October 31, 2018: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a notice in the Federal Register that temporarily preserves Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua and Sudan. All were countries whose nationals were set to lose their TPS status over the course of the next year: Sudan on November Read More »
Government News
Changes to the Public Charge inadmissibility grounds
October 10, 2018: The Trump Administration has proposed changes to rules regarding how the acceptance of certain public benefits may impact admissibility to the U.S., including the ability to change or extend nonimmigrant status. As summarized by Fragomen Worldwide (immigration law firm): “The proposed regulation would impose stricter standards for determining whether an applicant for Read More »
New visa/entry restrictions on certain visitors from Burma and Laos
July 10, 2018: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in coordination with the U.S. Department of State, has announced the implementation of visa sanctions against two countries due to lack of cooperation in accepting their citizens who have been ordered removed from the U.S. Please see https://www.dhs.gov/news/2018/07/10/dhs-announces-implementation-visa-sanctions for the full announcement. BURMA: As of July 9, 2018, Read More »
Possible Government Shutdown after February 8, 2018
*Update* After a closure of three days, the federal government has resumed normal operations. On January 22, Congress passed, and the President signed, a continuing funding resolution that will fund the government through February 8, 2018, at which time the government could shut down again. *Update* As of 2:30 pm on Friday, January 19, Read More »
Nonimmigrant visa suspension in Turkey
*UPDATE* December 28, 2017: the U.S. Department of State issued a Press Release to state that it has allowed “full resumption of visa services in Turkey.” *UPDATE* November 10, 2017: the U.S. Mission toTurkey has resumed issuing nonimmigrant visas. Visa interviews will take place on a limited basis at the U.S. Embassy in Ankara Read More »
State Department: System Issues Cause Visa Issuance Delays
As reported on December 7, 2017, the U.S. State Department has experienced a technical problem affecting its visa processing systems worldwide, which will cause delays in visa issuance globally. According to a State Department source, 15-20% of approved visa applicants are affected. These applications might appear to be in administrative processing, but this does not Read More »
Nonimmigrant visa suspension and reduction in Russia
*Update*: Beginning December 11, 2017, U.S. consulates in St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Vladivostok will offer nonimmigrant visa interviews on a limited basis. These interviews had been suspended at these three locations since late August. The U.S. Embassy in Moscow continues to offer limited immigrant, diversity and nonimmigrant visa services. Visa services are not expected to Read More »
Trump Administration “Immigration Principles & Policies” summary
On October 8, 2017, President Trump sent a letter to Congress setting forth his plan to reform the U.S. immigration system. These reforms are requirements for any legislative relief for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients. Below is a good summary of the plan from the global immigration law firm of Fragomen, Del Rey, Read More »
IRS Phone Scam and NC State University Police
August 21, 2017: NC State University Police are investigating a phone scam operation impacting the campus community. The phony callers are representing themselves as Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agents attempting to collect an outstanding debt. The scammers are asking for payment with gift cards or iTunes cards. The phony calls also appear to be coming Read More »
Department of Labor to increase enforcement of immigration (H-1B) rules
On June 7, 2017, the Secretary of Labor for the Trump Administration announced that the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) will more aggressively enforce its rules and regulations to combat fraud and abuse in employment-based nonimmigrant visa programs. DOL will increase audits and investigations into employer compliance with foreign labor wage rules, and might also Read More »