Each day the United States detains tens of thousands of people in detention facilities and local jails throughout the country. More than 400,000 are detained (including border apprehensions) on average each year. People are detained in the border area in facilities run by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as well as in privately-owned and operated facilities throughout the country that are contracted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). ICE also contracts local jails throughout the country to hold detainees held during removal proceedings.
Read moreHave You Ever Been Arrested?
Whether and how to divulge one’s history of contact with law enforcement is an area of substantial confusion among applicants for admission to the US under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) as well as for applicants for visas, Green Cards, or citizenship. Not only can such a simple question conjure the very worst moments in someone’s life, the appearance of the question alone can portend a potential delay or denial of the benefit foreign nationals are seeking.
Read moreLesser Known Paths to Permanent Residency
“How do I get a Green Card” is one of the most common questions attorneys at our law firm receive. And while it may be a surprise to many that a Green Card (that is, permanent residency in the US) is not right for everyone nevertheless people are always keen on obtaining one, especially if they have spent a few years in the US. There are generally two paths to permanent residency—via employment or family. But those aren’t exactly the only ways, and we thought it would be interesting to explore several of the lesser-known paths to that coveted Green Card.
Read moreTrump’s Executive Order "Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States" – A Sign of Things to Come, or Business as Usual?
In the same week that President Trump issued his now infamous executive order suspending refugee admissions into the US and temporarily barring entry to passport holders from seven predominantly Muslim countries, he also issued two other executive orders that affect immigration. These other two orders—“Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements,” which, among other things, directs the immediate construction of a border wall, and "Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States"—did not receive quite the same level of media attention as the “travel ban,” which has been the subject of already extensive federal litigation. Still, both may have a very broad impact on immigration and immigrant communities in the US. Trump's other executive actions signed early February—including "Enforcing Federal Law with Respect to Transnational Criminal Organizations and Preventing International Trafficking," which among other actions aims to increase prosecutions for immigration and visa fraud, and "Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety," which will set up a task force to develop "strategies to reduce crime, including, in particular, illegal immigration"— may also signify that the scope of individuals likely to be targeted and deported is widening.
Read moreOPINION: Trump and Immigration: What to Expect
It is no exaggeration to say that President-Elect Trump made immigration a centerpiece of his campaign, ever since the summer of 2015 when he launched it with his famous speech labeling Mexican immigrants drug dealers and rapists although some might be “good people.” He called for a total ban on Muslim immigration to the US, and applauded the Supreme Court’s ruling upholding the injunction on President Obama’s expanded DACA/DAPA program. But now that he’s been elected, what can we expect from President Trump on immigration beginning next week on January 20?
Read more5 Immigration-Related Tips for When a Company or Foreign National Moves or Changes Work Locations
In today’s increasingly mobile world, companies and workers are in constant motion (including, very recently, our firm which moved from the Meatpacking District to Chelsea at the beginning of this month). It is very common for companies and foreign nationals to move across international borders, either temporarily or permanently, and also for companies and foreign nationals to move within countries from city to city. Such moves impact pending immigration cases as well as existing visas. Here are our top five immigration-related tips for foreign nationals and companies to consider when making any permanent move in location.
Read moreAll about Visa Reciprocity
Reciprocity is a principle of international law stating that the benefits, privileges, and penalties granted by one country to citizens of another country should be returned in-kind when the reverse occurs. In immigration law, this means that when a foreign government imposes certain fees or conditions on US citizens for certain visa types, the US government will impose the same fees or conditions on nationals of that country for similar visa types.
Read moreOPINION: Obama’s Mixed Legacy on Immigration
Obama’s election signaled a turning point in American politics and was welcomed by progressives everywhere as the culmination of generations of civil rights activism. Immigrant communities, particularly Latin American communities, were a major part of the Obama coalition, and looked forward to significant and long overdue reform of immigration laws that would provide a path to citizenship for the more than 12 million estimated undocumented immigrants in the United States.
Read moreOPINION: United States v. Texas: Where Do We Go from Here?
By now, most people have heard about the decision last month by the US Supreme Court that effectively halted the Obama administration’s plans to defer deportations of and grant work cards to millions of undocumented immigrants present in the US. These programs, known as DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents) and expanded DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), would have effectively temporarily blocked the deportations of the millions of people whose children are US citizens or lawful permanent residents (Green Card holders), or who were brought to the US as children and were either in school or the military or had been. (A prior DACA program remains in effect.) These programs were announced by the president in November 2014 after years of Congressional inaction on comprehensive immigration reform, along with a number of other initiatives, most of which have proceeded.
Read moreAn Introduction to Medical Ineligibilities for Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Visas
Whether applying for immigrant (Green Card) or nonimmigrant (temporary) visas, foreign nationals must be found “admissible” to the US. There are many legal grounds of “inadmissibility” that make people inadmissible, including criminal and security grounds. A lesser-known basis of inadmissibility relates to health and medical issues, which is what we will focus on in this post.
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