US Immigration

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  • USCIS’s updated public charge guidance applies to Form I-485 applications postmarked or electronically submitted on or after Sept. 18, 2026.
  • USCIS will determine whether an applicant is likely to become a public charge through a prospective evaluation based on the totality of the circumstances.
  • A qualifying Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, alone does not
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  • The State Department is pausing immigrant visa interview appointments while consular officers receive updated public-charge training. The agency has not publicly announced the duration or precise scope of this pause.
  • The pause follows an August 21 federal court decision vacating the State Department’s separate suspension of immigrant visa issuance to nationals of 75 countries.
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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is expected to publish a proposed rule on Aug. 25, 2026, in the Federal Register that would impose a new $103,265 fee on all cap subject H-1B visa petitions. This new proposal would be in addition to existing H-1B filing fees. Employers who rely on the H-1B program to…

On Sept. 18, 2026, USCIS will publish a revised edition of Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, the form used to apply for a green card through adjustment of status. The revised form aligns with the recently announced Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility Final Rule and will immediately replace the current…

On Aug. 6, 2026, DHS submitted a proposed rule, “Eliminating the Discretionary 60-day Grace Period,” to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that seeks to eliminate the 60-day grace period available to H-1B workers and certain other employment-based visa holders following a job loss. The full regulatory text has not yet been released publicly.

In a final rule released Aug. 10, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that employers with at least 50 U.S. employees, with more than half of whom holding H-1B, L-1A or L-1B status, must pay the Biometric Fee, $4,000 for an H-1B petition or $4,500 for an L-1 petition, for all extension-of-status petitions.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on Aug. 5, 2026, issued Policy Alert PA-2026-05 updating and significantly shifting the USCIS Policy Manual provisions governing evidence, denials, and post-decision actions. The update clarifies that USCIS, in its discretion, may deny immigration benefit requests that lack required initial evidence or otherwise fail to establish eligibility without first…

On Aug. 5, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia confirmed that its prior order staying the termination of Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation is no longer in effect following action by the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. As a result, the court-ordered…

Federal immigration authorities reportedly are using domestic air travel information to locate and arrest noncitizens suspected of overstaying their authorized periods of admission.

Authorities have made at least 27 arrests of noncitizens suspected of overstay at airports in at least nine states across the country, from California to Virginia, according to an ABC News report.

The Department of State has announced a significant restructuring of visa operations across Africa, effective Aug. 1, 2026. Under this initiative, routine immigrant and nonimmigrant visa processing at certain U.S. embassies and consulates will be consolidated into designated regional visa processing hubs or centers. According to the Department of State, this realignment is intended to…