Submitted by Eliza Grinberg on December 18, 2017 - 9:39pm
On December 11, 2017, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released an interesting and troubling report titled “Concerns about ICE Detainee Treatment and Care at Detention Facilities.” The DHS OIG report “identified problems that undermine the protection of detainees’ rights, their humane treatment, and the provision of a safe and healthy environment” at four detention facilities during unannounced inspections. In this post, we will detail the DHS OIG findings and examine the corrective action that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has begun to undertake.
Submitted by Eliza Grinberg on December 16, 2017 - 9:05pm
On December 15, 2017, Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen announced that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will implement new security measures for the Visa Waiver Program. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) worked with the Department of State (DOS) and other relevant agencies to develop the new VWP enhancements. In this article, we will outline the new changes announced by Secretary Nielsen.
On December 6, 2017, President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in a historic address. In this post, I offer my thoughts on the great news.
On December 5, 2017, the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) released a report on its year-end statistics for FY 2017. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also discussed the ICE statistics in a broader report that also addressed U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) statistics. In this article, we will examine the ICE statistics.
Submitted by Eliza Grinberg on December 5, 2017 - 9:15pm
On December 5, 2017, the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) published the Southwest Border Migration statistics for fiscal year 2017. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also released national border security statistics. The fiscal year ran from October 1, 2016 to September 30, 2017. In this blog, we will examine the CBP statistics including thoughts on the numbers from leading figures at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
On December 2, 2017, the United States Mission to the United Nations announced that it has informed the United Nations Secretary-General that the United States is ending its participation in the Global Compact on Migration. The statement explains that the United States began participating in the Global Compact on Migration process in 2016. However, the United States has now concluded that the New York Declaration on migration, which began the process, “contains numerous provisions that are inconsistent with U.S. immigration and refugee policies and the Trump Administration’s immigration principles.” Accordingly, President Donald Trump determined that the United States would withdraw from the Compact process, which aims to reach an international consensus in 2018.
On November 8, 2017, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) released its immigrant visa bulletin for December 2017. The immigrant visa bulletin contains charts showing when immigrant visas will be available for beneficiaries of the employment-based and family-sponsored preference categories in December 2017. One week later, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) determined that beneficiaries of approved family-sponsored petitions who are applying for adjustment of status may use the filing dates in December, while their employment-based counterparts must use the final action dates. In this article, we will reproduce and examine the relevant filing date and final action date charts from the December 2017 Visa Bulletin. We will also look at news and notes on visa bulletin trends included in the DOS release.
Submitted by Eliza Grinberg on November 24, 2017 - 1:54pm
On June 26, 2017, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released its newest edition of the Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. The 06/26/17 edition of the Form I-485 is the only edition of the form that USCIS currently accepts. On September 29, 2017, the USCIS published a video on YouTube showing some of the changes it had made to the Form I-485 from previous editions. This post includes the video.
On November 20, 2017, TRAC Immigration published a very interesting report on the outcomes of asylum cases in immigration courts. In this post, we will assess some of the report’s findings.
Today, I would like to take a short aside from blogging about immigration law and politics to address the tragic death of the great Siberian baritone, Dmitri Hvorostovsky. He passed away at the young age of 55 after a two-year battle with brain cancer, leaving behind his wife and four children.
