Palmer Polaski Blog

In an accompanying announcement to the parole-in-place policy, the White House indicated it will direct the State Department and Department of Homeland Security to enable DACA recipients and others without legal status to gain H-1B and other temporary employment visas. While DACA provides work authorization and protection from deportation, and prevents the accrual of unlawful […]

The Biden Administration recently made a monumental announcement that certain foreign nationals, who, as of June 17, 2024, were married to United States citizens, and have been physically present in the United States since June 17, 2014, among other requirements, would be eligible to apply for parole-in-place. This policy has the potential to benefit an […]

One important, yet not often highlighted, area of immigration policy under the Biden Administration has been a change in enforcement priorities for referring foreign nationals to immigration court proceedings, referred to as “prosecutorial discretion.” Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sets priorities in allocating its resources, so using prosecutorial discretion can help the government focus on […]

Asylum-seekers face ever-growing backlogs in obtaining asylum office interviews and decisions on their asylum claims. For example, in the 2022 fiscal year, USCIS received around 239,000 affirmative asylum applications, a historic high and a major jump from the previous year, when USCIS received approximately 62,800 affirmative applications. The backlog has increased already-significant wait times for […]

For Fiscal Year 2025, USCIS has introduced a significant change in how H-1B registrations will be selected for filing. The ever-growing number of H-1B registrations, specifically multiple registrations on behalf of the same beneficiary, was evidence that the H-1B electronic registration H-1B lottery was not working. Since USCIS introduced the H-1B electronic registration process in […]

Disappointingly, the U.S. Supreme Court held 6-3 that Texas’s SB4 could go into effect. The most controversial aspects of the bill allow state police officers to act as border patrol agents in making arrests, and even allows state court judges to issue deportation orders. The majority did not rule on the constitutionality of the bill, […]

On March 22, 2024, DHS extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Burma for 18 months, through November 25, 2025. Burmese TPS holders need to file TPS re-registration applications between March 25, 2024, and May 24, 2024. Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) are automatically extended for Burmese TPS beneficiaries through May 25, 2025. DHS also redesignated TPS […]

On January 26, 2024, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas announced the extension and redesignation of Syria for Temporary Protected Status for 18 months, from April 1, 2024, to September 30, 2025, due to ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary and temporary conditions in Syria that prevent individuals from safely returning.  

On February 14, 2024, President Biden issued an executive order authorizing Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) and employment authorization for 18 months for eligible Palestinians. USCIS will issue a Federal Register notice as soon as possible to provide additional information about implementation of the President’s memorandum.

USCIS is [updated] its government filing fees on April 1, 2024, in large part increasing the filing fees for most immigration petitions. USCIS’s significant changes to fees are in response to inflation adjustment and allegedly to provide increased service. The agency last updated its filing fees in 2016. Nevertheless, on March 19, 2024, a new […]