ABIL Immigration Insider • August 3, 2025
In this issue:
1. DOS Updates Policy to Require In-Person Interviews for Most Nonimmigrant Visas – Effective September 2, 2025, the categories of applicants who may be eligible for a waiver of the nonimmigrant visa interview will be updated. All nonimmigrant visa applicants generally will require an in-person interview with a consular officer, with a few exceptions.
2. Judge Postpones TPS Termination for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua – The termination of Temporary Protected Status for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua is postponed until at least November 18, 2025, when a hearing on the merits will be held.
3. ICE Says Small Businesses and Others Are Free to Question ICE Policies Without Fear of Retaliation – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement recently released an undated Non-Retaliation Policy Statement.
4. E-Verify Updates Guidance for Employers Following District Court Order on Haiti TPS – The update includes instructions for employers on requirements for the I-9 process and reverification of work authorization for affected employees.
5. SAVE Releases Updated Guide to Understanding SAVE Verification Responses – The guide introduces seven new responses when a Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) case is created using a Social Security Number as the applicant’s enumerator, along with enhanced narratives to explain existing SAVE verification responses more clearly.
6. Birthright Citizenship Update: Trump Restrictions Blocked, Implementation Plan Developed – In the ongoing battle over birthright citizenship, there have been several new developments, including a ruling in the Ninth Circuit and development of an implementation plan by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
7. ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ Introduces New $250 ‘Visa Integrity Fee’; USCIS Releases List of Fees – The new fee will be charged to individuals applying for a nonimmigrant visa at the time of visa issuance. Also, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced its new fees.
8. DOS Announces Investigation of Harvard’s Participation in Exchange Visitor Program – The Department of State is investigating Harvard University’s “continued eligibility as a sponsor” for the Exchange Visitor Program.
9. DOS Updates Visa Reciprocity Schedules, Reduces Validity Period for Nonimmigrant Visas – The Department of State has updated the visa reciprocity schedules for more than 50 countries, significantly reducing the validity period for nonimmigrant visas.
10. OFLC Announces Changes in Email Addresses for National Processing Centers – The new email addresses will be rolled out online and in letter and email templates over the coming months.
11. USCIS To Increase Fees for Various Immigration-Related Applications and Benefits – Applicants must submit the new fees with benefit requests postmarked on or after July 22, 2025. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said it will reject any form postmarked on or after August 21, 2025, without the proper fees.
12. August Visa Bulletin Includes Updates, Retrogressions, Predictions – The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for August 2025 includes updates on the retrogression of the EB-2 Rest of World category, and visa availability in the EB-3 and Other Workers categories and the EB-5 Unreserved categories for India and China.
13. H-1B Cap Reached for FY 2026; New H-1B Proposed Rule Will Prioritize Higher Salaries – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has received enough petitions to reach the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa U.S. advanced degree exemption, known as the master’s cap, for fiscal year 2026. Also, USCIS plans to propose a new rule for review that would resurrect the first Trump administration’s efforts to prioritize higher salaries in the H-1B selection process.
14. USCIS Implements Supreme Court Order on 2023 Venezuela TPS Designation – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services released instructions implementing a Supreme Court emergency stay in National TPS Alliance v. Noem for Venezuelan Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries who received certain TPS-related documentation on or before February 5, 2025.
15. E-Verify Allows Employees to Opt Out of E-Verify+ – A new feature allows employees to opt out of the E-Verify+ process and complete a traditional Form I-9 and E-Verify case instead.
16. E-Verify Updates Status Change Report – The new Status Change Report now includes an additional “Revoked Document Number” field.
17. USCIS Requires New Edition of Nonimmigrant Worker Petition as of July 30 – As of July 30, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is requiring the new January 20, 2025, edition of Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker. Until that date, the January 17, 2025, edition was also acceptable.
18. Joseph Edlow Confirmed as USCIS Director – On July 15, 2025, the U.S. Senate confirmed Joseph Edlow as director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
19. DOL Requires Work Authorization for Participants in Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Programs – On July 10, 2025, the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration issued guidance requiring that all participants under Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act programs have authorization to work in the United States. For individuals whose work authorization is temporary, grantees “must verify their continued work authorization at a reasonable interval determined by when their temporary authorization is expected to expire, but no less than once every three months.”
20. DOJ Raises Penalty Fees for Certain Immigration-Related Violations – As part of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) adjustments of various civil monetary penalties assessed or enforced by DOJ components, the agency issued a final rule raising penalty fees for certain immigration-related violations. The rule, effective July 3, 2025, applies to violations occurring after November 2, 2015.
New Publications and Items of Interest – New Publications and Items of Interest
ABIL Member / Firm News – ABIL Member / Firm News
Government Agency Links – Government Agency Links
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ABIL Immigration Insider – August 2025
1. DOS Updates Policy to Require In-Person Interviews for Most Nonimmigrant Visas
On July 25, 2025, the Department of State (DOS) announced that effective September 2, 2025, the categories of applicants who may be eligible for a waiver of the nonimmigrant visa interview will be updated. According to the new policy, all nonimmigrant visa applicants, including applicants under the age of 14 and over the age of 79, generally will require an in-person interview with a consular officer except:
- Applicants classifiable under the visa symbols A-1, A-2, C-3 (except attendants, servants, or personal employees of accredited officials), G-1, G-2, G-3, G-4, NATO-1 through NATO-6, or TECRO E-1;
- Applicants for diplomatic or official-type visas; and
- Applicants renewing a full validity B-1, B-2, B1/B2 visa or a Border Crossing Card/Foil (for Mexican nationals) within 12 months of the prior visa’s expiration, and who were at least 18 years old at the time of the prior visa’s issuance.
To be eligible for an interview waiver based on the third bullet point above (applicants renewing a full validity B-1, B-2, B1/B2 visa or a Border Crossing Card/Foil for Mexican nationals), DOS said, applicants must also meet certain criteria, including that they:
- Apply in their country of nationality or residence;
- Have never been refused a visa (unless such refusal was overcome or waived); and
- Have no apparent or potential ineligibility.
Consular officers may still require in-person interviews on a case-by-case basis for any reason, DOS noted. Applicants should check embassy and consulate websites for more detailed information.
2. Judge Postpones TPS Termination for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua
On July 31, 2025, U.S. district court judge Trina Thompson, of the Northern District of California, postponed the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua until at least November 18, 2025, when a hearing on the merits will be held.
Among other things, the judge said that plaintiffs were likely to succeed on their Fifth Amendment claim. The judge determined that there was sufficient evidence demonstrating “racial and discriminatory animus” in support of plaintiffs’ Fifth Amendment claim, adding that “[c]olor is neither a poison nor a crime.” The judge also noted the economic effects of termination of TPS on the United States, among other public interest considerations: “Termination of TPS for Nepal, Honduras, and Nicaragua will result in a $1.4 billion loss to the United States economy.” Citing statistics that approximately 87% of TPS holders in the United States participate in the labor force, a substantially higher rate than the U.S. labor force participation rate overall (about 62%), the judge said that the TPS terminations would result in reductions in tax revenue as well as Social Security and Medicare payments.
3. ICE Says Small Businesses and Others Are Free to Question ICE Policies Without Fear of Retaliation
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recently released an undated Non-Retaliation Policy Statement. The statement says that ICE “is committed to upholding standards of fair regulatory enforcement practices, where small businesses and others are free to question, raise concerns, or otherwise comment on ICE actions or policies without fear of retaliation,” and that ICE “will thoroughly investigate any allegations of retaliation and take appropriate corrective action.”
The statement notes that “filing a complaint with the Office of the National Ombudsman will not stop or delay investigations and legal or administrative proceedings as part of the Agency’s ongoing responsibility to enforce Federal laws under its jurisdiction.”
4. E-Verify Updates Guidance for Employers Following District Court Order on Haiti TPS
E-Verify has released an update related to compliance with a district court order on the designation of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). The update includes instructions for employers on requirements for the I-9 process and reverification of work authorization for affected employees.
The announcement notes that on July 1, 2025, DHS terminated the designation of Haiti for TPS. Haiti’s TPS designation and related benefits were set to terminate on September 2, 2025, but on July 15, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York issued a final judgment in Haitian Evangelical Clergy Ass’n v. Trump that that sets the effective date of any termination no earlier than February 3, 2026.
5. SAVE Releases Updated Guide to Understanding SAVE Verification Responses
The Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program has released an updated Guide to Understanding SAVE Verification Responses. The guide introduces seven new responses when a SAVE case is created using a Social Security number (SSN) as the applicant’s enumerator, along with enhanced narratives to explain existing SAVE verification responses more clearly.
When a SAVE case is created using the benefit applicant’s name, date of birth, and Social Security Number, the initial verification will now provide one of the following responses:
- United States Citizen (per Social Security Administration [SSA] Record);
- United States National;
- Immigration Enumerator Required – Resubmit with Additional Information;
- No Record Found with SSA – Resubmit with Additional Information;
- Unable to Return Record from SSA – Resubmit with Additional Information;
- Full Social Security Number Required– Resubmit with Additional Information; or
- Deceased (per SSA Record).
According to SAVE, the updated guide is available within SAVE at SAVE> Help> Resources.
6. Birthright Citizenship Update: Trump Restrictions Blocked, Implementation Plan Developed
In the ongoing battle over birthright citizenship, there have been several new developments, including a ruling in the Ninth Circuit and development of an implementation plan by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Below are highlights:
Ninth Circuit blocks restrictions. Even after the Supreme Court’s June 2025 ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently ruled that the Trump administration’s Executive Order restricting birthright citizenship is unconstitutional “because it contradicts the plain language of the Fourteenth Amendment’s grant of citizenship to ‘all persons born in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof.’ ”
Trump administration develops implementation plan to limit birthright citizenship. USCIS has developed an implementation plan, in case federal courts allow the Executive Order to go into effect. That plan would base the status of babies born to certain immigrants and nonimmigrants in the United States on the temporary immigration status, or lack of immigration status, of their mothers.
7. ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ Introduces New $250 ‘Visa Integrity Fee’; USCIS Releases List of Fees
The recently enacted “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (H.R. 1) introduces a new $250 “Visa Integrity Fee” for nonimmigrants, among other fees. The Visa Integrity Fee is intended to boost funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to support increased immigration enforcement activities. The new fee will be charged to individuals applying for a nonimmigrant visa at the time of visa issuance. The legislation includes provisions that allow the DHS Secretary to raise the fee as needed and increase the fee based on inflation. There is not a set date on which the fee will be enacted.
Those required to pay the fee will include:
- Employment-based workers and their dependents: H-1B, H-4, L-1, L-2, TN, TD, O-1, O-3, P
- Students and their dependents: F-1, F-2
- Exchange visitors and their dependents: J-1, J-2
- Visitors: B-1, B-2
Entering the United States under the Visa Waiver Program would not be subject to the visa integrity fee. There are no exceptions to the fee, which cannot be reduced. However, the legislation allows for reimbursement in certain circumstances after the period of admission has expired.
Also, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published a notice on July 22, 2025, announcing the agency’s new fees, to whom those fees apply, when the new fees take effect, instructions on their payment, when and if the fees may be waived, and consequences of the failure to pay.
8. DOS Announces Investigation of Harvard’s Participation in Exchange Visitor Program
On July 23, 2025, the Department of State (DOS) announced an investigation into Harvard University’s “continued eligibility as a sponsor” for the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program.
The announcement referenced national security concerns generally but provided no specifics on why Harvard was being investigated. According to reports, Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave Harvard one week to provide many university records related to the visa program. Mr. Rubio also said DOS will interview university staff and visa holders. Harvard said the investigation was “another retaliatory step” in violation of the university’s First Amendment rights. Harvard said it would “protect its international community and support them as they apply for U.S. visas and travel to campus this fall.”
9. DOS Updates Visa Reciprocity Schedules, Reduces Validity Period for Nonimmigrant Visas
The Department of State (DOS) has updated the visa reciprocity schedules for more than 50 countries, significantly reducing the validity period for nonimmigrant visas. Foreign nationals from affected countries will now be issued visas only for a period of three months and for a single entry. The affected visa categories include B (tourist), F (student), H (specialty occupation temporary worker), J (exchange visitor), M (student), and O (extraordinary ability). Previously, nonimmigrant visa validity periods may have been 12 months or longer and for multiple entries.
Foreign nationals with multiple citizenships are subject to the corresponding reciprocity schedule of the country that issued the passport used for the visa application. Visas issued before the change in reciprocity should not be affected and should retain their original validity.
10. OFLC Announces Changes in Email Addresses for National Processing Centers
The Department of Labor’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification is changing the mailing address for all its programs to: Office of Foreign Labor Certification, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room N-5311, Washington, DC 20210. As a follow-up to this process, on July 25, 2025, OFLC announced a change to the naming conventions for all email addresses currently used for help desks.
The new email addresses will be rolled out online and in letter and email templates over the coming months, OFLC said. To ensure minimum disruption, the old addresses will remain valid and usable during this transition. OFLC encourages users to reference the OFLC official page and the Foreign Labor Application Gateway processing site to monitor the changes.
11. USCIS To Increase Fees for Various Immigration-Related Applications and Benefits
On July 18, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it planned to publish a Federal Register notice on July 22, 2025, to raise fees for various immigration-related forms, benefits, statuses, petitions, applications, and requests administered by multiple government agencies.
Applicants must submit the new fees with benefit requests postmarked on or after July 22, 2025. USCIS said it will reject any form postmarked on or after August 21, 2025, without the proper fees.
The new fees include, among others:
- A new fee of $100 for individuals who file Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal.
- An annual asylum fee of $100 (which must be paid online) for all individuals with a pending Form I-589 for each calendar year their application remains pending.
- A new fee for individuals who file Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, for asylum, parolee, and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) categories. The categories are (a)(4), (a)(12), (c)(8), (c)(11), (c)(19), and (c)(34). The fees are:
-For initial Employment Authorization Document (EAD) applications, $550; and
-For renewal or extension EAD applications, $275.
- A new Special Immigrant Juvenile fee of $250 for any individual who files a Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant, as a special immigrant juvenile.
- Increasing the maximum cost to register for TPS using Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status, from $50 to $500.
Any person who filed or files a Form I-589 after October 1, 2024, that remains pending with USCIS for 365 days must pay the annual asylum fee as of the one-year anniversary of their filing date and each year thereafter that the application remains pending.
USCIS also noted that for parolees, initial work authorization is valid for a period of no more than one year or for the duration of the person’s parole, whichever is shorter. For those with TPS, initial and renewal work authorizations are valid for no more than one year or for the duration of the person’s TPS status, whichever is shorter.
USCIS said that the Department of Homeland Security will announce implementation of fees not covered in this notice in a future action. Several forms have associated fee changes that are not included in this notice, including Form I-131, Application for Travel Documents, Parole Documents, and Arrival/Departure Records, and Form I-102, Application for Replacement/Initial Nonimmigrant Arrival-Departure Document.
The Executive Office for Immigration Review also issued a memorandum with a list of updated fees, including a $2,940 fee for Form I-485, Adjustment of Status.
12. August Visa Bulletin Includes Updates, Retrogressions, Predictions
The Department of State’s (DOS) Visa Bulletin for August 2025 includes the following updates:
Retrogression in EB-2 category for Rest of World, possible unavailability soon. The EB-2 final action date for Rest of World countries has been retrogressed. The bulletin notes that the annual limit likely will be reached in August, if not sooner. If the limit is reached, the preference category will become unavailable.
Visa availability in EB-3 and Other Workers categories. Visa issuance totals for the EB-3 and EW (Other Workers) categories are approaching the annual limits for FY-2025 in those categories. The bulletin states that either retrogression of the final action dates or making the categories “Unavailable” in September, if not sooner, is likely.
Visa availability in EB-5 Unreserved category for China. The August bulletin notes that in the April 2025 bulletin, the EB-5 Unreserved final action date for China was retrogressed. In the months that followed, EB-5 number use has not materialized to the degree that was expected. Consequently, the EB-5 Unreserved final action dates for China have advanced to allow continued EB-5 Unreserved number use. The bulletin notes that if the annual limit is reached, the preference category will become unavailable.
Visa availability in EB-5 Unreserved category for India. Similar to the Unreserved category for China, the August bulletin notes that in the April 2025 bulletin, the EB-5 Unreserved final action date for India was retrogressed. DOS expects that India will have unused family sponsored preference numbers that “can fall down for use in the employment-based categories, including EB-5 Unreserved.” As a result, the final action date for EB-5 Unreserved has been advanced to use these available numbers. The bulletin notes that if the annual limit is reached, the preference category will become unavailable.
13. H-1B Cap Reached for FY 2026; New H-1B Proposed Rule Will Prioritize Higher Salaries
H-1B cap reached. On July 18, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it had received enough petitions to reach the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa U.S. advanced degree exemption, known as the master’s cap, for fiscal year 2026.
USCIS said it will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap. Petitions filed for current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap, and who still retain their cap numbers, are exempt from the FY 2026 H-1B cap. USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions filed to:
- Extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the United States;
- Change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers;
- Allow current H-1B workers to change employers; and
- Allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in additional H-1B positions.
New H-1B proposed rule. USCIS plans to propose a new rule for review by the Office of Management and Budget’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. The rule would resurrect the first Trump administration’s efforts to prioritize higher salaries in the selection process for H-1B positions.
Details of the new proposed rule have not yet been released, but during the first Trump administration, objections to a similar rule ranged from statutory concerns to the observation that newly minted graduates at lower salaries might be more highly skilled than those with higher salaries due to tenure or seniority, and that prioritizing the latter based on salary alone would prevent employers from hiring highly qualified recent graduates and prevent start-ups from being able to afford to hire top talent.
14. USCIS Implements Supreme Court Order on 2023 Venezuela TPS Designation
On July 14, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released instructions implementing a Supreme Court emergency stay in National TPS Alliance v. Noem for Venezuelan Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries who received certain TPS-related documentation on or before February 5, 2025. Pending further litigation, they will maintain TPS and their documentation will remain valid.
Pending resolution of the litigation, this means that for the Form I-766, Employment Authorization Document (EAD) category A12 or C19 issued under the TPS Venezuela 2023 redesignation:
- TPS Venezuela beneficiaries who received TPS-related EADs that show a “Valid From” date that is on or before February 5, 2025, and a “Card Expires” date of October 2, 2026, will maintain that status and their documentation will remain valid.
- TPS Venezuela beneficiaries who received TPS-related EADs with a “Card Expires” date of April 2, 2025, and who received Forms I-797, Notices of Action, indicating receipt of a timely filed Form I-765 renewal application that were issued on or before February 5, 2025, automatically extending their employment authorization for up to 540 days, will maintain TPS, and employment authorization and their EADs will remain valid for up to 540 days (i.e., until September 24, 2026).
USCIS issued related guidance for employers when employees present the above-listed EADs to complete or update Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification:
- If your employee presents an EAD with category A12 or C19 that shows a “Valid From” date that is on or before February 5, 2025, and a “Card Expires” date of October 2, 2026, enter October 2, 2026, on Form I-9 as the expiration date of the EAD.
- If your employee presents an EAD with category A12 or C19 and a “Card Expires” date of April 2, 2025, and a renewal application receipt on Form I-797, Notice of Action, that was issued on or before February 5, 2025, and you determine from the date on Form I-797 that the renewal application was timely filed during the TPS registration period, the employee’s A12 or C19 EAD has been automatically extended for up to 540 days and, therefore, you should enter September 24, 2026, as the expiration date of the EAD.
15. E-Verify Allows Employees to Opt Out of E-Verify+
E-Verify recently announced a new feature allowing employees to opt out of the E-Verify+ process and complete a traditional Form I-9 and E-Verify case instead.
E-Verify said that once the employee selects “Opt Out” in E-Verify+ and successfully completes the opt-out process, the employee’s E-Verify+ case status will change to “Case Closed Opt Out” and the case will automatically close. The employee will be directed to contact their employer to complete Section 1 in Form I-9 and provide acceptable documentation showing their identity and work authorization.
E-Verify noted that if an employee opts out of E-Verify+, “they still must complete Section 1 and provide documentation no later than their first day of employment, and the employer must create an E-Verify case within three business days.” The updated case status will appear on the employer’s E-Verify dashboard under “Recently Auto-Closed Cases.”
E-Verify+ is a service of E-Verify that streamlines verification by combining the Form I-9 and E-Verify processes into one digital process.
16. E-Verify Updates Status Change Report
On July 15, 2025, E-Verify announced that the new Status Change Report now includes an additional “Revoked Document Number” field to help employers determine whether an employee’s Employment Authorization Document (EAD) presented in the Form I-9 verification process and used to create their E-Verify case is the revoked EAD in the report. “If this EAD has been revoked, you must reverify the employee,” E-Verify said.
The announcement includes detailed instructions on reverification and what employers need to do.
17. USCIS Requires New Edition of Nonimmigrant Worker Petition as of July 30
As of July 30, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is requiring the new January 20, 2025, edition of the Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker. Until that date, the January 17, 2025, edition was also acceptable.
The edition date is at the bottom of the page on the form and instructions. USCIS said that an employer who completes and prints this form to mail it should “make sure that the form edition date and page numbers are visible at the bottom of all pages and that all pages are from the same form edition. If any of the form’s pages are missing or are from a different form edition, we may reject your form.”
18. Joseph Edlow Confirmed as USCIS Director
On July 15, 2025, the U.S. Senate confirmed Joseph Edlow as director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Mr. Edlow previously served as deputy director for policy and chief counsel at USCIS, deputy assistant attorney general at the Department of Justice, and counsel for Rep. Raúl R. Labrador (R-ID) and the House of Representatives’ Committee on the Judiciary. He also served as a visiting fellow at the Center for Renewing America and the Heritage Foundation and founded the Edlow Group LLC and the Law Office of Joseph Edlow LLC.
19. DOL Requires Work Authorization for Participants in Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Programs
On July 10, 2025, the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration issued guidance (Training and Employment Guidance Letter 10-23, Change 2) requiring that all participants in programs under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act have authorization to work in the United States. For individuals whose work authorization is temporary, grantees “must verify their continued work authorization at a reasonable interval determined by when their temporary authorization is expected to expire, but no less than once every three months.”
Affected programs are directed to align their policies, procedures, and requirements with the guidance. The programs include Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Title I Adult, Dislocated Worker, Youth programs (including statewide employment and training services funded by the Governor reserve); WIOA National Dislocated Worker Grants; Wagner-Peyser Act Employment Service; Reentry Employment Opportunities and other programs authorized under Section 169 of WIOA; YouthBuild; Section 167 Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Program, also commonly referred to as the National Farmworker Jobs Program; and the Senior Community Service Employment Program. The guidance also establishes that all such participant-level services are considered “federal public benefits” under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA).
The guidance notes that individuals in certain employment-based nonimmigrant categories, such as
H-2A, H-2B, and CW-1 workers, are ineligible to receive participant-level services in WIOA and related programs as they are not included in WIOA Section 188’s category of “other immigrants authorized to work in the United States” or in PRWORA’s definition of “qualified alien.”
20. DOJ Raises Penalty Fees for Certain Immigration-Related Violations
As part of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) adjustments of various civil monetary penalties assessed or enforced by DOJ components, the agency issued a final rule raising penalty fees for certain immigration-related violations. The rule, effective July 3, 2025, applies to violations occurring after November 2, 2015, the date the Bipartisan Budget Act was enacted.
The rule includes raised penalty fees for violations such as employment of unauthorized workers, failure to notify of a final nonconfirmation of an employee’s employment eligibility, unfair immigration-related employment practices, and document fraud.
New Publications and Items of Interest
Summary of immigration provisions in ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act.’ The Immigration Accountability Project has released H.R. 1: The One Big Beautiful Bill Act—Immigration Provision Summary. Topics include key homeland security and judiciary provisions, restrictions on benefits, benefits requiring certain statuses, and a new transfer tax on remittances to foreign countries.
Denaturalization fact sheet. The National Immigration Forum has published a fact sheet on denaturalization. The fact sheet explains what denaturalization is, the reasons for and limits on denaturalization, and other related issues.
OFLC discontinues fax service. The Department of Labor’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) announced on July 17, 2025, that it is discontinuing the use of fax services effective September 1, 2025. OFLC asks employers to transition to submitting documentation through the Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) system or by email before the deactivation date. Any information submitted to the fax email addresses after August 31, 2025, will not be considered to have been validly submitted to OFLC and may result in delayed processing or denial of an application.
Know your rights. A number of organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) (English and Spanish), the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., the National Immigrant Justice Center, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and the Asian Law Caucus, have published resources highlighting immigrants’ and nonimmigrants’ rights in the United States and at ports of entry, including “know your rights” information and what documents they may want to carry when traveling inside the United States. ACLU of Northern California also released Know Your Rights: U.S. Airports and Ports of Entry.
E-Verify webinars: E-Verify has added a webinar with a focus on acceptable documents for Form I-9 verification, and has updated its calendar of webinars.
SAVE webinars: Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) has updated its calendar of webinars.
Immigration agency X (formerly Twitter) accounts:
- EOIR: @DOJ_EOIR
- ICE: @ICEgov
- Study in the States: @StudyinStates
- USCIS: @USCIS
Alliance of Business Immigration Lawyers: ABIL is available on X (formerly Twitter): @ABILImmigration
ABIL Member / Firm News
Klasko Immigration Law Partners, LLP, has published several new blog posts: The One Big Beautiful Bill’s Visa Integrity Fee Explained and Key Status Updates for Humanitarian Immigration Programs.
David Isaacson, of Cyrus D. Mehta & Partners PLLC, has authored a new blog post: The Exception That Disproves the Rule: How Matter of K-E-S-G-‘s FGM Exception Exposes Its Incoherence.
Cyrus Mehta was extensively quoted by the Times of India in USCIS Draws Up an Implementation Plan to Narrow Birthright Citizenship. He said, “The USCIS has a sinister plan to implement Trump’s ‘currently unconstitutional’ birthright citizenship order, in case the [Executive Order] which is currently blocked, is allowed to go into effect. Under it, the newborn child will not automatically be a U.S. citizen but would take on the lawful but temporary status of the mother.” He noted that “[i]f the mother is unlawfully present, the child will also be considered unlawfully present as soon as it is born. The immigration authorities can technically remove the child who is unlawfully present.”
Mr. Mehta authored a blog post: USCIS’s Dystopian Implentation Plan to Allow Inheritance of Temporary Statuses for the US Born Child Instead of Automatic Citizenship.
Mr. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box co-authored a blog post: Notwithstanding Trump’s Threats, Can the Government Really Take Away a Person’s Citizenship?
Mr. Mehta was quoted by Slate in Trump is Threatening to Take Away People’s Citizenship. Can He? Commenting on the Trump administration’s newly announced prioritizing of denaturalization, the article states that “[t]he immigration courts have no jurisdiction over U.S. citizens, so the only way for the administration to attempt to strip citizenship is to go through the actual federal judiciary, which is far more independent and much less likely to look favorably upon efforts to target the relatively ironclad protections of citizenship. The government can attempt either a civil or criminal denaturalization, with the latter alleging that the naturalization itself was obtained through criminal means. Despite the Supreme Court’s recent kowtowing to the more authoritarian aspects of Trump’s agenda, in the unanimous 2017 decision in Maslenjak v. United States, the court ruled that the government could not strip citizenship from a woman who had lied about her husband having served in the Bosnian Serb army because the denaturalization statute ‘demands a causal or means-end connection between a legal violation and naturalization.’ ” Mr. Mehta said that “[a]ny omission that would not have had an impact on the citizenship application would not cut it, even if it was misrepresentation or an omission.” Mr. Mehta is representing Palestinian activist Mohsen Mahdawi, a permanent resident detained by the Trump administration.
Stephen Yale-Loehr, of Miller Mayer, LLP, was quoted by CBS News in Judge Blocks Expedited Deportations of Those Who Entered the U.S. Legally, Possibly Curtailing ICE Courthouse Arrests. He said the judge’s order could mean that “several hundred thousand people will be temporarily spared from immediate removal under the expedited removal procedures.” He noted that the ruling is a reprieve for many of the more than 500,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans who were allowed into the United States through the parole authority, under a Biden administration policy. The article notes that the ruling “also protects some of the nearly 1 million migrants paroled into the U.S. along the southern border under another Biden-era policy powered by a now-discontinued phone app known as CBP One.”
Mr. Yale-Loehr was quoted by Bloomberg News in Columbia University to Aid Trump Policing of Foreign Students Under Deal. He said that for Columbia and other schools entertaining such concessions, “the devil is in the implementation details.” But “no matter how this is implemented,” he said, “it shows international students that Columbia—and other universities that accept similar language—will be less welcoming.”
Mr. Yale-Loehr was quoted by 285 South in An Augusta Man Decided to ‘Self-Deport.’ The Government Arrested Him Anyway. He noted that although U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) website says that people using the self-deportation app will be “deprioritized,” there’s nothing that actually prohibits ICE from targeting them. At the same time, he added, ICE’s highest deportation priority under any presidential administration is people with criminal records and those, like David, with final deportation orders. “It seems that ICE is working at cross-purposes with itself,” he said. “Because, on the one hand, they are encouraging people to self-deport, and their website says that if you do self-deport, you are a lower priority for being picked up. But on the other hand, here we have an instance where ICE did arrest and detain someone who had applied for self-deportation. So it’s like the immigrants can’t win no matter what they do.”
Mr. Yale-Loehr authored an op-ed in The Hill: Trump’s Immigration Policies Could Wreck the World Cup and the Olympics.
Mr. Yale-Loehr was quoted by Reuters in U.S. Set to Deport Permanent Residents Over Alleged Support to Haitian Gang Leaders. He said that before the current Trump administration, trying to take away someone’s permanent-resident status in this manner was “very rare” but that the administration had shown a willingness to target students. Mr. Yale-Loehr said it seemed unlikely that many Haitians would have their green card revoked as a result of the policy because of the difficulty of identifying them and then proving the affiliation in immigration court. “Three years from now, how many people from Haiti will be deported under this ground? I think very few,” he said.
Mr. Yale-Loehr was quoted by Newsweek in Donald Trump’s Immigration Approval Slips: Poll. He said, “This poll shows that President Trump’s deportation efforts are backfiring. The public was willing to deport serious criminals, but not families who live near them and are hard-working members of our society.”
Mr. Yale-Loehr was interviewed by the Arizona Republic in Confused About the Status of Birthright Citizenship in the U.S.? Here’s What to Know. He said that he is “confident that some lower courts will decide on the merits that President Trump’s efforts to repeal birthright citizenship are unconstitutional. That lower court decision will eventually make its way back to the Supreme Court. Eventually, we will get a decision on the merits of President Trump’s executive order trying to repeal birthright citizenship.” He said that the “Constitution is clear and the case law is also clear. However, President Trump is already scaring people who unnecessarily worry that their citizenship may be taken from them,” and that “I think fear is the goal. They’ve done that in so many different ways. On birthright citizenship, on mass deportation efforts, trying to discourage international students from coming to or staying in the United States. So even if they lose in the courts, they’re winning the public relations battle.”
Mr. Yale-Loehr was quoted by Newsweek in Birthright Citizenship Faces Supreme Court Climax. He said that a federal district judge’s ruling in a birthright citizenship case “was merely a preliminary finding that the case could go forward as a class action. It did not address the merits of birthright citizenship. Moreover, Judge LaPlante stayed his order for seven days to give the government time to appeal. We are still a long way from a decision on the merits. The case on the merits may not reach the Supreme Court until next spring. Based on the clear language in the Constitution allowing birthright citizenship, I believe the justices will strike down President Trump’s effort to repeal birthright citizenship.”
Mr. Yale-Loehr was quoted by Newsweek in Republicans Are Changing Their Tune on Immigration: Poll. He said that recent Gallup poll results “show that President Trump’s mass deportation efforts are backfiring. Americans realize that immigration is good for the country and that we need immigrants to grow our economy.”
Below is a list of Academy of Business Immigration Lawyers members and attorneys who are on American Immigration Lawyers Association National Committees for 2025-26:
USCIS Benefits Policy Committee: Vincent Lau (vice chair), Vic Goel, Lynn Susser
DOL Liaison Committee: Magaly Cheng, Andrea-Li Wallace, Michele Madera
DOS Liaison Committee: Elise Fialkowski, Elissa Taub
EOIR Liaison Committee: Aaron Hall (chair), Dustin Baxter
EB-5 Committee: Joseph Barnett (vice chair), Kristal Ozmun, Edward Ramos
Military Committee: Daniel Carpenter, Catherine Magennis
Verification & Documentation Committee: Kim Robidoux (chair), Timothy D’Arduini, Marketa Lindt, Matthew Webster
Student Visa Taskforce: Bernard Wolfsdorf
Benefits Litigation Committee: David Isaacson, Zachary New, John Pratt
Standing Committee on Political Engagement (SCOPE): Nam Douglass, Jennifer Howard, William Stock
Business Section Steering Committee: Dagmar Butte, Ceridwen Koski, Christian Park
Family Section Steering Committee: Jorge Gavilanes
Federal Court Litigation Section Steering Committee: Kevin Gregg
National Immigration Litigation Steering Committee: Charles Kuck
Rule of Law Taskforce: Cyrus Mehta, William Stock
National Publications Committee: Helena Tetzeli
Media Advocacy Committee: Kim Robidoux, Elissa Taub
Client Resources Committee: Meghan Moody (vice chair), Vikram Akula, Robby Rubin
Innovation and Technology Committee: Hannah Little (chair), Dan Maranci (vice chair), Vikram Akula
Technology Track: Hannah Little
Business Track: Marisa Casablanca, William Hummel
Distance Learning Committee: Ari Sauer
Equity & Belonging Committee: Miki Matrician
Well-Being Committee: Jennifer Howard (vice chair)
AILA Board of Directors: Miki Matrician (elected director)
Futures Task Force: Kirby Joseph (chair)
Annual Conference 2026 Planning Committee: William Hummel
Fall Conference Planning Committee: Magaly Cheng, Vic Goel, Hannah Little, Greg Siskind
Fall Conference Technology Track: Kirby Joseph (chair)
Fall Conference Law Practice Management Track: Kirby Joseph (chair)
AILA Law Journal: Cyrus Mehta (editor in chief), Kaitlyn Box (editorial board member), Dagmar Butte (editorial board member), William Stock (editorial board member)
Philadelphia Chapter Chair: Michele Madera
Government Agency Links
Follow these links to access current processing times of the USCIS Service Centers and the Department of State’s latest Visa Bulletin with the most recent cut-off dates for visa numbers:
USCIS case processing times online: https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/
Department of State Visa Bulletin: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-bulletin.html
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