Major Immigration Updates

On January 25, 2021, President Biden signed an Executive Order to maintain the COVID travel restrictions for entry to the U.S. within 14 days of being physically present in Brazil and most countries of Europe (Schengen countries, including the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland). The order also confirms that the COVID travel restrictions […]

On January 20, 2021 President Biden issued a Proclamation on Ending Discriminatory Bans on Entry to The United States. This Proclamation revokes the following Executive Orders issued by the Trump Administration, also known as the “Travel Bans”: *Executive Order 13780 of March 6, 2017:  clarifications on countries identified in Executive Order 13769 of January 27, […]

UPDATED 01/22/2021: USCBP USCBP has posted to its Twitter account that the Non-Essential travel restriction between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico has been extended for an additional period (to February 21, 2021). UPDATED 01/15/2021: Recent media reports, and an announcement from the Canadian Prime Minister, indicate that the Non-Essential travel restriction between Canada, the U.S. […]

Under a new federal Order that will take effect January 26, 2021, air passengers arriving to the US from a foreign country will be subject to new COVID-19 testing requirements.  Passengers will be required to get tested for COVID-19 infection no more than 3 days before their flight departs and to provide proof of the negative […]

On December 31, 2020, the Trump administration announced the extension of the following two policies: (1) Immigrant entry restriction extended to March 31, 2021: On April 22, 2020, a Presidential Proclamation narrowly restricted entry to the U.S. of certain persons outside the U.S. who have been granted immigrant visa stamps (issued by U.S. Consulates, after […]

UPDATED 12/20/2020: USCBP announces via Twitter that Non-Essential travel restriction between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico has been extended. The posting is not as definitive as past notices, referring to “land border ports of entry”, but it indicates the restriction “remains in effect”. While no expiration date is indicated, we assume that the restriction is […]

As a result of a court ruling on December 1, 2020, the two rules affecting the H-1B and E-3 visa programs, and PERM Labor Certifications that were described in our Update of October 21, 2020, are no longer in effect.  The rules affected are: The US Department of Labor Interim (DOL) Rule “Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary […]

On November 23, 2020, USCIS announced that it will further extend acceptance of certain Form I-797 Notices of Action for completing Forms I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification given delays in processing certain Employment Authorization Documents (EAD). This only applies to certain types of applications. The new deadline for use of this provision is February 1, 2021. […]

UPDATED 11/20/2020: USCBP announces via Twitter that Non-Essential travel restriction between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico has been extended. The posting is not as definitive as past notices, referring to “land border ports of entry”, but it indicates the restriction “remains in effect”. While expiration date is indicated, we assume that the restriction is extended […]

On November 12, 2020, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) posted to its website an update to its announcement and FAQ on “Phased Resumption of Routine Visa Services“. The announcement/FAQ can be viewed here. For updates on visa services and processing at a specific U.S. Embassy/Consulate, please check the DOS website (http://usembassy.gov).