Immigration Update – September 28, 2026
Headlines: DOS Cable Acknowledges That DV and IV Pauses Are Lifted – The Department of State sent a cable to all diplomatic and consular posts acknowledging that Diversity Visa and immigrant visa pauses ordered by the Trump administration are no longer in effect following a court order. NFAP Finds That DHS Wildly Overestimated Revenue From […]
Immigration Update – September 21, 2026
Headlines: Federal Court Postpones Effective Date of Final Rule Limiting Duration of Status for F, J, I Nonimmigrants – A federal court in Massachusetts issued a preliminary injunction that postponed the effective date of a Department of Homeland Security final rule that would have ended duration-of-status admissions for F, J, and I nonimmigrants effective September […]
Immigration Update – September 15, 2026
Headlines: DHS Proposes to Eliminate 60-Day Grace Period for Certain Nonimmigrant Workers Upon Cessation of Employment Before Authorized Stay Expires – The Department of Homeland Security has proposed to eliminate the 60-day grace period after cessation of employment before the expiration of a nonimmigrant worker’s authorized period of stay. USCIS Reaches H-2B Cap for First […]
Immigration Update – September 10, 2026
Headlines: District Court Judge Rules Against Trump in Birthright Citizenship Case – A U.S. district judge in Maryland ruled against President Trump’s latest executive order attempting to limit birthright citizenship. U.S. District Judge Rules in Favor of Stanford Daily on Free Speech for F-1 Students – A U.S. district judge ruled in favor of a […]
Immigration Update – August 31, 2026
Headlines: Trump Administration Plans to Revoke Visas of B Visitors Who Applied for Asylum – According to reports, the Trump administration plans to begin revoking the nonimmigrant visas of up to 200,000 B-1 business visitors and B-2 tourists who entered with a visa issued between 2016 and 2026 and then applied for asylum. DHS Proposes […]
Federal Court Vacates State Department’s 75-Country Immigrant Visa Suspension
By Cyrus D. Mehta and Manjeeta Chowdhary * On August 21, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a significant decision in Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC) v. Rubio, No. 1:26-cv-00858-JAV, vacating the Department of State’s policy suspending the issuance of immigrant visas to nationals of 75 countries. […]
Immigration Update – August 24, 2026
Headlines: Federal District Court Strikes Down Trump Administration’s Suspension of Immigrant Visas for Nationals of 75 Countries – The court held that the policy is contrary to law and was issued in excess of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s statutory authority. The court therefore vacated the policy under the Administrative Procedure Act. The judgment also […]
Immigration Update – August 17, 2026
Headlines: DHS Considers Elimination of 60-Day Grace Period Following Termination of Sponsored Employment – If the proposed rule is finalized as anticipated, employees who are terminated early from their positions and their family members may need to leave the United States immediately and (if they wish) apply for new status from abroad at a U.S. […]
Immigration Update – August 10, 2026
Headlines: DOS Issues Final Rule on Permanent Visa Bond Program for B-1/B-2 Visitors – Under the program, an applicant for a visa as a temporary visitor for business or pleasure (B-1/B-2) may be required to submit a visa bond “to ensure that the alien maintains his or her nonimmigrant status and departs as required. Consular […]
Immigration Update – August 03, 2026
Headlines: Trump Administration Considers $100,000 Fee for International Students to Work in United States – The Trump administration is considering charging a $100,000 fee for international students wanting to work in the United States after graduation, likely via the Optional Training Program. DHS Detentions Increase at Airports – A growing number of foreign nationals have […]
Immigration Update – July 27, 2026
Headlines: First Circuit Denies Stay in $100,000 H-1B Fee Case – The $100,000 H-1B application fee remains vacated pending a decision on the merits in the underlying appeal. Court Issues Administrative Stay of Certain USCIS Policies Related to TPS-Based EAD Expiration and Asylum Fees – A U.S. district court issued an order granting, in part, […]
Immigration Update – July 24, 2026
Headlines: DHS Finalizes Rule Eliminating Duration of Status for F, J, and I Nonimmigrants – The Department of Homeland Security released its long-anticipated final rule changing the admission period in the F, J, and I classifications from duration of status to admission for a fixed time period tied to the nonimmigrant’s program. USCIS Reaches FY […]
DHS Ends Duration of Status for F, J, and I Nonimmigrants: What the Final Rule Means
By Cyrus Mehta and Damira Zhanatova* On July 17, 2026, DHS published a final rule that is scheduled to take effect on September 15, 2026 and that fundamentally changes the admissions and status-maintenance framework for F students, J exchange visitors, and I representatives of foreign information media. Although the rule applies across all three categories, […]
Immigration Update – July 13, 2026
Headlines: USCIS Again Moves Work Authorization Expiration Date for Certain TPS Recipients, Issues Guidance for Employers – The new guidance, which moves the expiration date for work authorization to July 17, 2026, for Burma (Myanmar), Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, and Yemen, and to July 24, 2026, for Haiti, supersedes recent previous guidance. E-Verify […]
Immigration Update – July 06, 2026
Headlines: Supreme Court Upholds Birthright Citizenship – The Supreme Court ruled that children born in the United States to parents unlawfully or temporarily present are automatically citizens at birth under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause of the U.S. Constitution. USCIS Extends Work Authorization for Seven TPS Countries Under Court Order – The guidance, which states […]
Immigration Update – July 01, 2026
Headlines: Supreme Court Increases Re-Entry Risks for Green Card Holders With Criminal History – The Court ruled 6-3 that border officers do not need clear and convincing evidence of a crime at the time of re-entry to reclassify a returning green card holder as applying for admission for the first time. Supreme Court Rules That […]
Immigration Update – June 22, 2026
Headlines: DOS Creates $750 Fee for Expedited B-1/B-2 Nonimmigrant Visa Interview Appointments – The new fee, effective July 1, will allow eligible B-1/B-2 visa applicants to secure an interview appointment at selected posts within 10 business days, subject to availability. Visa Bulletin for July 2026 Includes Updates for China, India, Philippines – The Department of […]
Global Immigration Update – June 2026
FEATURE ARTICLE IMMIGRATION OPPORTUNITIES FOR IRANIANS: AN OVERVIEW – This article provides an update on immigration opportunities for Iranians in several countries. COUNTRY UPDATES Canada – The government has released official details for the permanent residence pathway for 33,000 workers. In other news, a PGWP language test upload slot has been added to the Immigration, […]
Immigration Update – June 15, 2026
Headlines: Federal Court Pauses Decision to Declare $100,000 H-1B Fee an Unlawful Tax – On June 12, 2026, a U.S. district court partially stayed its decision on June 8, 2026, that vacated a Department of Homeland Security policy imposing a $100,000 fee on certain new H-1B petitions. USCIS Follows Compliance Order to Resume Processing of […]
Immigration Update – June 08, 2026
Headlines: DHS Proposes to Limit Eligibility for Certain Discretionary Work Authorization – The Department of Homeland Security issued a proposed rule to limit and clarify eligibility for discretionary employment authorization for those “paroled into the United States temporarily for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit, who have been granted deferred action, or against whom […]
