June 17, 2021

GAO: Biden's Border Wall Pause OK

GAO Decision, June 15, 2021 "On January 20, 2021, President Biden issued a Proclamation terminating a previous declaration of national emergency concerning the southern border of the United States issued by President Trump. Among other things, the Proclamation directs officials to “pause work on each construction project on the southern border wall, to the extent permitted by law . . . [and to] pause immediately...

June 17, 2021

Visa Bulletin for July 2021

Visa Bulletin for July 2021 Note   D.   SCHEDULED EXPIRATION OF THE EMPLOYMENT-BASED FIFTH PREFERENCE I5 and R5 REGIONAL CENTER VISA CATEGORIES Employment Fifth Preference Categories (I5 and R5): Division O, Title 1, Section 104 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 extended this immigrant investor pilot program until June 30, 2021.  The I5 and R5 visas may be issued until close of business on June 30, 2021...

June 16, 2021

Matter of A-B- and Matter of L-E-A- Vacated!

Attorney General Decisions The Attorney General has issued a  decision  in  Matter of A-B- , 28 I&N Dec. 307 (A.G. 2021). (1)  Matter of A-B- , 27 I&N Dec. 316 (A.G. 2018) (“ A-B- I ”), and  Matter of A-B- , 28 I&N Dec. 199 (A.G. 2021) (“ A-B- II ”), are vacated in their entirety. (2) Immigration judges and the Board should no longer follow  A-B- I  or  A-B- II  when adjudicating pending or future cases...

June 16, 2021

Joint DHS/DOS Statement on Central American Minors Program

DHS, DOS, June 15, 2021 - Joint Statement by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Department of State on the Expansion of Access to the Central American Minors Program "The following joint statement was released by Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken: "The Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and Department of...

June 16, 2021

Split CA10 on Citizenship, American Samoa: Fitisemanu v. US

Fitisemanu v. US "For over a century, the land of American Samoa has been an American territory, but its people have never been considered American citizens. Plaintiffs, three citizens of American Samoa, asked the district court in Utah to upend this longstanding arrangement and declare that American Samoans have been citizens from the start. The district court agreed and so declared. Appellants, the United States...

June 15, 2021

Habeas Win on Post-Preap Constitutional Challenge to 236(c): Perera v. Jennings

Judah Lakin  writes: "We wanted to share an exciting decision we received on Friday from Judge Freeman in the Northern District of California on Friday granting our client a bond hearing.  We, together with our co-counsel Jenny Zhao and Monica Ramsy from Asian Americans Advancing Justice—Asian Law Caucus, and Scott Mossman, brought a habeas challenging mandatory detention under 1226(c) for an individual who was arrested...

June 15, 2021

Presidential Memorandum for the Secretary of State on Unexpected Urgent Refugee and Migration Needs

White House, June 11, 2021 "By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including section 2(c)(1) of the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (22 U.S.C. 2601(c)(1)) (MRAA), I hereby determine, pursuant to section 2(c)(1) of the MRAA, that it is important to the national interest to furnish assistance under the MRAA in an amount not to exceed...

June 15, 2021

Sanchez v. Mayorkas: Is There a Silver Lining?

Cyrus D. Mehta, Kaitlyn Box, June 14, 2021 "On June 7, 2021, the Supreme Court decided  Sanchez v. Mayorkas , holding that a grant of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) does not constitute an admission under INA § 245(a) for purposes of adjustment of status. Though overall a disappointing decision, the Court’s opinion may nonetheless leave open some options for some TPS recipients who want to obtain their green cards...

June 15, 2021

Prosecutorial Discretion and the ICE Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA)

ICE, June 11, 2021 - [Provides a description of prosecutorial discretion, email addresses for PD requests, and links to further resources.]

June 14, 2021

USCIS Policy Memo: Bona Fide Determination Process for Victims of Qualifying Crimes, and Employment Authorization and Deferred Action for Certain Petitioners

USCIS, June 14, 2021 "U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is publishing guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual on employment authorization and deferred action for principal petitioners for U nonimmigrant status and qualifying family members with pending, bona fide petitions. ... Policy Highlights • Provides that USCIS conducts an initial review of Form I-918 and will issue BFD EADs and deferred action...

June 14, 2021

DOS Fee Changes

FR Notices to be published on June 15, 2021: Schedule of Fees for Consular Services – Fee Change for Certain Border Crossing Cards AGENCY: Department of State. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: The Department of State amends the Schedule of Fees for Consular Services (Schedule) for visa fees. More specifically, the rule amends the Border Crossing Card fee paid by a Mexican citizen under age 15 whose parent or guardian has...

June 12, 2021

CBP: Presidential Proclamation Exemptions of Certain Persons Who Pose a Risk of Transmitting Coronavirus Disease (June 7, 2021)

CBP, June 7, 2021 "• The President of the United States signed various Presidential Proclamations titled: “Proclamation on the Suspension of Entry as Non-Immigrants of Certain Additional Persons Who Pose a Risk of Transmitting Coronavirus Disease 2019.” • This guidance clarifies exemption categories to Presidential Proclamations 9984 (China), 9992 (Iran), 10143 (Schengen Area, United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland...

June 11, 2021

CA9 Vacates Matter of K-S-E-: Sylvestre v. Garland

Sylvestre v. Garland , Case: 20-71316, 06/09/2021, ID: 12139702, DktEntry: 54, Page 1 of 1 (text of Order copied from PACER; official CA9 PDF not yet live) "Before: SILVERMAN, NGUYEN, and R. NELSON, Circuit Judges. The government’s unopposed motion to remand this case to the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) (Docket Entry No. 49) is granted. The decision of the BIA currently under review ( Matter of K-S-E-,...

June 11, 2021

EOIR PM on Enforcement Priorities (June 11, 2021)

EOIR, June 11, 2021 "... Immigration judges should be prepared to inquire, on the record, of the parties appearing before them at scheduled hearings as to whether the case remains a removal priority for ICE and whether ICE intends to exercise some form of prosecutorial discretion, for example by requesting that the case be terminated or dismissed, by stipulating to eligibility for relief, or, where permitted by...

June 11, 2021

CA5 Denaturalizes Former Salvadoran Military Officer: USA v. Vasquez

USA v. Vasquez "Arnoldo Antonio Vasquez, a former Salvadorian military officer, is now a naturalized American citizen. Based on his role in extrajudicial killings and a subsequent cover-up occurring during armed conflict in El Salvador, the government seeks to revoke his citizenship, that is, to denaturalize him. The district court conducted a three-day bench trial and declined to cancel Vasquez’s American citizenship...

June 11, 2021

CA9 on Standard of Review: Soto-Soto v. Garland

Soto-Soto v. Garland "Petitioner Delfina Soto-Soto was brutally tortured by Mexican state police until she confessed to the kidnap and murder of five-year-old Bernardino Bravo Gomez. After the Mexican trial court dismissed the charges against her due to lack of evidence of the crimes charged, she fled to the United States. Mexican prosecutors subsequently refiled the charges against Soto-Soto, INTERPOL put out...

June 11, 2021

DOS / AILA Q&A (May 27, 2021)

DOS, May 27, 2021 "The Department of State, Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for Consular Affairs (L/CA), welcomes AILA’s Department of State Liaison Committee to discuss issues of interest to AILA’s membership. Below are responses to Agenda questions presented by AILA to inform today’s discussion......"

June 10, 2021

ICE Interim Litigation Position Regarding Motions to Reopen in Light of Niz-Chavez

ICE, June 9, 2021 "On April 29, 2021, the Supreme Court decided  Niz-Chavez v. Garland , 141 S. Ct. 1474 (2021), which involved eligibility for “cancellation of removal,” a type of discretionary immigration relief available in removal proceedings that requires noncitizens to demonstrate that they have accrued a specific period of continuous residence or continuous physical presence in the United States. In  Niz...

June 10, 2021

USCIS Announces Lockbox Filing Flexibilities

USCIS, June 10, 2021 "U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will offer filing flexibilities to provide relief to certain applicants and petitioners impacted by delays at a USCIS lockbox. These flexibilities only apply to benefit requests submitted to a USCIS lockbox and not to USCIS service centers or field offices. The following temporary flexibilities are effective for 60 days from June 10 until Aug. 9...

June 09, 2021

Three New USCIS Policy Updates (June 9, 2021)

USCIS, June 9, 2021 " Expedited Processing Under the  updated expedite criteria policy  (PDF, 293.62 KB) , benefit requestors and USCIS officers are provided further guidance on when  expedited processing  may be warranted. Additionally, nonprofit organizations whose request is in furtherance of the cultural and social interests of the United States may request that a benefit be considered for expedited processing...

June 08, 2021

Niz-Chavez Prompts IJ to Terminate Proceedings: Defective NTA

Attorney Ted Murphy has some good news.  He filed this motion , and the IJ terminated proceedings!

June 08, 2021

Unpub. Watch!

I try to scour the Circuits for published immigration cases every day, but I rarely look at the unpublished cases.  If you find good unpublished cases, please send them my way via email to dan at cenizo dot com.  Thank you! Dan Kowalski

June 08, 2021

CA5 on Cuba, Political Opinion, Evidence: Gutierrez Acosta v. Garland (unpub.)

Gutierrez Acosta v. Garland (unpub.) "Gutierrez Acosta contends that the BIA erred in two respects. First, he challenges the BIA’s decision to give dispositive effect to the IJ’s finding that legitimate, non-political reasons could have motivated the harms he suffered. Even assuming the record supported that finding, he maintains that the mere existence of potential legitimate reasons does not in itself...

June 08, 2021

OCAHO Denies Facebook's Motion to Dismiss

OCAHO, June 2, 2021 "On December 3, 2020, Complainant, the United States, filed a complaint with the Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer (OCAHO) alleging that Respondent, Facebook, Inc. (Facebook), violated 8 U.S.C. § 1324b by discriminating against “U.S. workers” in its hiring and recruiting practices related to positions it earmarked for the permanent labor certification (PERM) process between...

June 07, 2021

BIA on Untimely Asylum Filing: Matter of D-G-C-, 28 I&N Dec. 297 (BIA 2021)

Matter of D-G-C-, 28 I&N Dec. 297 (BIA 2021) - The mere continuation of an activity in the United States that is substantially similar to the activity from which an initial claim of past persecution is alleged and that does not significantly increase the risk of future harm is insufficient to establish “changed circumstances” to excuse an untimely asylum application within the meaning of section 208(a)(2)(D) of the...