DHS PUBLIC CHARGE FINAL RULE GOES INTO EFFECT DECEMBER 23, 2022

On December 23, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security's Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility rule will go into effect. The rule attempts to provide “clarity and consistency for noncitizens on how DHS will administer the public charge ground of inadmissibility.” According to DHS, when making public charge considerations under this new rule, they will consider an applicant's “age, health, family status, assets, resources, and financial status as well as education and skills.” They will also consider the prior or current receipt of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) as well as General Assistance from state and local cash benefit programs. They will no longer consider the receipt of noncash benefits such as public housing, school lunch programs, and SNAP receipt. All applications filed on or after December 23, 2022, will be adjudicated according to this new guidance.

OPTIONS FOR NONIMMIGRANT WORKERS FOLLOWING TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT

Workers in specific classifications such as H-1B, L-1, O-1, E-1, E-2, E-3 and TN are allotted a 60 day grace period during which they are still considered in lawful status after termination from employment. Those in H-1B status who have recently been laid off may benefit from the portability rules which allow them to begin working for a new employer as soon as the employer files a new H-1B petition with USCIS without having to wait for the petition to be approved. L-1 workers may be eligible for new employment under the TN visa, E-3 or H-1B1 classifications. Workers may also be able to remain the US if they timely file an application to change to a new nonimmigrant status such as B-2 visitor visa, an F-1 student visa, or an application to adjust status. Those who don't have a viable alternative employment that would allow them to stay in the United States after involuntary termination are entitled to the reasonable cost of transportation to their last place of foreign residence at the expense of their previous H-1B or O employer or petitioner.

HIGH RANKING EX-US MILITARY OFFICERS JOIN NONPROFITS IN PUSH FOR AFGHAN RESETTLEMENT BILL

A Coalition of more than 180 nonprofits and other organizations that support Afghan resettlement are joined by more than 30 of the highest-ranking retired military officers in asking Congress to include Afghan protections in the spending bill that is expected to be approved in the coming days. The advocates declare that the Afghan Adjustment Act not only furthers national security interests but is also a moral imperative. In a letter to Congress, the military leaders wrote “as military professionals, it was and remains our duty to prepare for future conflicts. We assure you that in any such conflict, potential allies will remember what happens now with our Afghan allies.” If added to the defense bill, these protections would afford Afghan nationals who aided the U.S. government the ability to resettle in the U.S.

EB-1, EB-2 AND EB-3 VISAS BULLETIN UPDATES FOR JANUARY 2023

Applicants from India and China for EB-1 visa will have a Final Action cutoff date of February 1, 2022 and a Filing cutoff date of June 1, 2022. The EB-2 Final Action date for India will remain at October 8, 2011 and the Filing cutoff date will remain at May 1, 2012, the same as for the December 2022 Visa Bulletin. The EB-3 Professional/Skilled Worker Final Action date for Indian applicants will remain at June 15, 2012 and the Filing cutoff will remain at August 1, 2012, the same as for the December 2022 Visa Bulletin.