New York Times: “Trump Administration Freezes Global Entry Enrollment in New York Over Immigration Law”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced last week that New York residents can no longer apply for or re-enroll in Trusted Traveler programs including Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, and FAST, because of the recently passed “Green Light Law” that allows undocumented immigrants in New York State to obtain driver’s licenses. Chad Wolf, the acting secretary of homeland security, said in a letter to the New York State government that DHS was taking this action since the “Green Light Law” prevents Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs & Border Protection (CBP) from gaining access to the state’s DMV databases without a court order.  “Although DHS. would prefer to continue our longstanding cooperative relationship with New York on a variety of these critical homeland security initiatives,” Wolf wrote in the letter, “this act and the corresponding lack of security cooperation from the New York DMV requires DHS to take immediate action to ensure DHS’s efforts to protect the homeland are not compromised.”

In response, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced on February 7 New York State's intent to sue the federal government regarding this DHS decision. "Time and time again President Trump and his Washington enablers have gone out of their way to hurt New York and other blue states whenever they can as punishment for refusing to fall in line with their dangerous and divisive agenda," Governor Cuomo said. "The Department of Homeland Security's decision to ban New Yorkers from the Trusted Traveler Program is yet another example of this administration's disrespect of the rule of law, hyper-partisan politics and use of extortion. There is no rational basis for this politically motivated ban, and we are taking legal action to stop the federal government from inconveniencing New Yorkers to score political points.”

The 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.

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Time to Get Ready for the H-1B (FY 2021) Cap Season and Prepare for Electronic Registration Starting March 1, 2020

New year, new H-1B cap! Now that we have (mostly) recovered from the parties and festivities of the holiday season, it’s time to dive straight into H-1B cap season. In about a month’s time—on March 1, 2020—we will be able to electronically submit H-1B registrations for fiscal year (FY) 2021 for individuals who have never had H-1Bs, commonly referred to as “cap cases.” (Non-cap H-1B petitions, including extensions of existing H-1Bs and change-of-employer H-1B petitions, can be filed throughout the year.) This year is notable since it is the first time that US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) will be using the H-1B electronic registration system on USCIS.gov. Earlier this month, USCIS formally announced the implementation of the electronic H-1B registration process and timeframe.

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The New York Times: “Supreme Court Allows Trump’s Wealth Test for Green Cards”

On Monday this week the Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision to stay the current nationwide injunction of the “public charge” final rule. With this decision, the administration can implement the “public charge’ final rule for now while the underlying litigation continues, except in Illinois, which has a state-specific injunction. The “public charge” final rule will make it more difficult for immigrants to receive Green Cards if they’ve ever used, or are seen as “likely to use,” public benefits such as food stamps, Section 8 housing vouchers, and Medicaid, among others. The rule arguably redefines the “historic meaning” of the term “public charge,” which will likely result in the denial of applications based on “a bureaucrat’s suspicions that they could use welfare.”

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Department of State Publishes Final Rule to Prevent Pregnant Women from Traveling to the US under B Visas for “Birth Tourism”

The Department of State (DOS) last week published a final rule effective January 24, 2020, that states consular officers will deny applications for B nonimmigrant visas if the officer believes that the foreign national applicant intends to travel to the US for the primary purpose of obtaining US citizenship for a child by giving birth in the US, commonly referred to as “birth tourism.” The final rule states that the DOS is addressing the issue of “birth tourism” since it “creates a potential long-term vulnerability for national security” and since the “birth tourism” industry is “rife with criminal activity, including international criminal schemes.”

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