USCIS is moving the processing of Form I-730 for following-to-join refugees from the Los Angeles Asylum Office to the newly established Form I-730 Processing Unit at the Asylum Vetting Center in Atlanta. The adjudicative processes for Form I-730s filed by refugee petitioners will remain the same, and only the processing location will change. USCIS will issue notices to petitioners with…
AILA Asylum Committee member Randall Chamberlain argues against in his article the expansion of the Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) that was recently announced by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau following a meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden. He states that the expansion closes a loophole within the agreement, which previously did not apply to people caught crossing irregularly…
U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Kyrsten Sinema have introduced the Asylum Seeker Work Authorization Act of 2023 with the aim of enabling asylum seekers to find employment and achieve self-sufficiency sooner. The waiting period before asylum seekers can receive work authorizations would be reduced under the legislation. Senator Angus King is a co-sponsor of the bill. The Asylum Seeker Work…
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced that the Biden administration will reveal a new border security plan to handle an expected surge of migrants after pandemic-era immigration restrictions lift on May 11. Republican lawmakers have criticized the administration’s handling of the border, with Sen. Roger Marshall even filing a vote of no confidence resolution against Mayorkas. Illegal border crossings are…
USCIS has introduced a new mail delivery process that allows lawful permanent residents to receive temporary evidence of their status without physically visiting a field office. This temporary evidence of status, known as an Alien Documentation, Identification and Telecommunication (ADIT) stamp, can be requested by those who do not have their Green Card or whose applications for a new Green…
USCIS has issued a temporary final rule that extends the use of a USCIS-contracted telephonic interpreter for certain asylum applicants during their interviews until September 12, 2023. The rule has been implemented to ensure the safety of USCIS officers and applicants during the COVID-19 pandemic. If an applicant cannot participate in their affirmative asylum interview in English, they may be…
DOS posted the visa bulletin for April 2023. USCIS determined that for April 2023, all family-sponsored preference categories must use the Dates for Filing chart and all employment-based preference categories must use the Final Action Dates chart in the visa bulletin. According to April 2023 visa bulletin, visa numbers will still be current for Second preference (F2A) – spouses and children…
The Department of State (DOS) has presented a report obtained from the National Visa Center (NVC) that displays the complete count of immigrant visa petitioners waiting in line under different categories and subcategories of family and employment preferences, subject to numerical limits, as of November 1, 2022. It should be noted that the figures only account for the petitions that…
The USCIS has issued policy guidance to clarify how eligibility for the O-1B visa classification for individuals of extraordinary ability in the arts and individuals of extraordinary achievement in the motion picture or television industry will be evaluated. The guidance was issued in response to stakeholder feedback and includes a chart in the appendix to provide examples of evidence that…
The USCIS has received enough petitions to meet the H-2B cap for the second half of FY2023, and has announced the filing dates for supplemental H-2B visas for the rest of FY2023. The final receipt date for new cap-subject H-2B work petitions requesting a start date on or after April 1, 2023, is February 27, 2023. USCIS has published a…
