Visa Lawyer Blog

Articles Posted in Families

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On January 21, the Trump administration quietly froze immigrant visa processing for people from 75 countries — a move that instantly threw thousands of families, workers, and employers into uncertainty.

Just weeks later, civil rights organizations and affected U.S. citizens who were separated from their family members have filed a federal lawsuit seeking to overturn the visa ban.

The government has described the pause on immigrant visa issuance as a temporary measure tied to concerns about immigrants becoming a “public charge.” But the new lawsuit argues that the freeze applies broadly, without individualized review, and affects people who have already spent years navigating the legal immigration system — including spouses of U.S. citizens and highly skilled workers with approved petitions.

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A chilling photo of 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos in Minnesota has put a human face to rising concerns over aggressive immigration enforcement actions taken by ICE officials.

Since that photo made national headlines, we’ve learned that federal immigration agents detained the boy and his father outside their home in Columbia Heights, a Minneapolis suburb, as they returned from the boy’s preschool.

According to the superintendent of the school district, the boy was removed from the family vehicle in the driveway and was told by agents to knock on the family’s door to see if anyone else was inside. The family said ICE agents used the boy in an attempt to coax his mother out of the house — something she avoided doing out of fear of being detained while pregnant and caring for another teenage son.

DHS denies these claims, saying the boy was taken into custody only after his father told officers he wanted the child to remain with him. Officials said they attempted to place the boy with relatives before detaining him alongside his father. Following the incident, DHS issued a statement on X, stating, “Parents are asked if they want to be removed with their children, or ICE will place the children with a safe person the parent designates.”

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calendar-8705482_1280We are pleased to report that the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs has published the February 2026 Visa Bulletin.

In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For adjustment of status filings to permanent residence in the month of February, USCIS will be using the Dates for Filing Chart for the employment-based and family-sponsored categories.

Highlights of the February 2026 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of February?

Employment-Based Categories

Final Action Advancements

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers

  • Except India and China, all countries will advance by 5.7 weeks to June 1, 2023

Dates for Filing Advancements

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers

  • Except India and China, all other countries will advance by 3 months to October 1, 2023

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january-lettering-9278218_1280We are pleased to report that the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs has published the January 2026 Visa Bulletin.

In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For adjustment of status filings to permanent residence in the month of January, USCIS has not yet indicated which filing chart it will use for the employment-based and family-sponsored categories.

Highlights of the January 2026 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of January?

Employment-Based Categories

Final Action Advancements

EB-1 Aliens of extraordinary ability, Outstanding Professors and Researchers, and Certain Multinational Managers or Executives

  • EB-1 India will advance by 10 months to February 1, 2023
  • EB-1 China will advance by 10 days to February 1, 2023

EB-2 Members of the Professions and Aliens of Exceptional Ability

  • EB-2 India will advance by 2 months to July 15, 2013
  • EB-2 China will advance by 3 months to September 1, 2021
  • All other countries will advance by 2 months to April 1, 2024

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers

  • EB-3 India will advance by 1.8 months to November 15, 2013
  • EB-3 China will advance by 1 month to May 1, 2021
  • All other countries will advance by 1 week to April 22, 2023

EB-3 Other Workers

  • EB-3 India will advance by 1.8 months to November 15, 2013
  • EB-3 China will advance by 1 year to December 8, 2018
  • All other countries will advance by 1 month to September 1, 2021

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DHS Ends Family Reunification Parole Programs

On December 12, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that it is terminating all categorical Family Reunification Parole (FRP) programs for citizens of Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras, including their immediate family members.

These programs allowed certain relatives of U.S. citizens and permanent residents to enter the United States on parole while awaiting completion of the immigrant visa process.

DHS described the move as an effort to end what they described as the “abuse of humanitarian parole,” arguing that these programs allowed individuals to bypass traditional immigration procedures without sufficient vetting. Under the new policy, parole will be granted on a case-by-case basis.

The termination takes effect December 15, 2025, and parole for individuals already admitted under FRP will generally expire on January 14, 2026, unless they have a pending Form I-485 Application to Adjust Status that is postmarked or electronically filed on or before December 15 and it is still pending on January 14, 2026.

If an individual has a pending Form I-485, their parole will remain valid until either their period of parole expires or USCIS makes a final decision on their pending Form I-485, whichever is sooner. If the Form I-485 is denied, the period of parole will be terminated, and they will be required to depart the United States or seek relief through alternative legal pathways.

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visa-3653492_1280On December 2, 2025, USCIS issued a policy memorandum placing a hold on numerous immigration benefit requests and ordering the re-examination of previously approved cases.

What the Memo Says: Key Provisions

  • Pending benefit requests frozen for many nationals. USCIS is pausing processing of all pending immigration benefit requests if the applicant’s country of birth or citizenship is one of the 19 countries listed in the June 2025 travel ban.
  • Affected Benefit Requests: The pause will affect pending Form I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status), Form I-90 (Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card (Green Card)), Form N-470 (Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes), Form I-751, (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence), and Form I-131 (Application for Travel Documents, Parole Documents, and Arrival/Departure Records).
  • Re-review of approved benefits. Immigration benefits (green cards, status adjustments, travel documents, etc.) already approved may now be subject to re-review if the beneficiary entered the U.S. on or after January 20, 2021.
  • Asylum applications on pause — for everyone. All pending Forms I-589 (Asylum / Withholding of Removal applications) have been paused, regardless of nationality. The hold will remain in effect until lifted by the USCIS Director
  • Extensive list of potentially affected benefits. The freeze could impact I-485 adjustment-of-status applications, green-card renewals, travel documents, removal of conditional residence, preservation of residence for naturalization, and more. Employer-sponsored petitions may also face delays or uncertainty.

In short: thousands of pending and even approved immigration benefit cases could now be delayed or re-evaluated. The USCIS policy memorandum states that in light of recent threats to the American people:

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us-1978465_1280Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a troubling decision that could strip legal status from hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans currently living in the United States under Temporary Protected Status (TPS).

On Friday, the Court granted the Trump administration’s request to halt a lower court ruling that found the administration’s cancellation of TPS protections for Venezuelans unlawful. The unsigned order from the Court effectively allows the government to proceed, for now, with its plans to revoke temporary protections that had shielded Venezuelan nationals from deportation and granted them employment authorization.

TPS was created in 1990 as a humanitarian safeguard for individuals whose home countries are experiencing extraordinary crises such as armed conflict, environmental disasters, or other temporary but severe disruptions. Venezuela was designated for TPS in 2021 under President Biden, in response to the country’s severe economic collapse, widespread human rights abuses, and political instability.

Since then, approximately 300,000 Venezuelans have relied on that protection to live and work legally in the U.S., building lives, paying taxes, and raising families.

Trump Administration Moves to Strip Venezuela’s TPS Designation

But the political tides have shifted. When the Trump administration returned to office, it appointed Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security. Earlier this year, Noem moved to revoke Venezuela’s TPS designation, arguing that conditions in the country had improved and that continuing the program was no longer in the national interest. That decision sparked immediate legal challenges. A coalition of Venezuelan TPS recipients and advocacy groups sued, claiming the administration’s actions were arbitrary, rushed, and in violation of federal law.

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pumpkin-5517221_1280We are pleased to report that today the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs published the October 2025 Visa Bulletin.

In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For adjustment of status filings to permanent residence in the month of October, USCIS will be using the Dates for Filing Chart for the employment-based and family-sponsored categories.

Highlights of the October 2025 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of October?

Employment-Based Categories

Final Action Advancements

  • At the start of the new fiscal year in October, the Final Action Dates for several EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3 countries will move forward, but none will advance by more than three and a half months, except for two notable exceptions:
    • EB-3 Other Workers China which will advance by 7 months and
    • The Final Action Date for EB-5 India will advance by almost 14 months

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statue-9782657_1280On Tuesday, August 19th, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued updated policy guidance clarifying that immigration officers will assess a range of factors when determining whether to grant a favorable exercise of discretion in the green card process—signaling a tougher stance that may create additional hurdles for applicants seeking approval.

Even where a person has met all eligibility requirements for a green card, officers are required to conduct a discretionary analysis to determine whether an application should be approved. This exercise of discretion involves weighing positive factors against negative ones and considering the totality of the circumstances of each applicant’s case.

Among these factors, immigration officers will need to consider the “[legality of] past requests for parole,” “any involvement in anti-American or terrorist organizations,” and “evidence of antisemitic activity,” which are counted as negative factors weighing against a favorable exercise of discretion.

This guidance is also meant to provide clearer guidance to immigration officers on the “substantial negative discretionary weight” that should be given in cases where an individual has “endorsed, promoted, supported, or otherwise espoused the views of a terrorist organization or group.” This includes those supporting or promoting anti-American sentiments, antisemitic terrorism, terrorist groups with antisemitic agendas, or antisemitic beliefs.

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the-now-time-KXUKLB-_Sb0-unsplash-scaledOn August 1st the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced new policies that could make immigrants applying for green cards through family-based petitions more vulnerable to deportation.

The changes appear in various updates to USCIS’ Policy Manual which states that immigration officials can begin removal proceedings for immigrants who lack legal status and apply to become permanent residents through family-based petitions.

According to the Policy Manual, “if USCIS determines the alien beneficiary is removeable and amenable to removal from the United States, USCIS may issue a Notice to Appear (NTA) [in immigration court] placing the beneficiary in removal proceedings. Petitioners and alien beneficiaries should be aware that a family-based petition accords no immigration status nor does it bar removal.”

The new policy went into effect immediately and applies to pending requests for a green card, and those filed on or after August 1st.

While the practical impact of this policy is yet to be seen, it provides immigration officials with more discretion to initiate removal proceedings even where a green card application is pending with USCIS, for those who entered the U.S. illegally, overstayed a U.S. visa, or otherwise failed to maintain their legal status.

These policy changes underscore the importance of maintaining underlying legal status throughout the green card process. Those who lack legal status or who lost their status during the green card process may be most at risk.

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