On August 25, 2020, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the anticipated temporary furlough of more than 13,000 employees, scheduled to begin on August 30, has been averted. The agency was able to avoid this due to a steady increase in the day-to-day inflow of revenue and receipts, along with unprecedented spending cuts. A federal agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security READ MORE READ MORE

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have announced an extension of flexibility in certain I-9 verification procedures until September 19, 2020, due to COVID-19. This is applicable only for employers working remotely. This temporary extension had been set to expire on August 18, but has been extended due to the ongoing precautionary measures. Temporary measures for flexibility in E-verification READ MORE READ MORE

Implementation of the controversial green card and immigrant visa wealth test was limited by a federal appellate court order on August 12, 2020. This allows the Trump administration to continue a wealth test policy in all states except New York, Connecticut, and Vermont. These three states had sued the Trump administration over the public charge rule. Last month, a federal judge in New York ruled that the READ MORE READ MORE

On July 31, 2020, a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was signed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), acting through the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and the Department of Labor (DOL). Under the MOA, the departments will provide access and share information about immigrant and nonimmigrant petition records and the data contained within the Office of Foreign Labor Certification and Labor Condition Application databases. READ MORE READ MORE

On July 31, 2020, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final rule with a significant rise in its fee schedule, affecting both individual immigrants and businesses. The new schedule has added new fees, establishing multiple fees for nonimmigrant worker petitions, and limiting the number of beneficiaries for certain forms. Additionally, the new rule removes certain fee exemptions, changes fee waiver requirements, and alters READ MORE READ MORE