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Immigration Bulletin

The U.S. Department of State updates their global visa wait times monthly. Monitor these wait times to schedule visa interviews in advance and avoid delays.

DOS will significantly limit interview waivers starting September 2, 2025. In-person interviews will be required for most visa categories (including E-1, E-2, F-1, H-1B, J-1, L-1, O-1) even for renewals. Some B-1/B-2 renewals will have interview waivers if processed in the country of nationality. Expect this to lengthen visa interview waiting periods.

USCIS has issued new guidance on how officers evaluate “good moral character” for naturalization applicants. Officers will now consider positive factors, not only the absence of negative behavior, when making decisions. A few examples of favorable factors include: paying taxes, caring for family, steady work, community involvement, and military service.

Starting August 15, 2025, USCIS will calculate a child's age under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) using the "Final Action Dates" chart instead of the "Dates for Filing" chart. This change will cause many more applicants to lose eligibility by "aging out". Applications filed before August 15 will still calculate using "Dates for Filing".

A federal judge in California has temporarily blocked the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua. TPS protections for these countries have been extended until at least November 18, 2025, when a hearing on the merits of the lawsuit will take place.

E-Verify has updated its Status Change Report to help employers identify revoked EADs following DHS’s termination of certain parole programs (e.g., CHNV). As of July 15, 2025, the report includes revoked document numbers. Employers should compare these with records on file and, if matched, complete Form I-9 Supplement B to reverify work authorization without creating a new E-Verify case.

A federal judge in New Hampshire granted class-action status on July 10 to a lawsuit brought by the ACLU on behalf of a pregnant immigrant, immigrant parents and their infants who would be denied birthright citizenship under a Trump executive order. The judge granted a temporary block of the President's order restricting birthright citizenship from going into effect throughout the country.

The June 27 Supreme Court ruling on the birthright citizenship case limited the ability of district judges to issue nationwide injunctions. It did NOT decide on Trump’s order ending birthright citizenship. The order ending birthright citizenship will go into effect unless someone sues in their own area or joins a class action, which some groups are already working on. Contact us if you have any questions or concerns about how your child may be impacted.

A U.S. District Court judge blocked the Department of Homeland Security’s attempt to terminate the TPS designation for Haiti. Currently, Haiti’s TPS protections remain intact and will expire on the original date of February 3, 2026.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for nationals of Haiti. Haiti's designation is set to expire on September 2, 2025. Contact us if you have any questions or concerns about how this termination may affect your status.