On September 5, 2017, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) formally rescinded the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program established under the Obama Administration. The decision to rescind the program was announced by Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the DHS subsequently issued Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on its website regarding the terms of the rescission of the DACA program This rescission will have immediate and significant consequences for those who...

On Sunday, September 03, 2017, Politico.com reported that the White House has “unofficially confirmed” that the Trump Administration will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, with a six-month delay. As of today, it is unclear whether this reported decision to end the DACA program is confirmed. ' Also unclear is the timeline and terms for termination of the program. Another major open question is whether those with DACA...

On January 18, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court announced it will hear United States v. Texas. This means that the Supreme Court weigh in on the legality of President Obama’s executive action on immigration, specifically the expansion of “deferred action” to certain parents of U.S. citizens and residents (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans & Residents – “DAPA”), as well as to individuals who were brought to the United States as...

Yesterday, November 20, 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court asking the Court to overturn the injunction currently blocking the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans & Residents (DAPA) and expanded Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) programs. In requesting the Supreme Court’s review of the decision of a 3 Judge Panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals,...

On Monday, November 9, 2015, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the lower court’s preliminary injunction (temporary block) of President Obama’s Deferred Action for Parents of Americans & Residents (DAPA) program and expansion of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) program. The decision of the 3 judge panel was a divided decision; with 2 Judges determining that the 26 states that brought suit had standing to bring suit and...

On May 26, 2015, USCIS will begin accepting applications for employment authorization (Form I-765) for certain spouses of H-1B foreign national workers. The H-1B foreign worker must 1) be in valid H-1B status in the United States and 2) must also be the beneficiary of an approved I-140 immigrant visa petition for an alien worker. If the principal H-1B holder meets both of these requirements, his or her spouse who is...

We are patiently and optimistically waiting for the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to make a decision on whether to allow the Department of Homeland Security to implement the DAPA and expanded DACA programs while the Courts decide whether the DAPA and DACA programs themselves are legal. On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced that his administration would implement a Deferred Action program for Parents of American Citizens and Residents (DAPA)...

Over the past decade L-1B specialized knowledge petitions for foreign national employees have slowly become the bane of multinational companies’ existence.   The L-1B non-immigrant visa was introduced in 1970 as a way to facilitate international businesses’ ability to facilitate the management and transfer of foreign national employees from offices abroad and thus more efficiently manage their workforce.  The L-1B program allows multinational companies to temporarily transfer foreign national employees from...

On February 16, 2015, a federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary injunction that temporarily halts the implementation of the expansion of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans & Residents (DAPA) programs. The expansion of DACA and the DAPA programs were announced as a part of President Obama’s Executive Immigration Action plan on November 20, 2014. Effect of the Temporary Injunction on...

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has announced that applications for the expansion of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) will be available starting February 18, 2015. On June 15, 2012, the Obama Administration initially announced DACA as a program to benefit a group commonly referred to as the “DREAMERs” - children who were brought to the United States at a young age and grew up in this country but...

As part of the President’s administrative program to expand immigration benefits under current law, two important aspects related to research and development in the United States are included. First, DHS Secretary Johnson directed USCIS to issue guidance or promulgate regulations to clarify the standard for which a National Interest Waiver might be granted. A National Interest Waiver permits certain non-residents to seek lawful permanent residency without an employer sponsor if they...

Among the announcements made during President Obama’s administrative immigration reform on November 20, 2014, was the announcement that USCIS is being directed to clarify the term “same or similar” pursuant to AC21. DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson directed USCIS to issue written guidance clarifying what constitutes a “same or similar” job under current law. Secretary Johnson cites a difficulty with qualified immigrants seeking new job opportunities or promotion opportunities due to the...

Senior Associate Attorney Jennifer Casey was recently published in an opinion piece featured on Fox News Latino. Jennifer addressed the media’s frequent mischaracterization of President Obama’s Executive Action on Immigration as “Legalization.” Jennifer's Op-Ed is copied below, and can be found on Fox News Latino's website here: http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/opinion/2014/11/24/opinion-immigration-attorneys-plea-to-media-stop-using-l-word/ ******************************************************************************** Opinion: An immigration attorney’s plea to the media: Stop using the 'L' word By Jennifer Casey- Published November 24, 2014 - Fox...

On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced a variety of executive measures that his administration will undertake in order to improve and enhance the current immigration system in the United States and to positively impact the U.S. economy.  One of these measures is to clarify “specialized knowledge” for purposes of the L-1B Intracompany Transferee Program. Under the L-1B Program, a multinational company is permitted to transfer employees possessing “specialized knowledge” in...

On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced a variety of executive administrative measures that his administration will undertake in order to improve and enhance the current immigration system in the United States.  A number of the President’s initiatives are aimed at U.S. businesses, foreign investors, researchers, inventors and foreign workers. In an effort to grow the U.S. economy and create jobs, the President announced that U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS)...

On November 20, 2014, President Barack Obama announced the implementation of a wide range of administrative measures that the administration will undertake in an effort to improve the functioning of the American immigration system. One of the initiatives announced by the President is the Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) Program.  This program provides temporary immigration benefits to certain parents of U.S. citizen and lawful permanent resident children. In order to...