Immigration Updates

On January 14, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a final rule titled “Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Aliens in the United States”. This rule was the Trump Administration’s response to the federal court having set aside the October 8, 2020 interim final rule of the same […]

On January 25, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order entitled “Ensuring the Future Is Made in All of America by All of America’s Workers” that contained a section specifically revoking President Trump’s “Buy American and Hire American” executive order.      The “Hire American” portion of President Trump’s executive order called on the Secretaries […]

On January 28, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia upheld the 2016 Optional Practical Training (OPT) regulation that enables graduates of science, technology, engineering, and math degree programs to qualify for an additional two years of OPT work authorization beyond the normal one-year limitation.  The court ruled that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had the authority […]

On January 25, 2021 President Biden’s Administration withdrew a proposed rule that sought to end eligibility for employment authorization documents (EAD) for H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B visa holders that had reached certain milestones in the permanent residency process. The proposed rule rescinding H-4 eligibility for EAD cards had been pending review at the Office of Management and Budget since February […]