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Immigration News Briefs

Provided by Humera Subhani

April 2021

Public charge rule rescinded

On March 11, 2021, President Biden formally rescinded the public charge rule of the Department of Homeland Security. The rescission comes after the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed a case related to the public charge rule on March 9, 2021, leading USCIS to permanently end enforcement of the public charge rule finalized by the Trump Administration in August 2019. As of March 9, 2021, Form I-944, which asked for personal financial documentation, has been entirely eliminated along with numerous other supporting documents.

USCIS is not applying the 2019 public charge rule to any case adjudicated on or after March 9, 2021, regardless of when the case was filed. Any petitioner or applicant who has been issued a request for evidence (RFE) or notice of intent to deny (NOID) that is based solely on the 2019 public charge rule, and is due on or after March 9, does not need to respond to that part of the notice. USCIS will most likely be updating forms in accordance to this public charge elimination, but has indicated that it will not reject or deny applications or petitions based on responses to those questions, even if those questions are left blank.

Citizenship Act introduced in Congress

On February 18, The U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 was introduced, which aims for comprehensive immigration reform. This bill may be passed in pieces, as it will most likely prove difficult to pass as is, since the Senate will require 60 votes in order to pass it into law. Some of the key provisions of this bill include the following:

• Provides a path for U.S. citizenship for undocumented immigrants, who have been present in the U.S. since January 1, 2021, and who meet certain other requirements (e.g., passes a background check, pays taxes) would be able to apply to become a lawful prospective immigrant (LPI). As an LPI, the individual would be able to legally live and work in the U.S. After five years, the person could apply to become a lawful permanent resident, and a U.S. citizen three years later.

• The per-country cap on family-based green cards would be increased from 7 percent to 20 percent. The bill also would reclassify spouses and minor children of green card holders as immediate relatives. Also, the bill would recapture unused immigrant visas from fiscal years 1992 through 2020, which will make a huge difference in the current backlog.

• The total number of employment-based immgrant visas available per fiscal year would be increased from 140,000 to 170,000. The per-country cap for employment-based green cards would be eliminated. Further, as with the family-based categories, this bill would recapture unused employment-based green cards from 1992 through 2020.

• Allows H-4 dependent children to extend status beyond the age of 21 if certain conditions are met. The bill also would grant work authorization to H-4 spouses and children.

• Allows for the extension of F, H, L or O status if at least 365 days have passed since the filing of a labor certification or I-140 for the individual. These individuals would also qualify to obtain work authorization.

• Repeals certain immigration penalties, such as the 3- and 10-year bars. It also would provide more flexibility to apply for a waiver to inadmissibility.

APPLICATION FINAL ACTION DATES FOR April 2021

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	08Oct14	08Oct14
2A	Current	Current
2B	08Aug15	08Aug15
3rd	08Aug08	08Aug08
4th	08Apr05	01Nov06

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	Current	Current
2nd	01May10	Current
3rd	01Sep10	Current
Other	01Sep10	Current
4th	Current	Current
5th	Current	Current1B

DATES FOR FILING VISA APPLICATIONS - April 2021

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	08Sep15	15Sep15
2A	01Mar21	01Mar21
2B	15Jun16	15Jun16
3rd	22Jun09	22Jun09
4th	01Dec05	01Oct07

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	Current	Current
2nd	15 May11	Current
3rd	01Jan14	Current
Other	01Jan14	Current
4th	Current	Current
5th	Current	Current1B