February 25, 2022

Notice of Proposed Settlement: W.A.O. v. Jaddou (SIJ Classification)

USCIS: Notice of Proposed Settlement W.A.O. v. Jaddou, No. 2:19-cv-11696 (D.N.J.) "W.A.O. v. Jaddou is a class action that was filed in federal court in New Jersey in 2019. A class action is a lawsuit filed on behalf of a large group of people, rather than on behalf of one person or a small group of people. In W.A.O. v. Jaddou, the plaintiffs (who brought the lawsuit) challenged the refusal of U.S. Citizenship...

February 25, 2022

EOIR to Open Hyattsville, MD and Laredo, TX Immigration Courts

EOIR, Feb. 25, 2022 "The Executive Office for Immigration Review today announced it will open new immigration courts in Hyattsville, Maryland, and Laredo, Texas, on Feb. 28, 2022, expanding its presence in the National Capital Region and in South Texas. Once fully staffed, the Hyattsville and Laredo Immigration Courts will include 16 and 8 Immigration Judges, respectively. At the time of opening, six Immigration...

February 24, 2022

Matter of T-C-A-, 28 I&N Dec. 472 (BIA 2022)

Matter of T-C-A-, 28 I&N Dec. 472 (BIA 2022) An applicant for adjustment of status under section 209(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1159(b) (2018), must possess asylee status at the time of adjustment, and thus an applicant whose asylee status has been terminated cannot adjust to lawful permanent resident status under this provision. CONCURRING AND DISSENTING OPINION: Beth S. Liebmann...

February 24, 2022

Official FR Version of Public Charge Proposed Rule

Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 37 / Thursday, February 24, 2022 "The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes to prescribe how it determines whether a noncitizen is inadmissible to the United States under section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) because they are likely at any time to become a public charge. Noncitizens who seek adjustment of status or a visa, or who are applicants...

February 23, 2022

USCIS Notice re "Arriving Aliens" from Cuba Denied AOS (Feb. 23, 2022)

USCIS, Feb. 23, 2022 NOTICE FOR CERTAIN NATIVES OR CITIZENS OF CUBA WHO ARE “ARRIVING ALIENS” AND WHO WERE DENIED ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS UNDER THE CUBAN ADJUSTMENT ACT BASED SOLELY ON A DETERMINATION THAT THEY HAD NOT MET THEIR BURDEN OF ESTABLISHING THAT THEY HAD BEEN ADMITTED OR PAROLED "This Notice is intended to inform you that certain natives or citizens of Cuba who are “arriving aliens”...

February 23, 2022

Notice Re Hold on Denials for CARRP Naturalization and Adjustment of Status Applications (Wagafe v. Biden)

"In  Wagafe v. Biden , 17-cv-00094 LK (W.D. Wash.), Plaintiffs challenge the legality of USCIS’s secret program called the Controlled Application Review and Resolution Program  ( CARRP), on behalf of national classes of naturalization and adjustment of status applicants subject to CARRP—USCIS’s policy for handling cases alleged to have “national security concerns.” USCIS has announced it is conducting an internal...

February 23, 2022

OFLC Annual Update, H-2 Meal Charges, Reimbursements

OFLC, Feb. 23, 2022 "Office of Foreign Labor Certification Publishes Annual Update to Allowable Charges for Agricultural Workers' Meals and for Travel Subsistence Reimbursement, Including Lodging The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor has issued a Notice to announce the annual update to the allowable monetary charges that employers seeking H-2A workers, in occupations...

February 22, 2022

Why Should Requesting a Transfer of Underlying Basis with an I-485 Supplement J Restart the 180-Day Portability Clock?

Cyrus Mehta, Kaitlyn Box, Feb. 22, 2022 "We follow up on our blog series on requesting a transfer of underlying basis. Previous blogs on this topic can be found  here  and  here .  Due to the exceptionally high number of EB-1 and EB-2 visas available this fiscal year, USCIS is  urging  applicants to consider switching to these preference categories, which will no doubt encourage more applicants to file a transfer...

February 22, 2022

SC Oral Argument, Wed. Feb. 23, 2022: Arizona v. City and County of San Francisco (Public Charge)

Links to all the briefs here .  Issue: Whether states with interests should be permitted to intervene to defend a rule when the United States ceases to defend.

February 21, 2022

USCIS Urges Eligible Applicants to Switch Employment-Based Categories

USCIS, Feb. 18, 2022 "U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services encourages eligible applicants to consider requesting to transfer the underlying basis of their adjustment of status application to the first (priority workers) or second (noncitizens in professions with advanced degrees or with exceptional ability) employment-based preference categories, because there is an exceptionally high number of employment...

February 20, 2022

"Sterling Success" in Kirwa Litigation Earns $700K EAJA Fee Award

Kirwa v. Department of Defense "The Court will grant the parties’ Joint Motion for Attorneys’ Fees, approve the parties’ Settlement Agreement [Dkt. No. 251-2], and award attorneys’ fees and costs in the amount of $700,000. ... [T]his is substantially lower than counsel’s standard hourly rate. See Wollenberg Decl. at ¶ 8 (noting that, at class counsel’s standard hourly rate, their time would be valued at $2,568...

February 20, 2022

Simeio Survives...For Now

ITSERVE Alliance v. DHS "Under federal law, an employer must file a new or amended H-1B visa petition on behalf of a U.S.-based foreign national employee whenever that employee experiences a “material change” in employment. In Simeio Solutions, LLC, 26 I&N Dec. 542 (AAO 2015) , the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) altered USCIS’s interpretation of...

February 19, 2022

CA11 CIMT Remand: Hernandez Zarate v. Garland

Hernandez Zarate v. Garland "The question presented in this appeal—one which has led to a circuit split—is whether a conviction for falsely representing a social security number, see 42 U.S.C. § 408(a)(7)(B), is a CIMT. ... The BIA explained that § 408(a)(7)(B) requires intent to deceive, and as a result Mr. Zarate’s conviction was for a CIMT. Noting that the circuits were divided on the issue, it quoted our decision...

February 17, 2022

New Form I-9 Guidance for T and U Visa Holders

USCIS, Feb. 17, 2022 "The statuses of T and U nonimmigrants (victims of human trafficking and certain other crimes) are granted for up to four years and may be extended under certain circumstances. Family members of T and U nonimmigrants may also qualify for these statuses. T and U nonimmigrants are either authorized to work incident to their immigration status or are eligible to seek authorization for employment...

February 17, 2022

New Documents Surface in Forced Labor / Wage Theft Case Against CoreCivic

My hero, Andrew Free , reports: "For those considering how labor litigation challenge contractors abuses of so-called “Volunteer” Work Programs may lend support to folks inside ICE’s for-profit human cages, please find attached a Memo regarding new filings in the  Owino v. CoreCivic  case. Several CoreCivic documents that recently went on the docket in the forced labor/wage theft case against CoreCivic’s Otay...

February 17, 2022

DHS Proposes "Fair and Humane" Public Charge Rule

Feb. 17, 2022 DHS Stakeholder email text: " The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would regulate how DHS applies the public charge ground of inadmissibility. The proposed rule would provide fair and humane treatment for noncitizens requesting admission to the United States or applying for lawful permanent residence from within the United States. DHS has...

February 17, 2022

SIJ Retrogression

An email message dated Feb. 17, 2022 from The Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network (RMIAN) : "PLEASE READ for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status Cases - Visa Bulletin Retrogression Good morning Pro Bono Attorneys, The March 2022 Visa Bulletin is now available. Unfortunately, priority dates for Special Immigrant Juveniles from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras will retrogress significantly - nearly two...

February 16, 2022

Visa Bulletin for March 2022

Visa Bulletin for March 2022

February 16, 2022

Mayorkas Issues NIE for Ukraine (Feb. 15, 2022)

DHS, Feb. 15, 2022 "...I hereby determine that it is in the national interest to permit the entry of noncitizen nonimmigrants who (1) are traveling with a U.S. citizen or lawful pem1anent resident; (2) were physically present in Ukraine as of February 10, 2022; and (3) possess valid travel documents allowing them to travel to the United States. Accordingly, and consistent with this Exception, these individuals...

February 15, 2022

ABA Video: Mechanics of Immigration Court Part 1: The Master Calendar Hearing & Filing Applications for Relief

ABA, Feb. 10, 2022 "Join the ABA Commission on Immigration for a 3-part series on the Mechanics of Immigration Court. This series covers the nuts and bolts of how to practice in immigration court. Part I takes an in depth look at the Master Calendar Hearing and Filing Applications for Relief with Immigration Court. Topics to be covered include reviewing the Notice to Appear, getting your client’s court file, how...

February 15, 2022

New Asylum Office "China Initiative" Questions

MacArthur Fellow Margaret D. Stock (the founder of MAVNI) writes: "This is a new set of questions that the Asylum Officers are now asking Chinese asylum applicants who have studied in STEM fields in the US (which is practically everyone, as I think you may know, a majority of PhD students studying physics in the US are from China). These questions are asked during a “follow up” interview on any Chinese MAVNI asylum...

February 15, 2022

Mendez Rojas Practice Alert

National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, Kids in Need of Defense, Public Counsel, Feb. 14, 2022 What J.O.P. Class Members Need to Know About the April 22, 2022 Deadline for Asserting Rights Under the Mendez Rojas Settlement Agreement

February 15, 2022

USCIS Revised Guidance on Informal ("Camp") Marriages (Feb. 14, 2022)

USCIS, Feb. 14, 2022 "As of the date of this memorandum, RAIO is rescinding marriage guidance previously issued by RAIO divisions: "Guidance for the treatment of refugee cases that include an informal marriage to an RE-2 derivative spouse {2018}1" and "Form 1-730 Informal Marriage Guidance (2019}.2 " RAIO officers shall no longer apply this previous guidance . RAIO will instead return to the...

February 15, 2022

Fla. Sup. Ct. on Bar Admission for Foreign-Trained Lawyers

Florida Supreme Court, Feb. 10, 2022 IN RE: AMENDMENTS TO RULE 4-13.4 OF THE RULES OF THE SUPREME COURT RELATING TO ADMISSIONS TO THE BAR

February 14, 2022

OFLC News (Feb. 14, 2022)

OFLC Releases Public Disclosure Data and Selected Program Statistics for Q1 of Fiscal Year 2022 The Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) has released a comprehensive set of public disclosure data (through the first quarter of fiscal year 2022) drawn from employer applications requesting prevailing wage determinations and labor certifications for the PERM, LCA (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3), H-2A, H-2B, CW-1, and Prevailing...