Berardi Blog

Back in March, the United States banned passengers from carrying laptops onboard U.S.-bound flights from certain airports in the Middle East and North Africa. Four months later, the controversial travel restrictions have been lifted. Why did the Trump Administration impose the laptop ban? The United States was not the only country to place specific travel […]

The Supreme Court has announced a new compromise over President Trump’s travel ban. The government may enforce tight restrictions on refugees, but it must also adhere to the expanded definition of close familial relationship, which was handed down by Hawaii District Court Judge Derrick Watson last week. What has happened since the Supreme Court got […]

On June 26, President Trump’s travel ban was reinstated, in part. The Supreme Court granted the government’s request to stay lower court injunctions, but it added an important detail. According to the Court, the travel ban may not be enforced against foreign nationals who have a credible claim of a bona fide relationship to a […]

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced the expansion of Global Entry eligibility to citizens of India, making it the 11th country overall with which CBP has a trusted traveler arrangement. Other participating countries include Argentina, Colombia, Germany, Mexico, the Netherlands, Panama, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Canada. What […]

E-2 Visa Background The E-2 visa category is reserved for foreign investors. It enables a national of a treaty country to be admitted to the U.S. when investing a substantial amount of capital in a U.S. business. To qualify, the treaty investor must meet a few basic requirements: The investor must be a national of […]

PERM Labor Certification Process The EB-2 (with the exception of National Interest Waivers) and EB-3 visa categories require a U.S. employer to obtain a labor certification. This is done through Program Electronic Review Management (PERM). Under PERM regulations, a petitioning employer must first conduct a series of recruitment activities to test the labor market. If […]

One of the critical debates surrounding the original NAFTA negotiations was the impact the treaty would have on U.S. labor markets. Many feared that millions of U.S. jobs would be lost to competition. Labor costs are cheaper in Mexico, so U.S. companies move factories there to take advantage. This idea is what fueled President Trump’s […]

On June 26, the Supreme Court partially restored President Trump’s travel ban. To gain entry to the U.S., individuals from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen are now required to demonstrate a credible claim of a “bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States.” Implementation of the travel ban began at […]

Premium processing has been suspended for all H-1B petitions since April 3, 2017. USCIS suspended the program in an effort to reduce overall H-1B processing times. A high volume of premium processing requests over the past few years has put a strain on the department. It has been difficult for USCIS to process long-pending petitions […]

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments on President Trump’s travel ban. The controversial ban suspends entry of foreign nationals from six countries identified as presenting heightened terrorism risks — Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. The original order resulted in chaos at airports around the country, and it was immediately challenged and […]

The Trump administration’s fiscal year 2018 budget has requested a massive increase in funding for immigration enforcement and border security. If approved, the overall Department of Homeland Security (DHS) budget would increase by $1.7 billion over FY17. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) budget would increase by $7.57 billion, an 18 percent increase, and the […]

A new feature on the I-94 website will now allow U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to remind travelers of their last possible departure date from the U.S. Currently, the new feature is available to eligible Visa Waiver Program travelers, but further updates to the I-94 website will incorporate additional nonimmigrant travelers. To check their […]

President Trump’s controversial “travel ban” is back in the news. This time, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in part against the President’s travel ban on Monday. This decision comes only days after the 4th Circuit announced that the travel ban violated constitutional protections against religious discrimination. What does this mean? The battle over […]

Congressmen Erik Paulsen (MN) and Mike Quigley (IL) have reintroduced a bill that would exempt certain foreign-born STEM graduates from the numerical caps on employment-based green cards and H-1B visas. The Stopping Trained in America Ph.D.’s from Leaving the Economy (STAPLE) Act would exclude STEM graduates who have earned an American Ph.D. from these statutory […]

U.S. embassies around the world are implementing a more intensive vetting procedure for certain visa applicants. In the form of a three-page supplemental questionnaire, this temporary emergency measure is being rolled out in response to President Trump’s March 6th executive order which called for more rigorous vetting of all visa applicants. The new procedure was […]

The L-1 nonimmigrant category enables a U.S. employer to transfer an executive, manager, or specialized knowledge employee from an affiliated foreign office to one in the U.S. L-1 workers may be admitted to the U.S. for an initial maximum period of up to three years. The total maximum period of stay is capped at seven […]

On Thursday, June 1, the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a petition with the Supreme Court seeking review of President Trump’s travel ban. The DOJ made three urgent requests. It asked the Court to review the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals decisions blocking the travel ban, and it made two interim requests for stays. If […]

On May 23, 2017, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a policy memorandum concerning the H-1B Master’s Cap exemption. The memorandum designated the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) decision in Matter of A-T-Inc. as an Adopted Decision. It establishes policy guidance that applies to and binds all USCIS employees. It states that “in order […]

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has upheld a lower court’s ruling blocking President Trump’s revised travel ban. In a 205-page decision, the court rejected the government’s effort to limit travel to the United States from six predominantly Muslim countries. The court’s reasoning mirrored earlier skepticism expressed by the lower courts, […]

The Department of Homeland Security has released the Entry/Exit Overstay Report for fiscal year 2016. The report provides data on departures and overstays by country, and it includes individuals who entered the U.S. as nonimmigrant visitors through an air or sea Port of Entry (POE) and were expected to depart in 2016. The in-scope population […]