Kristen Ng

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On Oct. 8, 2017, the White House released the promised Immigration Principles & Policies (Principles & Policies) which outline the Trump Administration’s position on immigration. This document is broken into three parts: 1) Border Security, 2) Interior Enforcement, and 3) Merit-Based Immigration. A summary of each part is broken down below.
Continue Reading The White House Releases Immigration Principles & Policies

On Sept. 5, 2017, Attorney General (AG) Jeff Sessions announced that the Trump Administration will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).  DACA is a mode of temporary relief given to children (now college-aged or older) who entered the United States without inspection with their parents and allowed them to apply for temporary work authorization if they met certain criteria. This policy was established through an Executive Order issued June 2012 by the Obama Administration. Since then, DACA has undergone scrutiny and much debate, and with the change of administrations, it has been clear that this policy would change, if not end.

AG Jeff Sessions announced that DACA will end, with a wind-down process overseen by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).  Effective immediately, the following will happen as per the recently released DHS memo:

  • DHS will adjudicate, on a case by case basis, initial requests that have been accepted as of today (Sept. 5).
  • After today (Sept. 5), DHS will reject all DACA first-time applications.
  • DHS will adjudicate all properly-filed renewal applications as of today, and will continue to adjudicate applications for those whose benefits will expire by March 5, 2018. Those applications will only be accepted until Oct. 5, 2017. All other renewal requests will be rejected.
  • Current approvals and valid employment authorization document (EAD) cards will not be revoked and will remain valid until the expiration dates.
  • No new advance parole (AP) applications (an AP is permission to travel) will be accepted or approved and current/pending AP applications will be closed (fees refunded). Currently, valid Advance Parole will still be valid and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will retain the discretion to admit a person based on the AP.
  • Discretion will be retained by DHS to terminate or deny deferred action at any time deemed appropriate.
  • U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will not provide this information proactively to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and CBP for enforcement proceedings, but this policy may be modified.

Continue Reading Attorney General Jeff Sessions Announces the Rescission of DACA

Today, President Trump joined Senator David Perdue (R-GA) and Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) announcing the introduction of a bill titled “Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy Act,” known also as the “RAISE Act.”  The president praised the work of the senators and in a statement added, “We want a merit-based system. One that protects workers, our workers, our taxpayers, and one that protects our economy. We want it merit-based.”

Highlights from the bill are included below:

  • Eliminates the diversity visa program.
  • Sets the maximum number of refugee admissions to 50,000 per fiscal year.
  • Worldwide level of family sponsored immigrants is 88,000. The number of humanitarian paroles, if the individual has not departed or has not adjusted status, will be counted against that number.
  • A new classification is created for the alien parents of adult U.S. citizens for admission for five years, but will not be able to receive public benefits or work authorization.
  • A person cannot naturalize if the person who executed an affidavit of support failed to reimburse the Federal Government for all mean-tested public benefits received by the person during the 5-year period.
  • Annual and quadrennial reports will be required to monitor the progress and numbers.
  • The creation of an immigration points system to replace the employment-based immigrant visa categories.
  • Effective date will be the first day of the first fiscal year that begins after the date of enactment.  Those exempt are those who have been granted admission prior to enactment, but he or she will need to enter within one year of enactment.

Continue Reading President Trump Endorses New Bill Addressing ‘Green Card’ Immigration

As previously reported, the Supreme Court of the United States lifted the injunctions that were granted by the Fourth and Ninth Circuits after President Trump issued his second Executive…
Continue Reading Supreme Court of the United States Partially Lifts Injunctions from Travel Ban – Implications for Foreign Nationals

20229_Carousel-InventionOn Jan. 17, 2017, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published its final rule to implement discretionary parole authority to increase, promote, and encourage entrepreneurship, innovation, and job creation in the United States. This final rule will add new regulatory provisions that will allow DHS to grant parole in certain circumstances and by discretion to entrepreneurs of start-up entities who are able to show through evidence the potential for business growth, job creation, and public benefit to the United States. Potential may be evidenced by the receipt of capital investment from U.S. investors or obtaining awards or grants from government entities. The criteria will be discussed in more detail below. If the parole is granted, the entrepreneur will be allowed a temporary stay of up to 30 months that may be extended for an additional 30 months. The final rule will be effective on July 16, 2017.

Requirements to qualify for parole for entrepreneurs:

  • Meet the definition of entrepreneur:  An entrepreneur is defined as an alien who possesses a substantial ownership interest in a start-up entity and is actively engaged in the operations of the entity, and who has the qualifications to perform such duties. A substantial ownership interest means possession of at least 10 percent of the start-up entity for the first parole application, and at least 5 percent ownership interest if applying for a renewal of the parole.  During the initial period of parole, the entrepreneur must maintain at least 5 percent ownership interest in the entity, and during the subsequent period of re-parole, may reduce the ownership interest, but must always maintain an ownership interest in the entity.
  • Entity must meet the definition of start-up entity:  A start-up entity is defined as an entity created within the five years immediately preceding the filing of the alien’s initial parole application. If the entity has received a grant, award, or investment, then it will be considered as recently formed if it was created within five years preceding the receipt of the above-mentioned items.
  • Definition of a government award or grant: This means an award or grant for economic development, research and development, or job creation that has been given by a U.S. federal, state, or local government entity.

Continue Reading DHS Finalizes International Entrepreneur Rule

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the Fall Unified Agenda, updating the Improvement of the Employment Creation Immigrant Regulations.  DHS has now moved the stage of rulemaking from “long-term…
Continue Reading OMB Fall Unified Regulatory Agenda- Improvement of the Employment Creation Immigrant Regulations (EB-5)

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reviewed a sampling of unadjudicated I-526 petitions from the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2015 to obtain information on: 1) the ratio between investors…
Continue Reading Summary of GAO report – Immigrant Investor Program: Proposed Project Investments in Targeted Employment Areas

On December 17, 2015, two days after Senate and House leadership recommended a “clean” extension of the EB-5 program until September 30, 2016, Senator Flake (R-AZ), with Senator Cornyn (R-TX) and Senator Schumer (D-NY), introduced S.2415, the “EB-5 Integrity Act of 2015.”  This is the first new piece of EB-5 reform legislation introduced since the EB-5 program’s original sunset date of September 30, 2015.  It is the sixth bill introduced in the 114th Congress that seeks to reform the EB-5 program.

The bill includes significant oversight and integrity reforms, many of which reflect earlier Senate legislation introduced in June of 2015. The integrity measures included in S.2415, as with those in prior bills, have been largely welcomed by the EB-5 industry.  Several of these provisions follow recommendations from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Government Accountability Office (GAO), and leaders in the Congress.  The majority of the provisions mirror the reforms proposed in S.1501 and later discussion draft bills that circulated amongst stakeholders in November and December 2015.  The following are some of the main integrity measures designed to reform the EB-5 program:Continue Reading EB-5 Integrity Reform Bill Introduced As Congress Adjourns for the Holiday – Summary of S.2415: EB-5 Integrity Act of 2015