Palmer Polaski Blog

Marijuana possession, while considered to be innocuous by many, can present risks to permanent residents and those seeking admission to the United States. While many states have decriminalized or legalized the possession of marijuana, it remains a federal offense to possess marijuana and it continues to have immigration consequences. Both individuals seeking to become permanent […]

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was created to promote open, transparent government. The Act has provided people the right to request access to records from any federal agency, including USCIS. FOIA states that any person has the right to request records or information from federal agencies. Under the FOIA, federal agencies are required to […]

On July 31, 2023, USCIS completed a second round of selections of H-1B registrations for the 2024 fiscal year. USCIS selected an additional 77,600 registrations in the second selection. In the first round, USCIS had selected 110,791 registrations to reach the 85,000 annual limit. The second round of selections indicates that USCIS anticipates a lower […]

TPS Re-Registration Period Extended: On September 8, 2023, USCIS extended the re-registration period from 60 days to 18 months for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries from El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Sudan. As such, TPS beneficiaries under these designations may file at any time during the 18-month period for re-registration. Immigration on the […]

On March 31, 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated its policy manual to allow individuals requesting immigration benefits to self-identify their gender. The gender selected would not have to match the applicant’s gender on their supporting government identification and documentation. Additionally, the update eliminates the requirement for people requesting immigration benefits to submit […]

USCIS has been plagued by egregious processing times for many benefits categories, but among the worst is for unlawful presence waivers. As background, to be eligible for an unlawful presence waiver, an applicant must be the beneficiary of an immigrant visa petition and have a qualifying relative (U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or […]

On June 23, 2023, the U.S Supreme Court denied a challenge to President Biden’s immigration enforcement guidelines, declaring that the Executive Branch is entitled to set its priorities for arresting and removing immigrants. The vote was 8-1, with Justice Samuel Alito being the lone dissenter. The Court reasoned that the state challenges for more arrests […]

Many EB-2 applicants who went through the PERM process may already have an approved I-140 but, because of the visa backlogs in the EB-2 category, are ineligible for adjustment of status because their priority date is not yet current. An NIW petition may offer some limited relief to these individuals. While NIW will not expedite […]

DHS Announces Extension and Redesignation of TPS for Several Countries: On June 21, 2023, DHS announced the rescission of the 2017 and 2018 terminations of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designations for El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua. DHS will extend the designation as follows: El Salvador – for 18 months, from September 10, 2023 through […]

Highly skilled foreign nationals seeking employment-based green cards in the United States can consider applying under the first preference category extraordinary ability (EB-1A for purposes of this article), or second preference category National Interest Waiver (NIW). These are coveted visa categories because they allow the applicant to self-petition, do not require a bona fide job […]