Want to keep up with immigration news in the U.S.? Every month, Global Cleveland publishes our immigration update so that you can stay informed about the latest immigration news.

This month’s Immigration Update at a glance:

• Boundless Immigration reported the number of visas issued by the us in the first half of this fiscal year had reached a record high
• The Biden administration unveiled a new plan to speed up the immigration court cases of certain single adults caught crossing the US Mexico border without authorization to do so
• The Cato Institute, a libertarian leaning thinktank, reported that immigrants seeking an employer sponsored green card faced a wait time of over three years

• The Cato Institute, a libertarian leaning thinktank, reported that immigrants seeking an employer sponsored green card faced a wait time of over three years

• This is a significant worsening of the situation over the last decade and the process has become 15 months longer than it was in 2016.

• The report warned that the US would risk “los(ing) the global talent competition” if changes were not made to streamline the system

• https://www.cato.org/blog/employer-sponsored-green-card-processing-takes-31-years

• Ohio Governor Mike DeWine called the state legislator back into session after it did not take action that would permit President Joe Biden to appear on the ballot.
• Ohio law requires candidates to be nominated 90 days before the election, but Biden will not be formally nominated until the Democratic National Convention, held 12 days after the deadline.
• Attempts to fix the issue failed to pass amid an attempt to pair it with a separate bill about campaign finance.
• https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2024/05/23/ohio-gov-mike-dewine-calls-lawmakers-into-special-session-to-fix-biden-ballot-debacle/

• The US Citizenship and Immigration Services updated the eligibility of people for a streamlined green card process, which is geared toward individuals with “exceptional ability” in STEM fields
• The changes expand the definition of “science or art” to enable a broader range of STEM professionals to qualify.
• The Schedule A, Group II process, of which these applicants can be a part, offers a faster and simpler process to obtain a green card
• https://www.boundless.com/blog/uscis-expands-green-card-eligibility-for-stem-professionals/

• The Biden administration unveiled a new plan to speed up the immigration court cases of certain single adults caught crossing the US Mexico border without authorization to do so.
• Single adults with court dates in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City will be eligible to be put in a special docket with the aim of resolving their case in 180 days
• At least ten judges will be placed in the new program initially
• DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the program would not be a substitute for a legislative solution
• https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-speed-up-immigration-cases-recent-border-crossers-new-program-2024-05-16/

• The US government sanctioned 250 Nicaraguan government officials and three organizations on their grounds that they had repressed human rights in the country and had permitted human smuggling in the country’s territory.
• The government of Daniel Ortega, who has been in power for two different periods going back to 1979, has been accused of violently suppressing political opposition by means of extrajudicial killings, death squads, and suppression of peaceful protest.
• Nicaragua lies on one of the main migrant routes to the US, and some smugglers have promoted routes through the country online.
• https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-imposes-visa-restrictions-other-penalties-nicaraguan-government-2024-05-15/

• Boundless Immigration reported the number of visas issued by the us in the first half of this fiscal year had reached a record high.
• Among the categories of visa hitting record highs are:
  • Visitor visas for tourism or business travel (B-1s and B-2s)
  • H-2 visas, for temporary seasonal workers
  • Employment based green cards, which, while small in number, represented a major increase (75% over 2019)
  • Family reunification visas
  • J and F visas for academic and cultural exchanges
• https://www.boundless.com/blog/state-department-record-number-visas-first-half-fiscal-year-2024/

• President Joe Biden issued an order amending the definition of “lawfully present” to include recipients of the Deferred Action for Child Arrivals (DACA)
• The change makes the recipients eligible to enroll in health insurance under the Affordable Care Act
• DACA is a policy allowing for immigrants who came to the US as children and are here without lawful immigrant status to avoid deportation
• DACA has been subject to court challenges at various times in the past decade
• https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/03/biden-obamacare-daca-00155881

• A bipartisan and bicameral group of lawmakers, including Reps. Mike Flood (R-Texas), Valerie Foushee (D-NC), and Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Pete Ricketts (R-Nebraska) introduced a bill allowing international student athletes to benefit from Name, Image, and Likeness revenue
• Back in 2021, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) adapted a new policy allowing student athletes to earn money from their name, image, or likeness, such as endorsing a product and being paid to do so.
• However, International Students, who are usually here on an F-1 visa, are prohibited from doing so.
• The bill, called the Name, Image, and Likeness for International Collegiate Athletes Act, would change the laws surrounding the F-1 visa to enable students to make money from NIL agreements without affecting their visa status.
• https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nc/charlotte/news/2024/05/14/nil-name-image-likeness

• A border security bill rooted in the unsuccessful aid and border security package negotiated this year failed to advance out of the Senate amid GOP opposition
• The bill would raise standards for migrants to qualify for asylum, give the president power to shut down the border entirely if border crossings reached certain thresholds, and empowered border control officials to quickly dismiss asylum seekers who fail to meet certain standards
• Several members of the Senate who had supported the bill in principle voted no on this vote, claiming the vote was a political stunt.
• Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has stated his opposition to the proposal.
• https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/senate-republicans-block-border-security-bill-campaign-border-chaos-rcna153607

• Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signed a new law that requires law enforcement officers to notify federal authorities when an undocumented immigrant is arrested.
• The bill was passed after the murder of Laken Riley, a nursing school student who’s accused murderer had entered the US without documentation, and had previously been arrested on unrelated charges, but released
• Kemp said that the bill would help prevent similar crimes from happening in the future, though opponents, such as the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, criticized the bill, saying it created an unfunded mandate on local law enforcement and would expand incarceration of people of color.
• https://gbpi.org/gbpis-statement-on-the-signing-of-house-bill-1105/
• https://georgiarecorder.com/2024/05/01/kemp-signs-bill-into-law-forcing-sheriffs-to-enforce-federal-immigration-law/

• Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn called for the US government to revoke the visas of international students sympathetic to Hamas.
• Blackburn cited slogans including “We are Hamas” and “River to the sea” as examples
• Campuses across the country have seen widespread protests over the Israel Hamas War
• Blackburn introduced a bill that would ban such protesters who were convicted of crimes from having their student loans forgiven, but it does not appear to contain a provision about international students or immigration. Blackburn’s proposal to designate them as being on the No-Fly list also does not show up in the bill
• https://thehill.com/policy/international/4634492-gop-senator-calls-for-deporting-certain-foreign-student-protesters/

• US District Judge Roy Altman temporarily blocked parts of a Florida immigration bill that would prohibit the transportation of an undocumented immigrant into Florida.
• Altman, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, said that the law “extends beyond the state’s authority to make arrests for violations of federal immigration law”
• A spokesperson for the Florida Attorney General said the state would appeal the ruling
• https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/22/ron-desantis-immigration-court-case-00159552

• The case Bouarfa v. Mayorkas will go to the Supreme Court
• The case involves Amina Bouarfa, a US Citizen who is married to a non-citizen who had attempted to get a visa through a previous marriage. Bouarfa’s petition for her husband was denied on these grounds. Bouafara sued the Secretary of Homeland Security in federal court
• The court will hear the question on whether US courts can review a visa revocation.
• https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/justices-consider-juridical-review-for-sham-marriage-finding