USCIS sent the following statement out by email extending it’s COVID-19 RFE response policy:

In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is extending the flexibilities it announced on March 30, 2020, to assist applicants, petitioners and requestors who are responding to certain:
• Requests for Evidence;
• Continuations to Request…

Siskind Summary – The Nonimmigrant Visa Travel Ban
Effective date – 12:01 am eastern time on June 24, 2020
Link – https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/proclamation-suspending-entry-aliens-present-risk-u-s-labor-market-following-coronavirus-outbreak/
Who is covered?
This is an expansion of the April 22, 2020, executive order barring the issuance of immigrant visas. That order is extended and a new exemption is created for children aging out…

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has announced that it is voluntarily testing detainees at facilities in Tacoma, Washington and Aurora, Colorado. It did not comment on other facilities nor did it talk about releasing detainees such as those who are at high-risk if they are infected. It also noted that while it encourages facilities to isolate…

Politico is reporting on the expiration of the current travel restrictions between the US and Canada which are expiring on June 22nd. Canada is interested in the restrictions continuing (not surprising given how bad the US response to COVID has been), but some loosening is expected. Here’s what Politico is saying:
Canadian and U.S. governments…

Siskind Susser sent the following email to clients today:
Siskind Susser has received information from credible sources that President Trump is very close to finalizing an executive order that would bar the entry of L-1, H-1B, H-2B and J-1 non-immigrants for a period of several months. We believe the ban will include numerous exemptions, but…

Immigration and Customs Enforcement is posting data on the number of immigrant detainees who have contracted the coronavirus. The data is released in a curious (arguably misleading) way. The agency prominently posts that they currently have 754 detainees with COVID-19. That’s an alarming figure in and of itself. But if you scroll to the footnotes…

A major impediment to the entry of international physicians could continue for another year or more, according to a communication sent by the Educational Commission on Foreign Medical Graduates. The US Medical Licensing Exam Clinical Skills assessment is a requirement for all physicians seeking J-1 visas to come to the US to engage in graduate…