Immigration News Resources

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been targeting U.S. citizens’ foreign spouses when they apply for legal immigration status. Earlier this month, a federal judge in Maryland put a halt to this practice. For the past few years, couples attending interviews about their marriages sometimes faced a terrible surprise: DHS officers were waiting […]

The post Judge Stops DHS From Arresting US Citizens’ Foreign Spouses During Marriage Interviews in Maryland appeared first on Immigration Impact.

In this blog post, AILA Director of Government Relations Greg Chen calls for change as he describes the dichotomy with how the Venezuelan opposition leader was hailed at the State of the Union and how vulnerable Venezuelan asylum seekers are treated at the border.

A federal court found on Wednesday that U.S. Border Patrol may not detain migrants held in its facilities in Arizona’s Tucson Sector longer than 48 hours without providing for their “basic human needs.” This includes providing beds, blankets, food, water, personal hygiene, and medical care. Federal Judge Bury determined the current conditions in these Border […]

The post How Will Conditions in Border Patrol Facilities Change Now That a Judge Has Ruled Them Unconstitutional? appeared first on Immigration Impact.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) plans to destroy thousands of records documenting horrific treatment of immigrants in the agency’s custody. The records contain vital details about people’s experience in immigration detention. They include information about deaths in detention, investigations into sexual and physical abuse, and medical and civil rights complaints. In response to ICE’s […]

The post The Fight to Stop ICE From Destroying Records About Deaths and Abuse in Its Custody appeared first on Immigration Impact.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.   Hundreds of county jails in the U.

The Trump administration is continuing to wage an escalating war on so-called sanctuary jurisdictions across the country. This is part of an ongoing campaign to coerce state and local governments into enforcing federal immigration law. Many states, counties, and cities have adopted a variety of policies intended to serve and protect all of their residents, […]

The post The Trump Administration Is Sending SWAT Teams Into So-Called Sanctuary Jurisdictions appeared first on Immigration Impact.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)—the largest law enforcement agency within the Department of Homeland Security, with tens of thousands of officers charged with policing our borders—is becoming more secretive. In fact, according to recent reporting, the agency is skittish when it comes to revealing the names of its officers through the Freedom of Information […]

The post Customs and Border Protection Officials Are Allowed Full Anonymity Under FOIA—and That’s a Blow to Government Transparency appeared first on Immigration Impact.

A federal judge in Arizona reversed convictions of four volunteers of the humanitarian aid group No More Deaths last week. No More Deaths is an Arizona-based group that works to end death and suffering for people crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. In the summer of 2017, the four women drove on a restricted access road in […]

The post These Humanitarian Aid Workers’ Convictions Were Overturned. Here’s How It Sets Precedent for Future Protection. appeared first on Immigration Impact.

A federal district court stopped U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) from drastically changing how the agency determines when a foreign student or exchange visitor is “unlawfully present” in the United States. “Unlawful presence” is defined by law as any time a foreign national spends in the United States after their authorized stay has ended. […]

The post USCIS’ Change to How ‘Unlawful Presence’ Is Calculated Is Defeated in Court appeared first on Immigration Impact.

54% of Hispanics in the U.S. say establishing a way for most unauthorized immigrants to stay in the country legally is very important.

The post Path to legal status for the unauthorized is top immigration policy goal for Hispanics in U.S. appeared first on Pew Research Center.

Psychological evaluations can be hugely important for vulnerable clients' cases, but attorneys may have some questions about how best to approach having one done. In this blog post, Jocelyn Dyer shares helpful tips from Aimee Miller, a clinical social worker.

The Trump administration is cracking down on New York over its refusal to share residents’ driver’s license records with immigration authorities. Now, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has barred all New Yorkers from four of its five “trusted traveler” programs. New York residents can no longer enroll or re-enroll in the Global Entry, NEXUS, […]

The post Trump Bars New Yorkers From Traveler Programs Over State’s Refusal to Cooperate With ICE appeared first on Immigration Impact.

In this post, part of the Diversity and Inclusion blog post series, AILA members John Pratt, David Calles Smith, and Elizabeth Montano highlight the myriad benefits of a diverse and inclusive immigration law firm.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently proposed changes to how the agency will review certain denials of immigration benefits. The changes will apply to its Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion, and instructions. But USCIS’ proposed changes are more than procedural—they will substantially alter USCIS’ longstanding motions and appeal processes. As part of […]

The post USCIS Is Hiding Damaging Changes Behind Its Motions and Appeals Form Proposal appeared first on Immigration Impact.

President Trump issued the fourth travel ban of his presidency on Friday. This ban comes almost three years to the day after the first one brought thousands of protesters to airports around the country. People from Nigeria, Eritrea, Myanmar, and Kyrgyzstan are now barred from immigrating to the United States. Those from Sudan and Tanzania […]

The post Trump’s Immigration Restrictions Extend to Nearly 7% of the Entire World appeared first on Immigration Impact.

In U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody, asylum seekers are detained in horribly cold and overcrowded facilities, unable to sleep, without access to food, water, or adequate medical care, and without access to an attorney. Under two new government processes—the Prompt Asylum Claim Review (PACR) and the Humanitarian Asylum Review Process (HARP)—people seeking asylum […]

The post Conditions in Border Facilities Deny Asylum Seekers Meaningful Screening Interviews appeared first on Immigration Impact.

Nigeria is Africa’s most populous nation and is the top birthplace among African immigrants living in the U.S.

The post Fast facts about Nigeria and its immigrants as U.S. travel ban expands appeared first on Pew Research Center.

Three years into the Trump administration, it’s become clear that we have lost our rudder. For a nation that long-provided a welcome mat to the huddled masses yearning to breathe free, our immigration policies are not welcoming. They are punitive and isolationist. We have seen a decrease in legal immigration alongside an historic increase in […]

The post The State of Immigration in Our Union appeared first on Immigration Impact.

AILA Second Vice President Jeremy McKinney describes why an independent immigration court is so desperately needed and shares resources related to his recent testimony before the House Judiciary Committee Immigration Subcommittee about this issue.

A congressional oversight committee held a hearing this week on the need for immigration court reform and the systemic due process challenges within the immigration court system. The House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship heard from several experts on the issue. Most experts made the case that the immigration court should transfer from […]

The post Calls for Independent Immigration Court Grow Louder at Congressional Hearing appeared first on Immigration Impact.