On January 27, 2017, President Trump signed his third Executive Order (EO), making significant changes in United States immigration policy. Employers should widely disseminate this information to all employees, and not limit the communication to individuals sponsored by your company.
As of Monday, January 30, 2017, immediate enforcement of the ban on U.S. entry of certain foreign nationals (those “from” Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen) has resulted in denials of admission, detention, and the return of affected foreign nationals. Further, many foreign nationals are being denied boarding by airlines flying to the United States.
Over the weekend, the Trump Administration reversed its initial position on the inclusion of lawful permanent residents (“LPRs”, i.e., green card holders) in the ban. Prior to this change, a number of LPRs who arrived at United States airports were detained. This practice stopped after urgent suits were filed in a number of federal courts, forcing the government to admit arriving permanent residents returning from abroad, with some qualifications.
While no longer being detained or outright refused entry, permanent residents from affected countries are reportedly being routed to secondary inspection for additional questioning. Reports indicate that US Customs officers are demanding that arriving permanent residents display their social media accounts and phone contacts. Some arriving immigrants reportedly had their immigrant visas canceled, and were pressured to sign forms that would formally relinquish any further claim to lawful permanent resident status.
All valid nonimmigrant visas held by impacted foreign nationals have also been canceled, including those of foreign nationals allowed to enter the United States. The Trump Administration’s position on dual nationals has not been formally announced as of this writing, but the UK and Canadian press have both indicated the US government has informed their governments that dual citizens will be allowed into the United States, as long as they only use the passports of the countries not listed in the executive order.
Any foreign nationals in a nonimmigrant visa status from the affected countries should not engage in international travel. Nonimmigrants from the affected countries currently outside the United States should seek legal counsel before attempting to travel to the United States. Permanent residents from impacted countries should also seek legal counsel before international travel. Though recently exempted from the executive order, permanent residents can still be denied admission to the United States under certain circumstances, particularly if they have spent over six months residing abroad.
It has also been reported that any immigration benefits applications filed on behalf of nationals from the impacted countries have been placed in abeyance. While that is no reason to believe such applications (generally speaking, any USCIS form beginning with “I-”, such as I-129, I-485, I-90, etc.) will be denied, there is no way to know how long the delays will last. It is unclear if similar holds will be placed on “N-“ forms which typically include applications for US citizenship.
Finally, the executive order has suspended the “visa interview waiver” program adopted by US consulates for nonimmigrant visa applicants. Termination of the interview waiver program applies to all US visa applicants regardless of country of nationality or citizenship. We expect nonimmigrant visa interview wait times and backlogs to significantly lengthen as a result.
Because this new policy has received internal criticism within the federal government and is currently being challenged in the federal courts, it is hard to know what further changes to the executive order, if any, might be forthcoming in the days and weeks ahead.
Our firm will be closely following the matter and will post news updates as they develop. Companies or individuals with concerns about this program should feel free to immediately contact their Jackson & Hertogs attorney with any questions they may have.
