In Mosleh et al. v. Pompeo et al. in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, Chief Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill ordered the Administration to show that delays in granting travel ban waivers to Yemeni relatives of U.S. citizens are “reasonable.” He opined that the government’s description of the process was “inadequate” and that without more specific information he will have to make a decision on the families’ request for injunctive relief based upon the inferences he draws from the lack of evidence.

Continue Reading Federal Judge Orders Administration to Provide More Specifics on Travel Ban Waivers

In a move that likely will give a boost to the Brazilian tourism industry, the Brazilian government has announced that U.S. citizens can now visit Brazil without a visa. Citizens of Australia, Canada, and Japan also have received this cost-saving and time-saving benefit.

Continue Reading Brazil Lifts Visa Requirement for U.S. Citizens

Critics say new federal restrictions on travel to Cuba may lead to a half million fewer visitors to the island annually and small, private business owners definitely will be hurt by confusion caused by those restrictions.

Continue Reading Travel Restrictions to Cuba Affects Cruise and Other Industries

The Trump Administration has been stepping up the collection of data in general and more specifically from visa applicants and travelers.

Here are a few new policies:

Continue Reading Administration Ups Data Collection and General Surveillance

Two years ago, then-Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, proposed collecting 15 years of travel, address and employment history and 5 years of social media platforms, identifiers, phone numbers and emails from visa applicants selected for “extreme vetting.” It was predicted that this would affect only 0.5% of all visa applicants – approximately 65,000 annually. As of June 1, 2019, with the introduction of a new DS-160 Form, some of this information will be collected from all visa applicants – affecting approximately 15 million foreign nationals planning to come to the U.S.

Continue Reading New DS-160 Form Seeks Social Media Information, Affecting Millions of Visa Applicants

We wrote yesterday on the U.S. Supreme Court declining to expedite review of DACA, as well as the recent and current legislative activity regarding the program. Later in the day on June 4th,  the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Dream and Promise Act which would grant permanent residence status and a path to citizenship for “Dreamers” as well as for beneficiaries of the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) programs. The bill had some bi-partisan support. Because of White House opposition, however, the bill is unlikely to be taken up by the Senate in its current form.

Jackson Lewis attorneys will continue to provide updates as more information become available.

The “Dreamers” have received another reprieve from the U.S. Supreme Court.

DACA litigation has been in the news since September 2017, when then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the DACA program would be terminated. In response to that announcement, multiple lawsuits were filed in federal courts in California, New York, Maryland, Texas, and the District of Columbia, resulting in multiple nationwide injunctions blocking the termination of the program. Indeed, the injunctions have forced USCIS to continue granting DACA renewals.

Continue Reading DACA Program Continues as U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Expedite Consideration of Cases

Concerns regarding the rescission of the H-4 EAD Rule have heightened in the wake of the publication of the Department of Homeland Security’s Spring 2019 Regulatory Agenda. In response, two California congresswomen, Representatives Anna Eshoo (D-Cal.) and Zoe Lofgren (D-Cal.), reintroduced a bill to protect those work authorizations – The H-4 Employment Protection Act. Both Eshoo and Lofgren represent the Bay Area of California, a region that would be particularly hard hit by the elimination of H-4 EADs.

Continue Reading Bill in Congress Aimed at Protecting H-4 Employment as Program Rescission Progresses

According to the Department of Homeland Security’s Spring 2019 Regulatory Agenda, changes to business immigration are on the way, particularly with regard to H-1B visas. It is unclear, however, when these rules will actually come to fruition.

Continue Reading H-1B, H-4, Fees on Latest Regulatory Agenda from DHS