US Immigration News

After weeks of speculation, the Biden administration has officially reinstated the controversial, Trump-era ‘Remain in Mexico’ US immigration policy. Rumours that the policy would be reinstated have been rife, and despite previously describing it as ‘inhumane’, Biden has reintroduced the rule in an effort to stem the flow of Central American migrants.

 

American clothing retail giant, Gap Inc., has settled federal charges alleging discrimination against employees who are non-US citizens because of their US immigration status, according to a Department of Justice (DoJ) announcement. The company, with headquarters in San Francisco, will pay a $73,263 civil fine for alleged violations.

 

The clothing retail giant will also have to provide back wages to two employees who lost their jobs because of its practices, plus the company will have to upgrade its employee training worldwide. 

Lawmakers in at least seven states reportedly considered eliminating the use of terms such as ‘alien’ and ‘illegal’ to describe migrants, and replacing them with descriptions such as ‘undocumented’ and ‘noncitizen’, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. However, only two states reportedly followed through on making the change.

 

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has admitted botching a new plan to rollout US work permits for migrant victims of crime after charging more than $4 million for free work visas. The US immigration agency is now scrambling to refund more than 10,000 people who were ‘incorrectly’ charged for US work permits.

 

In a landmark move, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has held an unprecedented third H1B visa lottery in order to meet the limit for the 2021 – 22 financial year. In accordance with current protocols, successful applicants for a US work visa will be selected randomly as part of the historic third lottery.

 

The US and China have reached an agreement to ease visa restrictions on each other’s journalists following a series of tit-for-tat expulsions. Following a virtual meeting between US President, Joe Biden, and Chinese premier, Xi Jinping, it’s understood that Chinese journalists will now be issued with one-year multiple entry visas by the United States.