The Supreme Court Preserves Birthright Citizenship: What Trump v. Barbara Means for Immigrant Families
Editor’s Note: This article is the first in a two-part series examining the major immigration decisions issued by the U.S. Supreme Court during its recently completed term. In our companion article, we’ll look at the other significant immigration decisions from this term and explain what they may mean for immigrant families and those planning to…
The Little Things That Often Become Big Immigration Problems
One of the reasons I enjoy practicing immigration law is that no two cases are exactly alike. Even when two clients appear to have very similar situations, the details are almost always different. After working in this field for over 30 years, having had the benefit of working with thousands of immigrants, and after reading…
What Online Immigration Forums Can Teach Us – And What They Can’t
People are sometimes surprised when I tell them that I occasionally browse Reddit, Facebook groups, and other online immigration forums. As an attorney, I’m obviously not looking there for legal authority or official guidance. But I do think those communities have value. They give me a real-time look at what applicants are experiencing, what they’re…
The Real Legal Fight Over the New USCIS Adjustment of Status Memo
Last week, I wrote about USCIS’s new policy memorandum reframing Adjustment of Status (“AOS”) as a form of discretionary relief that should only be granted in “extraordinary” circumstances. At the time, the biggest concern was practical. Immigration lawyers were trying to figure out whether USCIS officers would begin viewing ordinary family-based adjustment cases differently than…
New Public Charge Guidance: How the State Department’s Expanded Health and Financial Review May Affect Visa Applicants
Recent reporting confirms that the U.S. Department of State (DOS) has issued new internal guidance—via a cable distributed to consular posts worldwide—significantly expanding how consular officers evaluate visa applicants under the public charge ground of inadmissibility (INA §212(a)(4)). Although the statute itself has not changed, this directive reshapes the analysis by placing far heavier weight…
New USCIS Policy: Understanding How “Anti-American Views” Could Impact Your Immigration Case
Navigating U.S. immigration law can be complex, and recent policy updates from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) have introduced significant changes, particularly concerning how “anti-American views” can affect your immigration case. Everyone who is seeking U.S. immigration benefits should understand these new guidelines. What’s Changing? Effective immediately for all pending and newly filed requests,…
USCIS Announces that Applicants for Adjustment of Status no longer need to prove that they have received the COVID-19 Vaccination
On January 22, 2025, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service announced a new policy that it will waive the requirement that applicants for adjustment of status (Form I-485) present proof that they have received the COVID-19 vaccination on their I-693 Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record. USCIS further confirmed that from and…
Department of State updates instructions for Immigrant Visa Applicants who were refused under Presidential Proclamations 9645 or 9983
The United States Department of State has provided updated instructions on immigrant and nonimmigrant visa processing after the rescission of Presidential Proclamations 9645 and 9983. These Trump-era Proclamations temporarily suspended entry into the United States of certain nationals, depending on visa type, who were from Burma, Eritrea, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Libya, Nigeria, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan,…
The End of the Trump-era Public Charge Rule
Its official! The Trump-era Public Charge Rule has found its way to the dust bin of history. Acting on a joint request from the Biden Administration (which refused to defend the policies in court) and the Plaintiff that was challenging the Rule, on March 9, 2021 the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed a case that was…
May 29, 2020 Presidential Proclamation Suspending the Entry of Certain Students and Researchers from the People’s Republic of China
On May 29, 2020, President Trump announced his latest Presidential Proclamation aimed at restricting Immigration into the United States. Scheduled to take effect on June 1, 2020, the Proclamation effectively suspends the entry of all nationals from the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) who are seeking to enter the U.S. on a nonimmigrant F or…
