By Roujin Mozaffarimehr On February 3, 2021, USCIS issued a new Policy Memorandum[1] that rescinds the Trump-era Computer Programmer Policy Memorandum.[2] This 2021 Policy Memorandum was issued in direct response to the decision issued in the Ninth Circuit in Innova Solutions v. Baran. By way of background, in December 2000, the Director of the USCIS…
by Roujin Mozaffarimehr On January 25, 2021, President Biden signed an Executive Order[1] which effectively revoked President Trump’s Buy American and Hire American Executive Order (commonly known as “BAHA”).[2] On April 18, 2017, President Trump signed the Buy American and Hire American Executive order, which was used as the basis for many restrictive immigration policies…
by Roujin Mozaffarimehr On October 7, 2020, the Department of Labor published an interim final rule (IFR) (85 FR 63918) that dramatically changes the calculation methodology of the prevailing wage for OES-based wage levels for all occupations. This new rule took effect immediately on October 8, 2020 and impacts wage rates for H-1Bs, H-1B1s, and…
By Radhika Balaji, Associate Attorney On August 3, 2020, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order (EO 13940) on “Aligning Federal Contracting and Hiring Practices With the Interests of American Workers.”[1] This EO directs heads of federal agencies to review federal contracts and assess any negative impact on U.S. workers stemming from the use of…
By Roujin Mozaffarimehr As we reported back in June, on June 22, 2020, President Donald Trump signed a Presidential Proclamation suspending the entry of H-1B and H-2B visas and accompanying dependents, certain J visas, and L visas and accompanying dependents, and extending the April 2020 suspension on certain immigrants. banning visa issuance through December 31, 2020. The…
By Roujin Mozaffarimehr As we reported last month, on June 22, 2020, President Donald Trump signed a Presidential Proclamation suspending the entry of H-1B and H-2B visas and accompanying dependents, certain J visas, and L visas and accompanying dependents, and extending the April 2020 suspension on certain immigrants. banning visa issuance through December 31, 2020.…
By Roujin Mozaffarimehr and Kalpana Peddibhotla On June 22, 2020, President Donald Trump signed a Presidential Proclamation intended to suspend the entry of certain nonimmigrants purportedly present a risk to the U.S. labor market in the period of economic recovery following the COVID-19 outbreak.[1][2] The suspension is set to take effect at 12:01 AM…
By Chloe Tomlinson & Kalpana V. Peddibhotla On Thursday June 18, 2020, the Supreme Court blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to end Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). This decision addressed whether the Trump administration followed proper procedures in its’ decision to end DACA. In a majority 5-4 decision written by Chief Justice Roberts, the…
By Roujin Mozaffarimehr. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to unfold and impact all aspects of society, concerns have arisen as to the future of the F-1 OPT program under the Trump Administration. This post describes the history of OPT, the legal challenges and attacks on OPT, and, while no action has been taken to change…
By Kalpana V. Peddibhotla and Desire Lance. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected immigration into the U.S. on a number of fronts. Due to economic uncertainty, companies are less willing to initiate the transfer or hire of foreign nationals. As travel restrictions linger and U.S. Consulate services are suspended, it is difficult for foreign nationals to…