ABIL Immigration Insider • March 1, 2026
In this issue:
1. DOL Proposes Rule on Determining Employee/Independent Contractor Status – The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division issued a proposed rule that would rescind the analysis for determining employee or independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act and replace it with analysis that it published and adopted in a prior final rule.
2. U.S. Embassies Update Travel Advisories in Middle East in Response to Increased Risks and Armed Conflict – U.S. Embassies have issued new security alerts and updated travel advisories for several countries in response to unrest and armed conflict in the Middle East region. The U.S.-Israeli military operation in Iran and related risks elsewhere in the region are rapidly evolving.
3. Advocacy Organization Comments on Religious Workers Interim Final Rule – The American Immigration Lawyers Association welcomed the rule and made suggestions.
4. DHS Proposes Rule on Work Authorization for Asylum Applicants – The Department of Homeland Security is proposing a rule to change filing and eligibility requirements for those requesting work authorization based on a pending asylum application.
5. March Visa Bulletin Notes Extension of Certain Religious Workers Category – The EB-4 Certain Religious Workers (SR) category is extended until September 30, 2026.
6. DHS May Arrest and Detain Refugees Who Have Not Applied for LPR Status After One Year – A new memo states that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) must locate, arrest, and take into custody refugees who have not yet submitted an adjustment of status application and have not appeared at scheduled interviews or appointments within one year. DHS also “must treat the one-year mark as a mandatory re-vetting point.”
7. DHS Shutdown Not Expected to Affect Most ICE, CBP, USCIS Operations – The Department of Homeland Security is technically in partial shutdown status, although certain operations are expected to continue, including most activities conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services fee-funded activities are also expected to continue during the shutdown.
8. USCIS Received Enough Supplemental H-2B Petitions to Reach Cap for Returning Workers – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has received enough petitions to reach the cap for the additional 18,490 H-2B visas made available under a temporary final rule for the first allocation of returning workers of Fiscal Year 2026 with start dates from January 1 to March 31, 2026.
9. DHS Terminates TPS for Yemen – The Department of Homeland Security announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status for Yemen effective 60 days after the date of publication of the notice in the Federal Register.
10. Appeals Court Allows Termination of TPS for Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a stay pending appeal allowing the Trump administration to move forward with plans to terminate Temporary Protected Status for an estimated 60,000 migrants in the United States, including 50,000 Hondurans, 7,000 Nepalis, and 3,000 Nicaraguans.
11. OFLC Releases Data on Employers and Selected Program Statistics – The Department of Labor’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification has released a comprehensive set of public disclosure data and selected program statistics.
12. DOS Confirms That China is Not Part of Immigrant Visa Pause – Practitioners alerted the Department of State (DOS) that its Travel Docs site erroneously stated that China was included among dozens of countries for which immigrant visa processing has been paused. DOS subsequently removed the statement from its website.
13. District Court Grants Stay of DHS Secretary Noem’s Decision to End Haitian TPS; Appeal Likely – A district court granted plaintiffs a stay of Secretary Noem’s decision to end Haitian Temporary Protected Status pending the outcome of litigation.
14. Congress Scraps Visas for Afghans Who Helped the United States – Congress has approved a package of spending bills that does not authorize any new visas for the Special Immigrant Visa program for Afghans who worked with the United States during the war against the Taliban, effectively killing the program.
15. Fifth Circuit Upholds Trump Administration’s Policy of Detention Without Release on Bond – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld the Trump administration’s policy of mandatory detention of thousands of people without the possibility of release on bond for those caught up in the administration’s immigration sweeps in Texas and Louisiana.
16. Texas Governor Freezes New H-1B Visas for State Agencies and Universities, Launches Investigation – Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced an immediate freeze on new H-1B visas by all state agencies and universities and an investigation into “H-1B visa abuse.”
17. Group Files Complaint Against ‘Gold Card’ Program – A group, including the American Association of University Professors and others, filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s “Gold Card” visa program.
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 – March 2026
1. DOL Proposes Rule on Determining Employee/Independent Contractor Status
On February 27, 2026, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division issued a proposed rule that would rescind the analysis for determining employee or independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and replace it with analysis that it published and adopted in a prior final rule dated January 7, 2021, with a few modifications. DOL also proposes to apply this analysis to the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act, which incorporates the FLSA’s scope of employment.
Among other provisions, the proposed rule would include:
- A provision discussing the “economic reality” test for distinguishing FLSA employees from independent contractors, including that the ultimate inquiry of economic dependence turns on whether an individual is in business for him- or herself (independent contractor) or is economically dependent on an employer for work (employee) (DOL is additionally proposing to provide further context on the meaning of economic dependence); and
- Provisions describing factors examined as part of the economic reality test, including two core or primary factors—the nature and degree of the individual’s control over the work and the individual’s opportunity for profit or loss.
DOL said it welcomes comments on the inclusion of additional context on economic dependence into the regulations explaining that “economic dependence for work rather than economic dependence for income is the proper inquiry.” Specifically, DOL has added the following sentences to the end of the proposed § 795.105(b):
Comments on the proposed rule are due by April 28, 2026, via one of the methods provided in the notice.
2. U.S. Embassies Update Travel Advisories in Middle East in Response to Increased Risks and Armed Conflict
U.S. embassies have issued new security alerts and updated travel advisories for several countries in response to unrest and armed conflict in the Middle East region:
- Iran. The U.S. Embassy Virtual Iran announced that due to military operations and other risks, U.S. citizens in Iran are advised to shelter in place throughout the country until further notice. A travel advisory states that “U.S. citizens are at risk due to terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, arbitrary detention of U.S. citizens, torture, and wrongful detention.” U.S. citizens should not travel to Iran for any reason and should leave Iran if they are there. Iran continues to be a Level 4 “Do Not Travel” destination. The Foreign Interests Section of the Swiss Embassy in Tehran provides emergency services for U.S. citizens. Any U.S. citizens seeking routine services should make an appointment at a U.S. embassy or consulate outside of Iran, the embassy said.
- Lebanon. The U.S. Embassy in Lebanon updated its travel advisory, noting that on February 23, 2026, the Department of State ordered the departure of non-emergency U.S. government personnel and family members of government personnel due to the security situation in Beirut. The advisory includes a Level 4 “Do Not Travel” warning for Lebanon “due to crime, terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, unexploded landmines, and the risk of armed conflict. Some areas, especially near the borders, have increased risk.” The advisory also mentions blocked roads and other hazards. U.S. Embassy Beirut has suspended routine consular services and advises that “Americans should contact [email protected] in case of emergency,” noting that they should “not rely on the U.S. government for assisted departure or evacuation.” Additional information is available on Lebanon’s Country Information page.
- Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza. The U.S. Embassy has issued a security alert directing all U.S. government employees and their family members to shelter in place until further notice. U.S. citizens can find additional information regarding steps to take in case of mortar and rocket fire and hostile aircraft intrusion in the Country Information for Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza. The latest travel advisory, issued on February 27, 2026, puts Israel at Level 3. The advisory says to “reconsider travel” to Israel and the West Bank, and not to travel to Gaza, Northern Israel, and the Israel-Egypt border region.
- Qatar. The U.S. Embassy in Doha issued a security alert implementing a shelter-in-place order for all personnel countrywide. The embassy said, “We recommend all Americans do the same until further notice.”
The U.S.-Israeli military operation in Iran and related risks elsewhere in the region are rapidly evolving. Travel advisories and security alerts may be updated with little notice and should be monitored. The advisories include additional information, links, and phone numbers for U.S. citizens.
3. Advocacy Organization Comments on Religious Workers Interim Final Rule
On February 25, 2026, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) submitted comments on an interim final rule from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that reduces the required time abroad for religious workers.
AILA said it welcomed the rule, which reduces the period of time religious workers must remain outside the United States after exhausting the five-year limit in R-1 nonimmigrant status in order for them to become eligible for a subsequent period of R-1 status. Among its suggestions, AILA recommended that DHS consider allowing a reset of the five-year maximum under any of the following conditions: (1) if a religious worker changes employers, (2) if the religious worker remains with the same employer and departs the United States after having completed the initial 30 months of R-1 status, (3) if there are 6 months or a year remaining on the five year clock, or (4) if a religious worker departs the United States during the last year of the five-year maximum period.
4. DHS Proposes Rule on Work Authorization for Asylum Applicants
On February 20, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that it is proposing a rule, “Employment Authorization Reform for Asylum Applicants,” to change filing and eligibility requirements for those requesting work authorization and Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) based on a pending asylum application. The rule would take effect 60 days after publication, which is scheduled for February 23, 2026.
The proposed changes, according to the unpublished version, include “pausing acceptance of EAD applications from asylum applicants during periods when affirmative asylum average processing time exceeds 180 days, extending the waiting period to apply for employment authorization to 365 days, changing EAD application processing time requirements, and adding eligibility requirements.” The 365-calendar-day waiting period would begin “on the date of the receipt of a complete asylum application.” DHS also proposes to “pause USCIS’ acceptance of initial Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization (EAD application), filings in the [8 CFR 274a.12(c)(8)] category when USCIS’ average processing time for affirmative asylum applications exceeds 180 days.”
Under the proposed rule, DHS would allow those “with pending asylum applications that have not yet been adjudicated and who already have employment authorization before the final rule’s effective date to remain employment authorized until the expiration date on their current EAD, unless the card is terminated or revoked on the grounds specified in regulations in effect when their EAD was issued.” In general, unless otherwise specified, those “who file renewal (c)(8) EAD applications on or after the effective date of the final rule would be subject to the applicable provisions in this proposed rule.”
DHS said that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has more than 1.4 million pending affirmative asylum claims.
5. March Visa Bulletin Notes Extension of Certain Religious Workers Category
The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for March 2026 notes that the EB-4 Certain Religious Workers (SB) category has been extended:
6. DHS May Arrest and Detain Refugees Who Have Not Applied for LPR Status After One Year
On February 18, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a memorandum from the directors of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that was filed in a district court case. The memo states that “DHS may arrest and detain a refugee who has lived in the United States for at least one year and has not yet acquired LPR [lawful permanent resident] status.” The memo further states that DHS is required “to take the affirmative actions of locating, arresting, and taking” into custody refugees who have not yet submitted an adjustment of status application and have not appeared at scheduled interviews or appointments within one year.
The memo states that DHS “must treat the one-year mark as a mandatory re-vetting point for all refugees who have not adjusted to LPR status.” The one-year inspection “is not discretionary; it is a required step to determine whether the refugee may remain in the United States as an LPR, should have status terminated, or should be placed into removal proceedings.”
Reaction. Calling the new policy “unlawful” and “based on a contorted reading of immigration law,” the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) said, “The DHS policy of detaining and arresting refugees is a dramatic break with past practices that could impact thousands of refugees who have not yet obtained green cards.” IRAP said the one-year inspection interview “includes not only asking questions to determine whether they are admissible as lawful permanent residents (green card holders) but also revisiting their refugee claim, which refugees have already proven to the U.S. government through a lengthy vetting process.”
7. DHS Shutdown Not Expected to Affect Most ICE, CBP, USCIS Operations
On February 14, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s funding lapsed due to a breakdown in spending bill negotiations between Democrats and Republicans over how DHS agencies conduct their operations. DHS is therefore technically in partial shutdown status, although certain operations are expected to continue, including most activities conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services fee-funded activities are also expected to continue during the shutdown.
To unblock the funding, Democrats are demanding that Congress impose certain “guardrails” on DHS agencies, such as prohibiting DHS officers from conducting stops, questioning, and searches based on an individual’s presence at certain locations, their job, their spoken language and accent, or their race and ethnicity; requiring officers to use body cameras, remove masks, and display identification; obtaining judicial search warrants before entering homes; and prohibiting funds from being used to conduct enforcement near sensitive locations, including medical facilities, schools, child-care facilities, churches, polling places, and courts.
The partial shutdown is expected to last at least a week, with the caveat that members may be called back to Congress if a viable agreement is reached.
8. USCIS Received Enough Supplemental H-2B Petitions to Reach Cap for Returning Workers
On February 13, 2026, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has received enough petitions to reach the cap for the additional 18,490 H-2B visas made available under a temporary final rule for the first allocation of returning workers of Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 with start dates from January 1 to March 31, 2026. February 6, 2026, was the final receipt date for petitions requesting supplemental H-2B visas under the first allocation.
USCIS explained that it received more petitions than available H-2B visas for the first allocation. The agency used a computer-generated selection process to allocate the visas without exceeding the first FY 2026 supplemental cap allocation. On February 13, 2026, USCIS conducted this random selection process for petitions received on the first five business days of filing (February 2 through 6, 2026).
9. DHS Terminates TPS for Yemen
On February 13, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Yemen effective 60 days after the date of publication of the notice in the Federal Register. As of press time, it was unclear when the notice would be published.
TPS Yemen beneficiaries in the United States, estimated to number about 1,380, with no other lawful basis for remaining have 60 days from publication to voluntarily depart the United States. The agency encouraged those leaving the United States to use U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s CBP Home app to report their departure from the United States. The app includes a complimentary plane ticket, a $2,600 exit bonus, and potential future opportunities for legal immigration, DHS said.
10. Appeals Court Allows Termination of TPS for Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua
On February 9, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a stay pending appeal allowing the Trump administration to move forward with plans to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for an estimated 60,000 migrants in the United States, including 50,000 Hondurans, 7,000 Nepalis, and 3,000 Nicaraguans.
The court said it concluded that “the government is likely to succeed on the merits of its appeal either by showing that the district court lacked jurisdiction or by prevailing on plaintiffs’ arbitrary-and-capricious [Administrative Procedure Act] challenge.”
11. OFLC Releases Data on Employers and Selected Program Statistics
The Department of Labor’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) has released a comprehensive set of public disclosure data (through the first quarter of fiscal year 2026) drawn from employer applications requesting prevailing wage determinations and labor certifications for the PERM, LCA (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3), H-2A, H-2B, CW-1, and Prevailing Wage programs. The public disclosure files include all final determinations OFLC issued for these programs during the October 1–December 31, 2025, reporting period of Fiscal Year (FY) 2026.
OFLC has also released selected program statistics for the first quarter of FY 2026 for the PERM, LCA (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3), H-2A, H-2B, CW-1, and Prevailing Wage programs.
12. DOS Confirms That China is Not Part of Immigrant Visa Pause
According to reports, practitioners alerted the Department of State (DOS) on February 10, 2026, that its Travel Docs site erroneously stated that China was included among dozens of countries for which immigrant visa processing has been paused as of January 21, 2026. DOS subsequently removed the statement from its website.
Countries subject to the pause include Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyz Republic, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.
13. District Court Grants Stay of DHS Secretary Noem’s Decision to End Haitian TPS; Appeal Likely
Following a January 28, 2026, ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem exceeded her statutory authority in her partial vacatur of Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation, on February 2, 2026, a district court granted plaintiffs—five Haitian TPS beneficiaries—a stay of Secretary Noem’s decision to end Haitian TPS pending the outcome of litigation.
The court found plaintiffs’ assertion that Secretary Noem preordained her termination decision and did so because of hostility to nonwhite immigrants “substantially likely.” Quoting Secretary Noem’s statements to the effect that Haiti and certain other “damn” countries have been “flooding our nation with killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies,” the court noted that plaintiffs in this case include a neuroscientist, a software engineer, a laboratory assistant, a college economics major, and a full-time registered nurse—far from fitting Secretary Noem’s description. The court also observed that Secretary Noem made the decision to cancel Haitian TPS without consulting with appropriate agencies and ignoring Congress’s requirement that she review conditions in Haiti after such consultations. The court noted that she also downplayed the danger to Haitians of returning to Haiti while the Department of State updated its travel advisory in July 2025 warning U.S. travelers not to go to Haiti due to security risks including “kidnapping, crime, terrorist activity, civil unrest, and limited health care.”
The Trump administration is expected to appeal the decision.
14. Congress Scraps Visas for Afghans Who Helped the United States
Last year, after an Afghan national shot two National Guard members in Washington, DC, killing one, President Trump paused the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program that provided a legal pathway to residence in the United States for Afghans who had worked with the U.S. government and U.S. troops during the long war against the Taliban. Congress has now approved a package of spending bills that does not authorize any new visas for the program, effectively killing it.
“They’re just slamming the door shut,” said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the top Democrat on the Senate’s Committee on Foreign Relations. “Stranding vetted SIV applicants or sending Afghan families back into the hands of the Taliban isn’t about security; it’s a betrayal of the promises we made to those who risked their lives for the United States.”
It is unclear if or when visa issuances might be resumed for those with pending applications under the program.
15. Fifth Circuit Upholds Trump Administration’s Policy of Detention Without Release on Bond
On February 6, 2026, despite numerous rulings by lower courts across the United States, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld the Trump administration’s policy of mandatory detention of thousands of people in the court’s jurisdiction (Texas and Louisiana) without the possibility of release on bond for those caught up in the administration’s immigration sweeps.
The court based its ruling on an expanded definition of “applicants for admission,” who can be held without bond while they await decisions in immigration courts, to noncitizens inside the United States, not only those arriving at ports of entry.
Other appeals courts are also expected to decide on similar issues in upcoming weeks.
16. Texas Governor Freezes New H-1B Visas for State Agencies and Universities, Launches Investigation
On January 27, 2026, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced an immediate freeze on new H-1B visas by all state agencies and universities and an investigation into “H-1B visa abuse.”
In a letter to state agency heads, Gov. Abbott said, “No state agency controlled by a gubernatorially appointed head or public institution of higher education shall, without the written permission of the Texas Workforce Commission, initiate or file any new petition to sponsor a nonimmigrant worker under the federal H-1B visa program until the end of the Texas Legislature’s 90th Regular Session on May 31, 2027.” Although the freeze only affects new applications and thus is not expected to affect current H-1B workers in Texas, Gov. Abbott also ordered the state agency and university heads to provide various pieces of information, including the numbers of H-1B visa holders the entity currently sponsors, and job classifications and descriptions, by March 27, 2026.
Reaction. Although H-1B workers make up a relatively small percentage of the workforces in Texas agencies and universities, some argue that closing that pathway could have a negative impact on several sectors. Jason Finkelman, an immigration attorney in Austin, Texas, said that researchers, professors, physicians, engineers, and others in Texas will be affected. “Those researchers and professors are just going to go to other U.S. universities. So we’re going to lose the talent we need here for universities, which is going to contribute to our downfall as being leaders in … higher education.” He noted that the H-1B visa “is the most regulated visa in our whole immigration system.”
Kathleen Campbell Walker, a past president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, objected to the freeze. Among other things, she noted that Texas medical education institutions rely on foreign physicians “to fill critical shortages in healthcare in rural areas of the state as well as in Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) and Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs).” Ms. Walker warned that “Texas universities will be severely hampered in the current global race for highly talented educators and researchers as well as for physicians at its medical schools.” She noted similar efforts in Florida, Oklahoma, and South Carolina.
17. Group Files Complaint Against ‘Gold Card’ Program
On February 3, 2026, a group including the American Association of University Professors and others filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s “Gold Card” visa program. The complaint asks a U.S. district court for declaratory and injunctive relief against the Departments of Homeland Security, State, and Commerce; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; and the heads of those agencies.
The complaint challenges the creation and implementation of the “Gold Card” program “in contravention of Congress’s exclusive authority to regulate immigration and to raise revenue. By giving priority consideration to and awarding visas to individuals who can pay $1 million, rather than to highly talented individuals whose admission would benefit the United States, the program runs counter to the laws enacted by Congress.”
Plaintiffs note that the payment-linked program also “alters how immigrant classifications, including the EB-1A ‘extraordinary ability’ and EB-2 ‘exceptional ability’ preference categories, are defined and how applications are processed” and “causes the displacement of statutorily qualified applicants given the limited number of available visas and the preferential treatment of Gold Card applications.” By treating a payment to the Commerce Department as evidence of statutory eligibility for EB-1 and EB-2 visas, and expediting consideration of applications from individuals who make the payment, the defendants “both exceed their statutory authority and act contrary to long standing laws and policies designed to attract highly talented individuals to the United States,” the complaint states. By conditioning access to the visas on payment, the Gold Card program “allows visas to be bought, and thereby takes visas away from the people to whom federal statute specifies they should be awarded—scientists and engineers, physicians, researchers, and other accomplished individuals whose admission would substantially benefit the United States.”
New Publications and Items of Interest
How to submit an H-1B cap-subject registration. The American Immigration Lawyers Association released a video, How to Fill Out an H-1B Registration.
AILA recommendation to block funding for ICE and CBP. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), representing 18,000 immigration attorneys, urged Congress to refuse any funding for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, including a short-term continuing resolution, until enforceable reforms are put in place. “ICE and Border Patrol must be held accountable for lawless practices. After one year, the Administration’s abandonment of legal standards has resulted in devastating consequences, including multiple killings. Consequences should be imposed to ensure compliance with the law and Constitution,” AILA said. Among other things, AILA said, “No one should be targeted because they appear or sound foreign. Congress should prohibit racial profiling and profiling based on a person’s language, job or where they are located.”
Preparing for the next shutdown. The American Immigration Lawyers Association has released a practice alert, What Happens If the Government Shuts Down? The alert noted that although the most recent brief partial government shutdown ended quickly and the appropriations bill funded almost all agencies through September 30, 2026, an exception was the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The latter agency was funded under a continuing resolution only through February 13, 2026, while Congress debated DHS’s recent enforcement actions and possible mitigations. Since Congress could not agree on what should be included in the DHS bill, a partial government shutdown affecting DHS took place. The practice alert summarized what was likely to ensue if that occurred.
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 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: Alternative Strategies for I-829 Denials and California’s Workplace Know Your Rights Act (SB 294): What Employers Need to Know
Charles Kuck was featured in a new podcast, “In These Times With Bill Nigut,” discussing developments in immigration policy.
Cyrus Mehta and David Isaacson, of Cyrus D. Mehta & Partners PLLC, recently represented Mohsen Mahdawi, an organizer of the pro-Palestinian movement at Columbia University, in immigration and federal court. On February 17, 2026, attorneys for Mr. Mahdawi filed a letter with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit announcing that an immigration judge had terminated Mr. Mahdawi’s removal proceedings. According to a press release from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the immigration judge’s decision was based on the government’s failure to authenticate a memorandum purportedly from Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The memo served as “the basis for seeking to deport Mr. Mahdawi and declared Mr. Mahdawi a threat to U.S. foreign policy based solely on his protected speech.” The government may appeal the decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals or may attempt to refile a new case based on the same charge, the ACLU noted. Mr. Mehta said, “We’re pleased that the court has terminated this witch hunt of a case. Mohsen is a peaceful man and a valued member of his communities in Vermont and at Columbia University. The government’s pursuit of his deportation has been an affront to the principle of free speech that undergirds our democracy. The government’s inability to even file the proper paperwork demonstrates how careless and reckless they are being in their policy of detaining innocent people for their speech.”
Mr. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box have authored several new blog posts: Although the Fifth Circuit Has Justified Detention Without Bond for Noncitizens Who Entered Without Inspection, Courts Outside the Fifth Circuit Are Not Bound and Can Use Independent Judgment Under Loper Bright and Major Questions Doctrine in Immigration Cases after the Supreme Court Ruling in the Tariffs Case.
Mr. Mehta has authored a new blog post: Federal Court Relies on Loper Bright to Overturn EB-1 Denial Based on Final Merits Determination.
Stephen Yale-Loehr, of Miller Mayer, LLP, was quoted by Times Higher Education in Universities ‘All Over the Place’ in Response to ICE Raids. He said, “While we’ve certainly seen a lot of publicity about targeted ICE enforcement actions in cities like Minneapolis, there is still ICE enforcement action happening on campuses, just not as visibly.” Mr. Yale-Loehr said that institutions’ responses have been “all over the place”—with campuses in Florida being directed by state officials to actively cooperate with ICE but many others working to protect students from being deported. University leaders could cite First Amendment rights and express their opinions, he noted, “but we’ve seen this administration go after people who criticize the government, so there is some risk there.” He said that “[m]ost universities try to work behind the scenes to determine what’s going on to help students, but without making formal public statements criticizing ICE enforcement operations.”
Mr. Yale-Loehr was quoted by Newsday in These Long Island Brothers Came to the U.S. as Kids. ICE Deported Them to a Country They Hardly Know. He noted that arresting someone when they show up for a routine U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement check-in was rare until the second Trump administration. In past administrations, including during Trump’s first term, he explained, resources were focused on locating criminals. But immigrants like the Long Island brothers are easier to catch because they had given the government their names and addresses and attended their check-ins. “Because of this increase in going after the low-hanging fruit, they’re not going after as many criminal aliens as they would otherwise. So we may be missing some of the worst of the worst, as President Trump characterizes them.”
Mr. Yale-Loehr was quoted by El Pais in Deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis Reignite Legal Battle Between Democratic States and ICE. He cautioned that immigration is a complex legal issue. “Immigration has long been considered a national policy, not one of 50 different states. Immigration law is the supreme law and supersedes state laws; however, states can enact their own civil and criminal penalties, and when these intersect with immigration, it becomes difficult to determine which will prevail.” Mr. Yale-Loehr noted that the Trump administration has already begun legally challenging several state laws. The federal government has filed lawsuits against California and Illinois, arguing that their immigration-related state laws are unconstitutional and jeopardize the safety of federal agents. “We’ll have to wait and see how the federal courts rule,” he said, noting that the issue could eventually reach the Supreme Court.
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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