ICE subpoenas information requested under California sanctuary policies

CE uses longstanding legal authority to demand information regarding criminal aliens

SAN DIEGO – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) served four immigration subpoenas Friday on the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office (SDSO) requesting information about multiple illegal aliens who were criminally arrested in San Diego, yet under California’s sanctuary state laws, the SDSO cannot honor immigration detainers or provide ICE non-public information about the criminal aliens to include notifying ICE if a criminal alien has been released back into the community.

Issuance of these immigration subpoenas is necessary because the SDSO is forced to comply with California’s sanctuary state laws, and therefore cannot cooperate in honoring immigration detainers or requests for non-public information to assist in locating criminal aliens that have been or will be released from custody. Read more at: https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-subpoenas-information-requested-under-california-sanctuary-policies

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information www.greencardadvice.com.

USCIS Supports Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation

Feb. 6 is designated as the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation. In support of this important issue, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) joins other U.S. government agencies and the international community in calling for an end to the practice of female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C).   

FGM/C is the partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for no medical reason. The practice has no medical benefit. It is a human rights violation and a crime under federal law. When committed against children, it is a form of child abuse. The U.S. government opposes FGM/C no matter the type, severity, or motivation for performing it. People who commit this crime can face prison time and significant immigration consequences. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates approximately 500,000 girls in the United States are at risk of having or have had FGM/C performed on them.  Read more at: https://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-supports-zero-tolerance-female-genital-mutilation

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information www.greencardadvice.com.

Texas company to pay $3 million after investigation reveals hiring illegal aliens

DALLAS – A North Texas construction company will pay the U.S. government $3 million for its role in a scheme to illegally employ illegal aliens.

This agreement was reached following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Five individuals have already pleaded guilty in connection with the scheme.

In a non-prosecution agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Speed Fab Crete, a Texas-based builder, admitted it illegally employed individuals not authorized to work in the United States, and agreed to forfeit $3 million to the U.S. Treasury for use in promoting law enforcement activities related to immigration enforcement. Read more at: https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/texas-company-pay-3-million-after-investigation-reveals-hiring-illegal-aliens#wcm-survey-target-id

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information www.greencardadvice.com.

DHS Obtains Another Judicial Victory on Implementing Public Charge Inadmissibility Rule

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Homeland Security obtained a pivotal judicial victory today after the U.S. Supreme Court stayed a nationwide injunction that prevented the agency from enforcing its regulatory interpretation of section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, a long-standing law that makes an alien inadmissible if the alien is likely at any time to become a public charge.

The high court granted DHS’s motion for a stay of the preliminary injunction issued by a single judge in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and recently upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Read more at: https://www.uscis.gov/news/news-releases/dhs-obtains-another-judicial-victory-implementing-public-charge-inadmissibility-rule

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information www.greencardadvice.com.

Here are five USCIS changes that will impact legal immigrants in the U.S. in 2020

The U.S. immigration system saw many changes ordered by the Trump administration during 2019, including some that will take effect in 2020.

The changes by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will have a significant impact on the lives of millions of immigrants living legally in the United States.

Designed to slow legal immigration and strengthen the Department of Homeland Security’s ability to enforce immigration laws, some of the changes create obstacles in the immigration process. Others streamline the path to obtain immigration benefits. Read more at: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/immigration/article239058173.html

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information www.greencardadvice.com.

USCIS Announces Countries Eligible for H-2A and H-2B Visa Programs

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in consultation with the Department of State (DOS), have announced the list of countries whose nationals are eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B visa programs in 2020. The notice listing the eligible countries will be published in the Federal Register on Jan. 17, 2020.

For 2020, the acting secretary of Homeland Security has determined, with the concurrence of the Office of the Secretary of State, that the countries designated as eligible in 2019 will remain unchanged. 

DHS maintains its authority to add countries to the eligible countries list at any time, and to remove any country whenever DHS and DOS determine that a country fails to meet the requirements for continued designation. Examples of factors that could result in the exclusion of a country or the removal of a country from the list include fraud, abuse, denial rates, overstay rates, human trafficking concerns, and other forms of noncompliance with the terms and conditions of the H-2 visa programs by nationals of that country. Read more at: https://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-announces-countries-eligible-h-2a-and-h-2b-visa-programs-1

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information www.greencardadvice.com.

USCIS Formally Announces Implementation of Electronic H-1B Registration Process and the Registration Timeframe

On Jan. 9, 2020, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published a Federal Register notice formally announcing the implementation of the H-1B registration process for fiscal year 2021 H‑1B cap-subject petitions. This notice is required for the initial implementation of the registration process, as stated in the Jan. 31, 2019, H-1B registration final rule.

USCIS will open an initial registration period from March 1 through March 20, 2020, for the FY 2021 H-1B numerical allocations.  

• During this timeframe, H-1B cap-subject petitioners, including those eligible for the advanced degree exemption, seeking to file a FY 2021 H-1B cap petition will be required to first register electronically with USCIS and pay the associated $10 H-1B registration fee for each submission.
• Prospective petitioners or their authorized representatives must electronically submit a separate registration naming each alien for whom they seek to file an H-1B cap-subject petition. Duplicate registrations are prohibited. Read more at: https://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-formally-announces-implementation-electronic-h-1b-registration-process-and-registration-timeframe

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information www.greencardadvice.com.