Entries by Cyrus Mehta & Kaitlyn Box*

One Big Ugly Bill on Immigration

On July 4, 2025, Congress passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”. Among its many other provisions, the megabill imposes a number of immigration-related changes. Pursuant to the Act, asylum applications, which historically have been able to be filed at no cost, will now be subject to a $100 filing fee. An additional $100 annual […]

The Inherently Moral Executive Actions on Immigration Cannot Die Under Trump

By Cyrus D. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box* The Trump administration is doing its best to kill executive actions that benefit vulnerable noncitizens. In a June 6, 2025 Policy Alert, the administration announced that it would rescind automatic consideration of deferred action for noncitizens classed as Special Immigrant Juveniles (SIJ) who are unable to able for […]

In the Walmart Case, the Government Cannot Have Its Cake and Eat it too

In a previous blog, excerpted here, we analyzed Walmart, Inc. v. Jean King, which involved a challenged by Walmart to the administrative proceedings against it for violations of immigration-related recordkeeping requirements on the ground that the proceedings were “being conducted by an administrative law judge (“ALJ”) who is unconstitutionally shielded from the President’s supervision. ALJs […]

The Great Betrayal: Supreme Court’s Ratification Of Trump’s Termination of CHNV Parole

On March 25, 2025, DHS terminated parole programs that had allowed an estimated 530,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans to enter the United States legally in 2022 and 2023. The federal register notice stated that “Paroled aliens, including those paroled under the CHNV parole programs, may apply for any immigration benefit or status for which […]

Fighting Back Trump’s Attacks on Foreign Students

In recent weeks, the Trump administration has launched a concerted assault on international students and their ability to remain in the U.S.  In the latest volleys against Harvard University, the Trump administration ordered the revocation of Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification, which will ban the university from enrolling international students and force […]

Biden’s Last and Best Gift to Legal Immigrants: Advancing the Filing Dates in the 2025 January Visa Bulletin to Current

Donald Trump’s recent reelection has sparked fears that restrictionist immigration policies will abound come January 20, 2025 onwards. During the time that remains of his presidency, President Biden can still act to safeguard the immigration system and implement policies that support and benefit immigrants through executive action. Cyrus Mehta has long advocated for one such […]

Making Sense of USCIS’s Twitter Posts on Applying for Jobs or Attending Interviews While in Visitor Visa Status

By Cyrus D. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box* On April 11, 2023, USCIS’s  post on Twitter  created a great deal of interest and some confusion. The tweet indicated that nonimmigrants can apply for jobs or attend job interviews while in B-1 or B-2 status. The post was the subject of numerous press articles, with some incorrectly […]