On September 19, 2025, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation restricting the entry of anyone seeking to enter the U.S. in H-1B status without payment of a new $100,000 fee.
Continue reading “H-1B Update: Executive Order Targets New H-1B Visa Holders With $100,000 Fee”
Effective September 6, the United States has ended “third-country visa stamping.” All non-immigrant visa (NIV) applicants must now schedule their visa interview appointments at the U.S. embassy or consulate in their country of nationality or residence. Effective September 2, most NIV applicants will require an in-person interview with a consular officer.
On June 4, President Donald Trump signed a proclamation banning nationals of 12 countries from entering the United States and partially restricting the entry of nationals from seven countries. The ban takes effect June 9, 2025. We summarize to whom the proclamation applies and doesn’t apply. Foreign nationals impacted by the travel ban who are currently in the United States should not leave.
Continue reading “President Trump Signs New Travel Ban: What Travelers Need to Know”
Executive Order “Protecting the United States From Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats” directs federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of State, to re-establish enhanced vetting and screening processes for foreign nationals seeking a visa or immigration benefit of any kind. Agencies are to vet and screen visa applicants to the maximum degree possible, particularly foreign nationals applying and arriving from nations with identified security risks. It is expected that additional vetting and screening requirements will only add to increased wait times for visa clearances at U.S. embassies and consulates. The order further directs the administration to begin the process of restoring a potential travel ban within 60 days.
To view the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.
With Congress deadlocked on passing needed budget legislation, it is looking increasingly likely that there will be a federal government shutdown at midnight on September 30, 2023. The shutdown will affect some federal agencies involved in immigration processes. It is impossible to know how long a shutdown would last. Historically, shutdowns have lasted from a few days to a few weeks.
Continue reading “Federal Government Shutdown Would Affect Some Immigration Processing”
This year, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services reports that it selected 110,791 H-1B beneficiaries in the lottery —25,791 more than the cap. Because the number of eligible H-1B beneficiaries is substantially larger than the H-1B cap, even foreign nationals eligible for approval of an H-1B petition had a slim chance of being selected in this year’s lottery. Petitioners for those beneficiaries who were unsuccessful in the FY2024 H-1B lottery may consider applying for O-1A status.