Immigration Alerts

Immigration News Roundup – August 10, 2026

This fee applies to employers with 50 or more employees, where at least half the workforce is in H-1B or L-1 status. Employers who exceed both thresholds must pay an additional fee of $4,000 per H-1B petition and $4,500 per L-1 petition.

Increased Detentions at U.S. Airports During Domestic Travel

Foreign nationals with expired nonimmigrant status are increasingly being detained by DHS at U.S. airports during domestic travel, even when they hold a pending application and are otherwise in a period of authorized stay.

Federal Court Strikes Down Trump Administration's $100,000 H-1B Fee

This is a follow up to our June 8, 2026, article regarding the $100,000 H-1B Fee Proclamation.

DHS Publishes Final Rule Ending "Duration of Status" for F-1 Students— What Employers and International Students Need to Know

On July 17, 2026, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security published a final rule in the Federal Register eliminating "duration of status" (D/S) admission for F-1 academic students, J-1 exchange visitors, and most I nonimmigrants (representatives of...

Federal Court Blocks USCIS’s Adjudication Hold on Applications by Nationals of 39 Countries

On Friday, June 5th, Judge John McConnell, Jr., of the Federal District Court, held that USCIS’s indefinite hold on adjudication of benefit applications by or for foreign nationals from the 39 “high-risk countries” is unlawful. 

USCIS Reframes Adjustment of Status as "Extraordinary" Relief — Increasing Denial Risk for Many Applicants

On May 21, 2026, USCIS issued Policy Memorandum directing its officers to treat Adjustment of Status (Form I-485) as extraordinary discretionary relief from the regular immigrant visa process (i.e., consular processing), and not as a routine...

Plaintiff Prevail Against USCIS’s Hold of Applications by Applicants from “High-Risk Countries”

This is a new update to our previous Update: Hold and Review of USCIS Benefit Applications Filed by Applicants from “High-Risk Countries”.

Reports of CBP Scrutinizing H-1B Employees Returning After Working Abroad

There have been reports regarding U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Preclearance in Abu Dhabi scrutinizing H-1B visa holders and even revoking their H-1B visas for working from abroad.

DOL Proposes Significant Increases to Prevailing Wage Levels for H-1B and PERM Programs

On March 27, 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) proposed a rule that will restructure the prevailing wage levels for H-1B, H-1B1, E-3, and PERM programs.