Sara Herbek

Due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns, the current North American border closure will be extended for another month through February 21, 2021.

The incoming Biden administration has announced plans to block President Trump’s executive order ending COVID-19 travel bans in Europe and Brazil.

On January 15, 2021, the DOL Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) published an updated H-1B program bulletin revising its Labor Condition Application (LCA) filing.

On January 14, 2021, former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Chad Wolf issued a memo ratifying several measures.

The DOL published the H-1B Prevailing Wage Final Rule in the Federal Register on Jan. 14, 2021. The agency outlined the rule’s phased implementation plan, with new wage levels effective Jul. 1, 2021.

Phishing attempts are serious security concerns and unfortunately, foreign national students, scholars and employees are often the target of these attempts and other security risks.

On Jan. 12, 2021, the DOL announced that it will issue a Final Rule to increase and reform prevailing wages for foreign worker programs on Jan. 14, 2021, to be implemented in 60 days.

The January 2021 Visa Bulletin will bring advancement in employment-based categories. USCIS will use the Final Action Date chart in January 2021.

Following the extension of P.P. 10014 and 10052 through March 31, 2021, DHS will continue to waive in-person interview requirements for certain nonimmigrant visas.

President Trump has extended Presidential Proclamations (P.P.) 10014 and 10052. The two proclamations, which suspend immigrant and nonimmigrant work visas, will remain in effect through Mar. 31, 2021.

North American land borders will remain closed through January 21, 2021. U.S.-CA and U.S.-MX land borders have been closed since March 21, 2020 due to COVID-19.

The DOL will return to pre-Oct. 8, 2020 PERM and H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 OES wage data. The announcement follows two court orders blocking the agency from continuing to implement the rule nationwide.

USCIS has extended temporary I-9 employment verification measures through February 1, 2021. The temporary measures were scheduled to expire on December 1, 2020.

On Nov. 30, a U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that foreign students can remain in the U.S. to work through the DHS’s Optional Practical Training (OPT) program after graduation.

On Dec. 4, 2020, a U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, NY ordered DHS to accept new DACA applications. DHS must notify the public by Dec. 7, 2020 that it will accept and adjudicate new applications.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked DHS from enforcing the Public Charge rule nationwide on Dec. 2, 2020. The injunction applies to 18 states and Washington, D.C.

On December 1, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California decided that the interim rules for the H-1B program issued by the DOL and DHS were invalid.

The State Department has published the December 2020 Visa Bulletin, which will follow the Dates for Filing Chart to determine eligibility for adjustment of status.

Due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns, North American borders will remain closed for another month. Nonessential travel across U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada borders is banned through December 21, 2020.

DHS has proposed a rule authorizing U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to expand biometrics collection for certain travelers entering or exiting the country.