Category: News

Effective January 24, 2020, the Department of State (DOS) amended its regulation governing the issuance of visas in the “B” nonimmigrant classification for temporary visitors for pleasure.  This new rule establishes that travel to the United States with the primary purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship for a child by giving birth in the U.S. is an […]

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency committed to administering the nation’s immigration system and adjudicating the applications of those seeking lawful status in the United States, released statistics on the most popular and widely-used benefits and programs administered by the agency for final fiscal year 2019. The agency released statistics relating to benefits […]

The President has issued an executive order imposing sanctions against certain persons connected with the construction, mining, manufacturing, or textiles industries in Iran. This executive order includes the suspension of the immigrant or nonimmigrant entry of such persons into the United States. The entry of Iranian immigrants and nonimmigrants in these fields is hereby suspended, […]

On January 6, 2020, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) initiated a pilot program to assess the operational impact of proposed regulatory changes that would require the collection of DNA samples from certain individuals in CBP custody.  This “limited, small-scale pilot program” will last 90-days in only two locations: the U.S. Border Patrol in the Detroit […]

Iranian nationals are increasingly hesitant to travel after dozens of Iranian citizens were held by U.S. immigration agents at the Canadian border in Washington state this past weekend. On Saturday, January 4, 2020, dozens of Iranians and Iranian-Americans were held for hours in secondary screening at the Peace Arch Border Crossing in Blaine, Washington.  It is estimated […]

USCIS has recently published a final regulation changing the EB-5 Program that awards permanent resident status to certain investors who create at least ten new jobs for U.S. workers. This new EB-5 rule will be effective for I-526 filings arriving at USCIS on or after November 21, 2019. The new EB-5 investments must be at least $900,000...

On November 14, 2019, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a proposed regulation, which would substantially increase the filing fees for many types of immigration benefits. The agency’s notice of proposed rulemaking, which is published in the Federal Register, explains that the proposed regulation would increase costs for most petitioners and applicants...

On Tuesday, November 12, 2019, U.S. District Judge Denise Casper in Boston ruled suspicionless searches of traveler’s electronic devices without a warrant is unconstitutional. Judge Casper held U.S. border agents need “reasonable suspicion” to search travelers’ smartphones and laptops at airports and other U.S. ports of entry...

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) just recently announced it will be modernizing the way NEXUS members are processed at Canadian airports. The existing NEXUS kiosks that use iris recognition technology will be replaced with new, modernized NEXUS kiosks that use facial verification technology. This new process will first launch in fall 2019 at Vancouver […]

The H-1B classification provides temporary permission for employers to hire qualified foreign nationals in specialty occupations. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) typically accepts a limited number of H-1B cases during each of the federal government’s fiscal years due to the annual cap. There are 65,000 H-1B cap slots, with 20,000 additional H-1B slots that may be allocated...