Denver, CO – In an historic ruling, a multi-million dollar federal class action lawsuit filed by nine federal immigrant detainees against private prison contractor The GEO Group, Inc. (NYSE: GEO) received the green light to go forward on Tuesday. The lawsuit, filed by current and former immigrant detainees held in Aurora, Colorado, accuses GEO of violating the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), and demands millions of dollars in damages for forced labor and unjust enrichment. This is

Following a new order by U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Hanen in the Texas v. United States litigation, USCIS advised DACA recipients who received a three-year Employment Authorization Document (EAD) that the three-year EAD and DACA approval notice are no longer valid, and reminded recipients to return three-year EADs previously issued to them. The new July 7, 2015, order requires top immigration enforcement officials, including DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson, to appear at a hearing in Texas on

Because India is party to the Hague Adoption Convention, children from India must meet the requirements of the Convention in order to be eligible for adoption. For example, the adoption may take place only if the competent authorities of India have determined that placement of the child within India has been given due consideration and that an intercountry adoption is in the child’s best interests. In addition to India’s requirements, a child must meet the definition of Convention adoptee to be

Please be advised of changes related to nonimmigrant E visa application processing. E visa treaty trader and treaty investor applicants are an integral part of the U.S. economy. Recent increases in overall visa applications have made it challenging to offer efficient processing of these cases in Mexico City. In order to provide a higher level of service for all applicants, we are shifting processing of E1 treaty trader and E2 treaty investor visas away from Mexico City.

Whether a person is permitted to run a business in the U.S. without a work permit remains unsettled. U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that running a business did not constitute unauthorized employment in Bhakta v. INS, 667 F.2d 771 (9 Cir. 1981) and the case has not yet been overruled. Two years after the decision in Bhakta, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, in Wettasinghe v. U.S. Department of Justice, 702 F.2d 641 (1983), upheld the decision of an Immigration

It is important to note that TPS is NOT only for individuals living illegally in the U.S. Those who are here legally as visitors, students, and temporary workers can – and in many cases should- apply for TPS. It may allow them to live and work legally in the U.S. long after their current status expires.

President Barack Obama announced Wednesday that the U.S. and Cuba will reopen embassies in each other’s countries, with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry travelling to Havana later this summer to take part in re-establishing the embassy there, which legal experts say could provide a new method for obtaining visas.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday ruled that there is a constitutional right to same-sex marriage under the 14th Amendment, striking down state-level bans on the practice.

If you are a Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiary who is eligible to re-register for TPS but did not file your application before the deadline for your re-registration period, USCIS reminds you to follow the guidance on our TPS web page under “Filing Late.”

A recipient of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) who had entered the U.S. without inspection was eligible to adjust to lawful permanent resident status because his receipt of TPS satisfied the “admission” requirement of the adjustment of status statute.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) invites you to participate in a listening session on Thursday, June 25, from 2:30 to 4 p.m. (Eastern) to provide feedback on a proposed “significant public benefit” parole program for entrepreneurs. This is one of the executive actions on immigration announced by President Obama on November 20, 2014.

Washington D.C. - Today, Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson released a statement on plans to make “substantial changes” to the agency’s family detention policies. The following is a statement, in response, from Ben Johnson, Executive Director of the American Immigration Council.

• Parole does not guarantee return,
• CBP officers can revoke parole,
• Parole is not an admission,
• Other grounds of inadmissibility may bar return

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) invites you to participate in a listening session on Thursday, June 25, from 2:30 to 4 p.m. (Eastern) to provide feedback on a proposed “significant public benefit” parole program for entrepreneurs. This is one of the executive actions on immigration announced by President Obama on November 20, 2014.

The Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs is currently experiencing technical problems with its visa systems. This issue is not specific to any particular country or visa category. We apologize for the inconvenience and are working urgently to correct the problem and restore full operability.

NEW YORK— U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Office of the Mayor of New York City have joined forces to strengthen citizenship education and awareness efforts in the City of New York. The new partnership began today as part of a signed letter of agreement between USCIS Director Léon Rodríguez and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio. The agreement will remain in effect until Dec. 31, 2018.

We want you to know that Green Cards (also known as Permanent Resident Cards) do not always include the holder’s signature. In limited cases, we may waive the signature requirement for certain people, such as children under the age of consent or individuals who are physically unable to provide a signature.

Certain H-4 dependent spouses may now apply for employment authorization under the H-4 rule. On February 24, 2015, USCIS announced that effective today, May 26, 2015, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would begin accepting applications for employment authorization from certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants who are seeking employment-based lawful permanent resident status.

The Fifth Circuit on Tuesday refused to grant the federal government's bid to stay a nationwide injunction on two key immigration policies created by the president’s executive actions, saying that the government wasn’t likely to succeed in its appeal of the block.

The Ninth Circuit granted the petition for review and remanded, holding that the petitioner's conviction for grand theft, in violation of California Penal Code §487(a), was not a categorical aggravated felony, because the statute is doubly overbroad in that it permits a conviction for theft of labor while the generic definition of theft does not, and also permits a conviction for a consensual taking.