US Immigration News

The deadline to extend a controversial executive order suspending several temporary US work visas is fast approaching for President Trump. The outgoing US President, who ordered the temporary suspension of US work visas amid the coronavirus, is under pressure from certain anti-immigration groups to extend the ban into 2021.

 

The US has imposed yet more visa restrictions on Chinese officials over human rights abuses as the government continues its punitive assault on Beijing as Trump’s time as President nears its end. China has responded with reciprocal countermeasures against American officials following Washington’s latest US visa bans.

 

Under a $900 billion COVID-19 relief package passed by US Congress recently, mixed-status immigrants families will be eligible for stimulus checks.

The US Federal Court of Appeals – known as the Ninth Circuit – recently ruled that H1B visas can be issued to computer programmers after confirming ‘speciality status’. In 2017, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) had revoked speciality status for computer programmers, which made them eligible for H1B visas.

 

Amid several rejections before federal court judges across the US, the Supreme Court has refused to rule out Trump’ plans to expel illegal immigrants from the US Census. While it may prove to be a temporary victory, it means that if illegal immigrants are excluded from the Census it could affect how many representatives a district gets in Congress.  

According to the US Constitution, Congressional representatives will be apportioned among states, while the Census must include ‘the complete number of persons’ in each state.

Lawrence Bacow, the president of the USA’s oldest university, Harvard, has urged President elect, Joe Biden, to prioritize US immigration reform for international students. In recent months, the Trump administration has attempted to restrict US F1 and M1 student visas amid the COVID-19 pandemic, sparking legal challenges from Harvard and other universities.