On December 11, 2023, President Biden issued a presidential proclamation which prohibits noncitizens found to enable or facilitate corruption from entering the United States. The visa restrictions are part of the Biden administration's anti-corruption initiative, as detailed in the proclamation and fact sheet. The proclamation grants the Secretary of State legal authority to identify individuals "who have enabled, facilitated, or otherwise been involved in significant corruption, including laundered proceeds or obstructed judicial or investigative processes, among other acts," as well as their immediate families, and act accordingly. Additionally, the Secretary of State may exempt any individual if their potential entry may be in the interest of the US. Notably, green-card holders and individuals with humanitarian immigration protections such as asylum and refugee status will not be affected by any visa restrictions.
Read moreRegional COVID-19 Public Health Travel Ban for Southern Africa Instituted
Just weeks after announcing new travel policies and lifting previous extensive COVID-19 travel restrictions, President Biden signed an Executive Order banning most travelers from eight countries in southern Africa in response to the ongoing national emergency caused by the newly emergent Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus to “protect public health.” Effective November 29, 2021, noncitizens of the United States who were physically present within “the Republic of Botswana, the Kingdom of Eswatini, the Kingdom of Lesotho, the Republic of Malawi, the Republic of Mozambique, the Republic of Namibia, the Republic of South Africa, and the Republic of Zimbabwe during the 14-day period preceding their entry or attempted entry into the United States” are not eligible to be issued a U.S. visa or be admitted to the United States.
Read morePresident Biden Reinforces the UK and European Travel Restrictions (and Adds South Africa)
On January 25, 2021, President Joseph Biden issued a proclamation to reinstate the Brazil, United Kingdom, Ireland, and Schengen Area travel restrictions that were set to be rescinded on January 26, 2021. Additionally, President Biden added South Africa as a country from which travel to the US is restricted because of the COVID-19 variant in that country, while Iran (Proclamation 9992) and China (Proclamation 9984) remain from previous proclamations.
Read moreJudge Issues Preliminary Injunction Halting Proclamation Suspending Entry of H-1B, H-2B, J-1, and L-1 Workers for Plaintiffs
In early October, Judge Jeffrey S. White of the US District Court for the Northern District of California temporarily blocked further implementation of section 2 of the June 22 presidential proclamation (PP 10052) that suspended entry into the US for H-1B highly-skilled workers, H-2B nonagricultural workers, J-1 exchange visitors including interns, trainees, teachers, camp counselors, and au pairs, and L international intracompany transfers, and all their dependents. This injunction is not nationwide and only applies to plaintiffs and members of the plaintiff groups. In his opinion, Judge White criticized the June 22 presidential proclamation noting it did not address the issue it was supposed to fix, namely helping the domestic economy by providing more job opportunities for Americans. “[T]he Proclamation completely disregards both economic reality and the pre-existing statutory framework. Furthermore, without any consideration of the impact on American firms and their business planning, the Proclamation abruptly changed the scope of immigration policy in the United States.”
Read moreState Department Broadens National Interest Exceptions for H-1B, H-2B, L-1, and J-1 Applicants
The US Department of State (DOS) has issued guidance explaining additional ways for H-1B, H-2B, L-1, and J-1 visa applicants to overcome the travel restrictions detailed in President Trump’s June 22, 2020, presidential proclamation (PP 10052). This June 22 proclamation suspended the entry of foreign nationals into the US on H-1B, H-2B, L, and J visas until at least December 31, 2020, and also extended the suspension of entry to the US of most immigrant visa applicants through the end of the year. The DOS guidance, issued August 12, 2020, broadened the exceptions to the June 22 proclamation, but not everyone is pleased. Jesse Bless, American Immigration Lawyers Association’s (AILA) director of litigation, criticized the guidance in an interview in Forbes: “The guidance is an attempt to place new statutory requirements for these visas in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act and, to the extent the law is ambiguous, without notice and comment to enact regulatory change.” He added: “Some may benefit, but it’s an unlawful attempt nonetheless.”
Read moreForbes: "Trump Immigration Policy Now Blocks World’s Most Highly Skilled"
Attorneys and foreign nationals are reporting that US consular officers in Europe are denying O-1 visas for individuals who “possesses extraordinary ability” or a “demonstrated record of extraordinary achievement” based on the March 11, 2020, presidential proclamation (PP 9993) that restricted travel to the US from the Schengen Area, which includes twenty-six European countries. This March 11 proclamation stated: “The entry into the United States, as immigrants or nonimmigrants, of all aliens who were physically present within the Schengen Area during the 14-day period preceding their entry or attempted entry into the United States is hereby suspended and limited.” (Other proclamations enacted similar travel restrictions for other countries including England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, as well as Brazil.)
Read morePRESIDENT TRUMP ISSUES PROCLAMATION SUSPENDING CERTAIN WORK VISAS INCLUDING H-1B’S FOR THOSE OUTSIDE THE US (UPDATED JULY 2, 2020)
President Trump today issued a proclamation temporarily suspending certain employment-based work visas for those outside the United States through December 31, 2020. This order, which does not affect foreign national workers already in the US in any category, could effectively bar hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals from coming to work in the US. President Trump claims his actions are necessary to protect US jobs amid the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Read morePresident Trump’s Proclamation Temporarily Suspending Entry of Immigrants to the US for 60 Days
President Trump yesterday signed a presidential proclamation effective today, April 23, 2020 at 11:59pm EDT, temporarily blocking for sixty days the issuance of immigrant visas (Green Cards) to those outside the United States. This proclamation is meant to assist with the economic recovery for American workers affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and comes after the president’s tweet earlier this week where he said he would “suspend immigration.” The proclamation itself is more limited in scope than President Trump’s initial claim and only applies for a period of sixty days to those foreign nationals applying for an immigrant visa (Green Card) who are physically outside the US.
Read moreThe US Embassy and Consulates in China Have Cancelled All Visa Appointments from February 3 to February 7 and China and the United States Have Issued Travel Restrictions
The State Department announced last week that due to the coronavirus outbreak originating in Wuhan, China, the US Embassy and Consulates in China have canceled all immigrant and nonimmigrant visa appointments from February 3 through February 7 and the Embassy and Consulates are closed to the public to comply with Chinese government restrictions on large gatherings of people. The US Embassy and Consulates will resume routine visa services as soon as they are able but the State Department cannot provide a specific date at this time as to when they will re-open.
Read moreAILA: “Civil Rights Coalition Halts Implementation of Presidential Proclamation Requiring Health Insurance”
Last week, litigators from the Justice Action Center (JAC), the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), and the Innovation Law Lab, with Sidley Austin LLP, filed suit in the US District Court for the District of Oregon to halt implementation of the Trump administration’s requirements for immigrant visa applicants to demonstrate to consular officers at the time of the interview that they will have health insurance within thirty days of entry to the US or have sufficient financial means to cover reasonably foreseeable medical costs. In response to the suit, Judge Michael Simon of the Federal District Court in Portland, Oregon, issued a nationwide temporary restraining order preventing the government from enforcing the proclamation that was set to go into effect Sunday, November 3. The court will consider the merits of the suit, Doe vs. Trump, in the coming days and weeks.
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