Special Immigrant Juvenile Status has been a means through which unaccompanied minors who have been abused, abandoned or neglected by one or both parents can obtain a green card and thus pursue their dream of living lawfully in the U.S.  However, under the current administration, denials have been issued when the young immigrants are already…

In the case of a government shutdown for budgetary reasons, only “essential” personnel is allowed to work. USCIS(U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services), that includes petitions and applications, is not affected because it is a fee-funded program -with some exceptions of programs that receive appropriated funds. Immigration Court (EOIR) proceeds with normal operations with its detainee docket,…

More than 7,000 Central American migrants have arrived at the US-Mexico border after crossing Mexico and parts of Central America, according to official figures released by the Mexican Interior Ministry. They are staying in temporary shelters in the border cities of Tijuana and Mexicali. The immigrants say they are fleeing persecution, poverty and violence in…

On October 10, 2018 the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposed to expand the list of benefits that could make a person a “public charge”. This new rule would make immigrants inadmissible for permanent residence if they receive some US subsistence aid. It is important to remember that: 1) Not all immigrants are subject to…

The termination of TPS (Temporary Protected Status) designation of Honduras will be effective on January 5, 2020, 18 months after the end of the current designation.  The Department of Homeland Security has announced that Hondurans with TPS need to re-register during the 60-day re-registration period that runs from June 5, 2018 through August 6, 2018.

On May 4, 2018, DHS Secretary announced her decision to end the Temporary Protected Status for Hondurans, after almost twenty years since Honduras got the designation.  As it is customary, there is an 18 months extension and so the effective termination date will be January 5, 2020.  The re-registration information will be announced shortly.  TPS…

On Wednesday night, the Act Concerning Special Immigrant Juvenile Status was passed in Connecticut, extending the age of a “minor child” from 18 to 21 years old if unmarried and dependent on a competent caregiver.  This is of particular relevance to unaccompanied minors who were abandoned, abused or neglected by one or both of his…

There has been much talk in the press recently about the “Migrant Caravan” that is traveling thousands of miles through Mexico towards the U.S. border. People who make up the caravan mostly come from Central America. Faced with gang violence, poverty and a lack of educational opportunities back home, caravan members left their home countries…

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has issued a policy directive regarding immigration enforcement actions at courthouses.  Since courthouses are not considered sensitive locations under the 2011 memorandum, enforcement actions will take place at courthouses. However ICE has set limits to the types and conditions of those enforcement actions. ICE will make immigration arrests inside the courthouses…

The Public Charge inadmissibility may become more common. Reuters reports that currently there is a draft circulating in the Department of Homeland Security that would require immigration officials to look more carefully at what kind of public assistance an applicant or applicant’s dependents, even if they are U.S. citizens, are receiving from the U.S. government.…