Ban Executive Order Targets Six Countries, Drops Iraq
By Michael H. Neifach & Amy L. Peck on
Posted in Uncategorized
The “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States” Executive Order (E.O.), issued by President Donald Trump on March 6, 2017, suspends processing of visa issuance for individuals from six designated countries until June 14, 2017, 90 days from the E.O.’s effective date, March 16, 2017. The E.O. will supersede…
USCIS Suspends Premium Processing Service for H-1B Cases Effective April 3, 2017
By Maggie Murphy on
Posted in Uncategorized
USCIS has announced the temporary suspension of the Premium Processing service for all H-1B cases filed on or after April 3, 2017. This suspension applies to all H-1B cases filed – including those filed under the FY2018 regular H-1B cap, Master’s cap exemption, H-1B transfer cases, H-1B extensions, and cap-exempt H-1B filings.
The government, not…
EU May Reinstate Visas Requirement for U.S. Tourists and Business Visitors
By Forrest G. Read IV on
Posted in Uncategorized
While the U.S. travel, tourism, and hospitality industries worry about deleterious effects from President Donald Trump’s clampdown on immigration, including the travel ban, the European Union has its own, similar concerns related to the possible temporary reinstitution of visa requirements on U.S. citizens entering the EU.
Under the U.S. Visa Waiver Program, nationals of 23 …
Trump EO Biometric Entry-Exit Section Raises Concerns of Lawmakers over Costs, Logistics
By Manpreet K. Gill on
Posted in Uncategorized
Members of Congress from states bordering Canada, the Northern Border Caucus, have focused on a section of President Donald Trump’s “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States” Executive Order directing DHS to expedite “the completion and implementation of a biometric entry-exit tracking system for all travelers to the United States.”…