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USCIS announced a final rule modifying DHS’s regulations governing asylum applications, interviews and eligibility for employment authorization based on a pending asylum application.

Applicants for an initial or renewal employment authorization document under the (c)(8) eligibility category must submit biometrics and pay the biometric services fee. There are also new questions applicants must complete based on a pending asylum application. USCIS will not accept Applications for Employment Authorization postmarked on or after Aug. 25, 2020, if you do not file them with the updated edition of Form I-765 and I-765WS and the correct fees.

What you have to know when you send the form:

The current edition of Forms I-765 and I-765WS, dated 12/26/19

• If it is postmarked before Aug. 25, 2020, we will continue to accept the 12/26/19 edition.
• If it is postmarked on or after Aug. 25, 2020, we will not accept the 12/26/19 edition.

The updated edition of Forms I-765 and I-765WS, dated 08/25/20

• If it is postmarked on or after Aug. 25, 2020, we will accept the 08/25/20 edition.
• If it is postmarked before Aug. 25, 2020, we will not accept the 08/25/20 edition.

With the new EAD regulations, DHS is introducing dramatic changes to asylum applicants’ eligibility to seek an EAD under the C(08) category. These changes include:

• 365-day Waiting Period: The new rule entirely eliminates the Asylum Clock and doubles the mandatory waiting period for a C(08) EAD after applying for asylum to 365 days instead of 180 days. If the asylum application is denied before the end of the 365-day waiting period, the C(08) EAD application will be denied.
• No Employment Authorization if Fail to Apply for Asylum Within One-Year Filing Deadline: Under the U.S. asylum law, in order to be eligible for asylum, an individual must file their asylum application within one year after entering the United States, unless an exception applies. Under the new rule, an asylum applicant is not eligible for a C(08) EAD if they file the asylum application after the one-year deadline, unless and until an asylum officer or immigration judge determines that an exception applies and that the applicant filed for asylum within a reasonable period of time under the circumstances. This represents a major shift in policy because it means that the many asylum applicants who apply for asylum on or after August 25, 2020, and more than one year after they entered the U.S. will be unable to receive work authorization until and unless they are able to establish an exception to the one-year filing deadline at their asylum interview or with the immigration judge. Please note that this restriction applies only to asylum applications filed on or after August 25, 2020.

With information of USCIS and imwong.com

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services notified about 13,400 of its 20,000 employees that they would be furloughed Aug. 30 because of budget shortfalls, which the agency hoped Congress would fill in its next relief package before negotiations stalled last week. 

“In the past few months, USCIS has taken action to avert a fiscal crisis, including limiting spending to salary and mission-critical activities,” an agency spokesperson said. “Without congressional intervention, USCIS will have to take drastic actions to keep the agency solvent.” 

The agency had asked Congress for $1.2 billion, and the money had been expected to come through its next coronavirus relief package.

Potential Impact of Furloughs on the U.S. Legal Immigration System

• The anticipated agency furloughs will halt U.S. immigration, negatively impacting families, U.S. businesses, educational institutions, medical facilities, and churches.
• If USCIS is essentially shut down, immigrants who are in the process of becoming naturalized U.S. citizens will not be able to complete the process in time to register to vote, DACA recipients will not be able to renew their benefits, asylum applicants will face increased delays, and businesses will be unable to hire or retain employees.
• According to the Migration Policy Institute, “For each month the USCIS furlough lasts, 75,000 applications for various immigration benefits will not be processed.”

With information of AILA and USA Today

Ninety nine (99) members of Congress sent a letter to DHS and ICE urging the agencies to withdraw the new guidance issued by ICE that states that international students may not take a full online course load and remain in the United States.

The letter support that the announcement of modifications to the Student and Exchange Visitor Program’s requirements for international students, would effectively punish international students at colleges, universities, and other institutions that have decided to move their courses online in order to protect their communities from COVID-19.

“The proposed policy throws the lives of hundreds of thousands of students, and the operations of hundreds of colleges and universities, into uncertainty just weeks before the start of the fall term, to the detriment of the United States and its institutions of higher education.

We are concerned that ICE’s guidance is motivated not by public health considerations, but rather by animus toward immigrants, by a goal of forcing schools to reopen even as COVID-19 cases are rising, and by a desire to create an illusion of normalcy during this unprecedented public health emergency. ICE’s proposed policy demonstrates a callous disregard for the harm this policy inflicts on international students, and is contrary to public health guidance from authorities within the Administration. We urge you to withdraw this proposed policy immediately, and not to proceed with your stated plans to publish it in the Federal Register as a Temporary Final Rule”.

Due to the Trump Administration’s catastrophic mishandling of the pandemic, COVID19 continues to rage throughout the United States. Institutions of higher education are rightly consulting with local public health officials, and many have decided to move most or all of their courses online to protect their students, faculty, and staff. These plans are consistent with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) guidance for such institutions, which says that “virtual-only learning options, activities, and events” are the “lowest risk” setting.

The CDC also advises that institutions of higher education “offer virtual learning and telework options, if feasible,” “pursue virtual group events, gatherings, or meetings, if possible,” and “encourage telework for as many faculty and staff as possible.” The CDC guidance is clear: more social distancing is safer, and online solutions are safest for colleges and universities.

“International students contribute immensely to the United States. They add value to their learning communities, bringing diverse viewpoints and experiences benefiting all other members of their communities. They also contribute to the economy; by one estimate, international students contributed nearly $41 billion to the American economy and supported 458,290 jobs during the 2018-2019 academic year. As President Trump noted five years ago, “When foreigners attend our great colleges & want to stay in the U.S., they should not be thrown out of our country.” The sudden removal of international students would weaken the country economically precisely when our fragile economy cannot afford another self-inflicted blow, and would undermine higher education as one of our most significant and valuable exports. This decision also will severely impact the budgets of many colleges and universities during some of the most challenging financial times in modern memory and could result in increased college costs and student debt for domestic students”.

Recent statements by Administration officials suggest that DHS and ICE released this guidance as a pretext to force institutions of higher education to reopen against the advice of public health experts and local officials.

The letter conclude with the allegation that” ICE’s arbitrary new policy is irrational and xenophobic, and risks the health of students, faculty, and staff. We urge you to rescind this proposed policy immediately and to collaborate productively with institutions of higher education to enable a smooth start to the academic year for all students. We also request a staff briefing to discuss the Administration’s rationale for this reckless policy by July 16, 2020.”

By AILA