September 28, 2023

Employment Authorization Document Validity Period for Certain Categories: USCIS Policy Alert

USCIS, Sept. 27, 2023 "U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is updating policy guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual regarding maximum validity periods for Employment Authorization Documents (EADs, Form I-766) issued to refugees and asylees, noncitizens paroled as refugees, noncitizens granted withholding of removal, noncitizens with pending applications for asylum or withholding of removal, noncitizens...

September 27, 2023

Advance Copy of DHS Final Rule: Designation of Israel for the Visa Waiver Program

This document is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on 09/29/2023 "Eligible citizens, nationals, and passport holders from designated Visa Waiver Program countries may apply for admission to the United States at U.S. ports of entry as nonimmigrant noncitizens for a period of ninety days or less for business or pleasure without first obtaining a nonimmigrant visa, provided that they are otherwise...

September 26, 2023

CA3 on Divisibility: Pesikan v. Atty. Gen.

Pesikan v. Atty. Gen. "Petitioner Srecko Pesikan argues that the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) erred in concluding that his 2018 Pennsylvania conviction for driving under the influence (“DUI”) of marijuana constituted an offense involving a “controlled substance,” as defined in the federal Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”), thereby rendering him removable under...

September 25, 2023

USCIS Exempts Biometric Services Fee for all Form I-539 Applicants

USCIS, Sept. 25, 2023 "U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced that it is exempting the biometric services fee for Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status. Beginning Oct. 1, we are exempting the $85 biometric services fee as part of the application process for Form I-539. You do not need to pay the fee if your application is postmarked Oct. 1 or later. However, if...

September 25, 2023

"Many" Immigration Judge Positions Open

[What cities? How many?] EOIR, Sept. 25, 2023 Salary: $149,644 - $195,000 per year Travel: 50% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position Application Deadline: Friday, October 6, 2023 Relocation Expenses: Not authorized Number of Positions: Many

September 22, 2023

TPS for Afghanistan Extended, Redesignated

This document is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on 09/25/2023 - "Through this notice, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announces that the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary) is extending the designation of Afghanistan for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months, beginning on November 21, 2023, and ending on May 20, 2025. This extension allows existing TPS beneficiaries to...

September 21, 2023

DOJ Secures Agreement with UPS to Resolve Immigration-Related Employment Discrimination Claims

DOJ, Sept. 21, 2023 "The Justice Department announced today that it has secured a settlement agreement with United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS). The settlement resolves the department’s determination that UPS violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) when the company discriminated against a lawful permanent resident based on his immigration status and then retaliated against him. The department also...

September 21, 2023

TPS for Venezuela Extended, Redesignated

DHS, Sept. 20, 2023 "Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas today announced the extension and redesignation of Venezuela for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months, due to extraordinary and temporary conditions in Venezuela that prevent individuals from safely returning. After reviewing the country conditions in Venezuela and consulting with interagency partners, Secretary Mayorkas determined...

September 19, 2023

H-2 Visas: Proposed Rule

This document is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on 09/20/2023 "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes to amend its regulations affecting temporary agricultural (H-2A) and temporary nonagricultural (H2B) nonimmigrant workers (H-2 programs) and their employers. This notice of proposed rulemaking is intended to better ensure the integrity of the H-2 programs and enhance protections for...

September 18, 2023

Cyrus Mehta: Advance the Dates for Filing!

Cyrus Mehta, Sept. 17, 2023 "The October 2023 Visa Bulletin was disappointing. There was some expectation that the Administration would radically advance the Dates for Filing so that many more could file I-485 adjustment of status application, but that never happened notwithstanding a bipartisan letter signed by more than 50 Congresspersons advocating for this reform. It was hardly any consolation that the India...

September 18, 2023

EOIR Stakeholder WebEx Sept. 21, 2023

EOIR "EOIR to Host National Stakeholder Meeting for Law School Immigration Clinics SUMMARY: The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) invites faculty, staff, and students from law school immigration clinics to attend a national stakeholder meeting focused on pro bono advocacy. EOIR continues to build upon the guidance in EOIR Director Memorandum 22-01, Encouraging and Facilitating Pro Bono Legal Services...

September 15, 2023

Visa Bulletin for October 2023

Visa Bulletin for October 2023

September 15, 2023

Practice Advisory: Advocating for Prosecutorial Discretion Under the Biden Administration’s Prosecutorial Discretion Guidance

NIPNLG, Sept. 15, 2023 "This practice advisory describes the Biden administration’s current prosecutorial discretion policy in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision and provides tips for practitioners advocating with DHS for prosecutorial discretion on behalf of noncitizens. Section II gives an overview of the Mayorkas Memo and the litigation challenging it. Section III describes the guidance issued...

September 15, 2023

H-2A Visa News (Sept. 15, 2023)

Here is the 83-page Proposed Rule. Here is the DOL media release. Here is the DOL FAQ.

September 14, 2023

CA3 on PSG: Avila v. Atty. Gen.

Avila v. Atty. Gen. "Avila argues that the BIA failed to consider whether Avila’s particular social group (PSG) was cognizable in light of the specific country conditions in Honduras. We agree and will grant Avila’s petition for reconsideration of her PSG. ... Here, on the other hand, the BIA did not adhere to Matter of A-R-C-G-’s requirement to examine Avila’s PSG within the context of...

September 14, 2023

CA9 on Reasonable Fear Screening: Blancas Hermosillo v. Garland

Blancas Hermosillo v. Garland "In 2018, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reinstated a 1999 removal order entered against Petitioner Eric Blancas Hermosillo. Because Blancas Hermosillo expressed a fear of returning to Mexico, an asylum officer conducted a reasonable fear screening interview to determine whether Blancas Hermosillo should be given the opportunity to establish his claims at a merits hearing...

September 13, 2023

Ron Wada: The Nth Degree...Only in BIB!

If you know labor certs, you know Ron Wada . His latest article, " Degree Equivalency and the New Form 9089 " appears in the Sept. 15, 2023 issue of Bender's Immigration Bulletin . The Bulletin is free to subscribers of the " Treatise ," Immigration Law & Procedure (the 22-volume "bible" of immigration law.) It is also available as a stand-alone subscription. Call 1-877-394-8826 to...

September 13, 2023

H-2A Proposed Rule

This document is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on 09/15/2023 "The Department of Labor (Department or DOL) proposes to amend its regulations governing the certification of temporary employment of nonimmigrant workers employed in temporary or seasonal agricultural employment and the enforcement of the contractual obligations applicable to employers of these nonimmigrant workers. The revisions...

September 12, 2023

USCIS Policy Alert: Evaluating Eligibility for Extraordinary Ability and Outstanding Professor or Researcher Visa Classifications

USCIS, Sept. 12, 2023 "... This policy update provides additional guidance regarding the evaluation of evidence submitted in support of E11 extraordinary ability and E12 outstanding professor or researcher petitions. Among other revisions, this update incorporates more detailed guidance and examples, similar to previously-issued nonimmigrant guidance for O-1A nonimmigrants of extraordinary ability. ..."

September 12, 2023

USCIS Affirmative Asylum Procedures Manual

USCIS, Aug. 31, 2023 - Affirmative Asylum Procedures Manual

September 11, 2023

Matter of Cabrera-Fernandez

Matter of Cabrera-Fernandez (1) Release on conditional parole under section 236(a)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a)(2)(B) (2018), is legally distinct from release on humanitarian parole under section 212(d)(5)(A) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1182(d)(5)(A) (2018). Matter of Castillo-Padilla, 25 I&N Dec. 257, 258–63 (BIA 2010), followed. (2) Applicants for admission who...

September 11, 2023

Passport/Citizenship Victory (Declaratory Judgment) in Chicago: Arthur-Price v. Blinken

Arthur-Price v. Blinken "Maameamba Arthur-Price applied for a passport and was denied on the ground that she is not a U.S. citizen. Arthur-Price has sued for a declaration of her U.S. citizenship, claiming she was born in Oakland, California in January 1980. That is, in fact, what Arthur-Price was told and believes. The government contends that Arthur-Price was born overseas and opposes her claim in this case....

September 08, 2023

BIA on Withholding, Persecution, Dominican Republic: Matter of C-G-T-

Matter of C-G-T- "The respondent testified that he was abused by his father as a child because of his sexual orientation. He testified that he knew he was gay at a young age. He further testified that his father called him a girl, targeted him for particularly harsh treatment, and hit him almost every day. The declarations from the respondent’s brother and uncle state that they thought the respondent’s...

September 07, 2023

2023 DV Visas Gone (Visa Lottery)

DOS, Sept. 7, 2023 "The Diversity Visa (DV) program awards up to 55,000 immigrant visas per year and allows those from countries with low immigration rates to the United States, to enter for a chance to apply for a U.S immigrant visa. Since its launch in 1990, the program has continued the ongoing policy priority to promote and maintain diversity in the United States. This year, the Department of State is on track...

September 07, 2023

Expiration of Covid-Era Visa Application Fee Receipts

DOS, Sept. 1, 2023 "All receipts for payment of Machine-Readable Visa (MRV) fees issued before October 1, 2022, will expire September 30, 2023. There will be no extensions of fee validity. Applicants must schedule an appointment or submit an interview waiver application before September 30, 2023 to avoid paying a new fee. Please note that the interview itself does not need to take place before September 30, 2023...