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Immigration News Briefs

Provided by Humera Subhani

December 2019

Health insurance rule blocked
A federal court has blocked the Trump administration from implementing a policy that would require new immigrants to prove they have healthcare, would have U.S. health insurance within 30 days of their arrival, or have enough money to pay for “reasonably foreseeable medical costs.” This new healthcare requirement would primarily affect new immigrants looking to join family members in the U.S.

The court order, issued November 2 by U.S. District Judge Michael Simon in Oregon, temporarily barred the administration from applying the new policy for 28 days. Another hearing was scheduled for Nov. 22.
UPDATE: A U.S. judge in Oregon on Tuesday [November 26, 2019] granted a preliminary injunction blocking a Trump administration proclamation that would require immigrants to show proof of health insurance to get a visa. U.S. District Court Judge Michael Simon said in a written opinion that the proclamation could not take effect while a lawsuit challenging its constitutionality makes its way through the courts. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-immigration-donald-trump-rule-requiring-immigrants-prove-health-insurance-blocked-federal-judge-2019-11-27/

This requirement is part of a broader effort by President Trump to restrict immigrants’ ability to enter the country. In October, five separate federal courts blocked another Trump administration policy that would have required many of the same applicants to demonstrate that they would not become reliant on any public benefits should they be allowed to immigrate to the U.S. That rule would have also blocked immigrants already in the U.S. from gaining permanent residence if they had used public benefits or might in the future.

Processing fee increased
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that it is adjusting the fee to request premium processing for certain employment-based petitions.

Beginning on December 2, 2019, the premium processing fee increases to $1,440 from the current fee of $1,410 for Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, and Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker. USCIS last increased the fee in 2018.

Premium processing is an optional service for certain petitioners filing Forms I-129 or I-140 to request 15-day processing if they pay an extra fee in addition to the base filing fee and any other applicable fees.

Fee for H-1B visa registration
USCIS announced a final rule, effective December 9, that requires a $10 nonrefundable fee with each H-1B registration submitted by petitioning employers, once it implements the electronic registration system.

The H-1B program allows companies in the United States to temporarily employ foreign workers in occupations that require the application of a body of highly specialized knowledge and a bachelor’s degree or higher in the specific specialty, or its equivalent.

Petitioners seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions, including those eligible for the advanced degree exemption, will first register electronically with USCIS during a designated registration period.

APPLICATION FINAL ACTION DATES FOR December 2019

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	15May13	15May13
2A	Current	Current
2B	08Aug14	08Aug14
3rd	08Nov07	08Nov07
4th	01Nov04	01Feb07

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	01Jan15	15Jul18
2nd	15May09	Current
3rd	01Jan09	Current
Other	01Jan09	Current
4th	Current	Current
5th	01Jan18	Current1B

DATES FOR FILING VISA APPLICATIONS - December 2019

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	15Nov13	15Nov13
2A	01Oct19	01Oct19
2B	08Feb15	08Feb15
3rd	15May08	15May08
4th	01Jul05	22Jul07

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	15Mar17	Current
2nd	01Jul09	Current
3rd	01Feb10	Current
Other	01Feb10	Current
4th	Current	Current
5th	Current	Current1B