Federal District Court Issues Nationwide Order Blocking Big USCIS Filing Fee Increases Set to Start October 2, 2020
The Court Order temporarily stops big increases in filing fees charged by USCIS for many of the most frequently used immigration applications and petitions, including I-129s for H-1B temporary professional workers, L-1 transferred key employees of multinational companies, I-765 work permits for students and green card applicants who are sponsored by U.S. citizen spouses or parents and citizenship applications for long-time green card holders. The Court found that the Department of Homeland Security violated the Administrative Procedure Act and that the fee increases were "arbitrary and capricious."
Federal Court Issues Injunction Stopping Enforcement of Presidential Proclamation Imposing "Visa Ban" for Certain H-1B, L-1 and H-2B Temporary Workers
On October 1, 2020, a Federal District Court issued an injunction stopping the U.S. Government from enforcing a June 22, 2020 Presidential Proclamation that prevented U.S. consulates from issuing temporary work visas in the H-1B, L-1 and H-2B work visa categories from June 22 to December 31, 2020. The lawsuit was brought by the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) against the Department of Homeland Security. International workers who are sponsored in the H-1B, L-1 and H2-B work visa categories by employers who are members of NAM are now exempted from the "visa ban" because of the Federal Court order.
