Former vice president of Venezuela Tareck El Aissami and Venezuelan businessman Samark Lopez Bello added to ICE’s Most Wanted List for international narcotics trafficking, money laundering

NEW YORK – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) announced earlier this month the addition of former Venezuelan Vice President and current Minister of Industry and National Production Tareck Zaidan El Aissami Maddah and his co-conspirator, Venezuelan businessman Samark Jose Lopez Bello, to its Most Wanted list for international narcotics trafficking and money laundering. The action followed an ICE HSI New York investigation that led to their special designations as narcotics traffickers as well as sanctions imposed by the U.S. Treasury Department in 2017 and criminal charges filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York earlier this year.

El Aissami was appointed executive vice president of Venezuela in January 2017. He previously served as governor of Venezuela's Aragua state from 2012 to 2017, as well as Venezuela's minister of interior and justice starting in 2008. He facilitated shipments of narcotics from Venezuela, including control over planes that left from a Venezuelan air base and routing drugs through Venezuelan ports. In his previous positions, he oversaw or partially owned narcotics shipments of more than 1,000 kilograms from Venezuela on multiple occasions, including those with final destinations in Mexico and the United States. Read more at: https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/former-vice-president-venezuela-tareck-el-aissami-and-venezuelan-businessman-samark

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.

US Customs and Border Protection says systems are being restored after earlier outage snarled international arrivals at airports

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Friday evening that systems around the country were being restored after an earlier outage prevented U.S. immigration officials from processing thousands of arriving passengers during a busy summer travel day.

It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the problem at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, but the agency said it will continue investigating. There was no indication that the system was intentionally derailed, according to a CPB official.

CBP officers used “alternative procedures” to process travelers arriving from abroad, the agency said. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/16/computer-issue-snarls-immigration-processing-at-airports-around-the-us.html

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.

ICE Starts Immigration Site Visits For Students On STEM OPT

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers could question international students and company managers during new site visits underway to investigate students on Optional Practical Training (OPT) in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. This is the latest in a series of actions by the Trump administration aimed at companies, high-skilled professionals and international students.

“Though ICE has had the authority to make site visits since regulations governing the STEM OPT program were revised in May 2016, the agency has not begun to conduct inspections until now,” according to the Fragomen law firm. “The inspection may include individual interviews with company personnel, a review and discussion of the foreign national’s training plan and its implementation, and a review of his or her skills and degree in relation to the STEM degree. ICE may also request to view F-1 trainee workspaces or receive a tour of the premises.” Read more at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2019/08/12/ice-starts-immigration-site-visits-for-students-on-stem-opt/#61c54f075512

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.

USCIS Announces Final Rule Enforcing Long-Standing Public Charge Inadmissibility LawWASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a final rule that clearly defines long-standing law to better ensure that aliens seeking to enter and remain in the United States — either temporarily or permanently — are self-sufficient and rely on their own capabilities and the resources of family members, sponsors, and private organizations rather than on public resources. This final rule amends DHS regulations by prescribing how DHS will determine whether an alien is inadmissible to the United States based on his or her likelihood of becoming a public charge at any time in the future, as set forth in the Immigration and Nationality Act. The final rule addresses U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) authority to permit an alien to submit a public charge bond in the context of adjustment of status applications. The rule also makes nonimmigrant aliens who have received certain public benefits above a specific threshold generally ineligible for extension of stay and change of status.

WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a final rule that clearly defines long-standing law to better ensure that aliens seeking to enter and remain in the United States — either temporarily or permanently — are self-sufficient and rely on their own capabilities and the resources of family members, sponsors, and private organizations rather than on public resources.

This final rule amends DHS regulations by prescribing how DHS will determine whether an alien is inadmissible to the United States based on his or her likelihood of becoming a public charge at any time in the future, as set forth in the Immigration and Nationality Act. The final rule addresses U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) authority to permit an alien to submit a public charge bond in the context of adjustment of status applications. The rule also makes nonimmigrant aliens who have received certain public benefits above a specific threshold generally ineligible for extension of stay and change of status. Read more at:https://www.uscis.gov/news/news-releases/uscis-announces-final-rule-enforcing-long-standing-public-charge-inadmissibility-law

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.

Arriving in the USA Without an ESTA — TPG Staff Mistake Story

What Is an ESTA?

If you’ve never travelled to the States before, you might not know that you need a valid ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). It’s used to determine the eligibility of a foreign national to travel to the United States under the Visa Waver Program (VWP). The VWP was introduced in 2006 to enable nationals of 38 countries across the globe to gain easier access to travel to the US for business or leisure without going through the lengthy process of applying for a proper visa.

How Do I Apply for an ESTA?

There is only one official government site to apply for an ESTA. It is a relatively straight-forward process, which costs $14 (£11). I would advise doing your application as soon as you find out that you’ll be travelling to the States in order to make sure you avoid any last-minute issues like I did. It can take anywhere from a couple of hours to three days for the ESTA to be granted, and until it is, you will not be allowed to clear customs upon landing. Read more at: https://thepointsguy.co.uk/news/arriving-in-usa-without-esta-staff-mistake/

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.

USCIS Will Adjust International Footprint to Seven Locations

WASHINGTON — U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today plans to maintain operations at its international field offices in Beijing and Guangzhou, China; Nairobi, Kenya; and New Delhi, India. Previously, Acting Director Ken Cuccinelli directed the agency to continue operating in Guatemala City, Guatemala; Mexico City, Mexico; and San Salvador, El Salvador, as part of a whole-of-government approach to address the crisis at the southern border.

While retaining these seven international offices, USCIS plans to close the remaining thirteen international field offices and three district offices between now and August 2020. The first planned closures are the field offices in Monterrey, Mexico, and Seoul, South Korea, at the end of September. These organizational changes will allow more effective allocation of USCIS resources to support, in part, backlog reduction efforts. Read more at: https://www.uscis.gov/news/news-releases/uscis-will-adjust-international-footprint-seven-locations

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.

US immigration: ICE releases 300 people after Mississippi raids

US immigration officials say they have temporarily released about 300 people who were arrested in a massive raid in Mississippi on Wednesday.

Nearly 700 workers from seven agricultural processing plants were arrested for allegedly not having proper documentation to be in the US.

The raids sparked condemnation from Democrats as stories emerged of children separated from their parents.

Officials say they took steps to ensure any children were properly cared for.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said "approximately 680 removable aliens" had been detained during the operation, which saw agents arriving in buses to question and arrest workers at the plants.

President Donald Trump had announced an immigration crackdown in June, saying "millions of illegal aliens who [had] found their way into the US" would be removed. Read more at: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-49283157

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.