VISA BOND PILOT PROGRAM FOR B 1/B 2 APPLICANTS
The U.S. Department of State has issued a Temporary Final Rule (TFR) establishing a 12-month visa bond pilot program, which applies to B1/B2 visa applicants from select countries with high overstay rates, deficient vetting data, or citizenship-by-investment (CBI) programs. This pilot requires visa applicants to post a Maintenance of Status and Departure Bond of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 at the Consular Officer’s discretion, before visa issuance. Details of the program, including how it will be administered and a full list of the countries that will be included, remain to be seen.
USCIS UPDATES POLICY ON CSPA AGE CALCULATION
USCIS is updating the Policy Manual to clarify that a visa becomes available for the purposes of Child Status Protection Act age calculation based on the Final Action Dates chart of the Department of State Visa Bulletin. The new guidance applies to requests filed on or after August 15, 2025. We will apply the Feb. 14, 2023 (PDF, 345 KB), policy of CSPA age calculation to adjustment of status applications pending with USCIS before August 15, 2025, as these aliens may have relied on that policy when they filed.
According to USCIS, this establishes a consistent CSPA age calculation for aliens who apply for adjustment of status and immigrant visas. The Feb. 14, 2023, policy resulted in inconsistent treatment of aliens who applied for adjustment of status in the United States versus aliens outside the United States who applied for an immigrant visa with the Department of State.
Generally, an unmarried child must be under age 21 to obtain lawful permanent resident status in the United States based on their parent’s approved petition for a family-sponsored, employment-based, or diversity visa. If they turn 21 and age out during the immigration process, they generally are no longer eligible to immigrate based on their parent’s petition. Congress enacted the CSPA to protect certain alien children from losing their eligibility for lawful permanent resident status based on an approved visa petition. The CSPA provides a method to calculate the alien’s age that considers when an immigrant visa number “becomes available.”
NEW TREND: AILA NOTES DEPARTMENT OF STATE REFUSAL TO ISSUE J-1 WAIVER RECOMMENDATIONS
AILA has received reports that the Department of State’s Waiver Review Division (WRD) is refusing to issue favorable recommendations for J-1 No Objection Waiver requests, even when No Objection Statements from the home country have been submitted.
Please contact an attorney to discuss your options if this happened to you or someone you know.
Some immigrants seeking green cards may be placed in removal proceedings, USCIS says
ICE ARRESTS AT IMMIGRATION COURT
There are reported widespread instances of ICE Enforcement and ERO agents appearing at immigration courts to detain individuals following the dismissal of their case.
Please note that you are still required to attend your immigration court hearing. If you do not attend a hearing, you will be issued an in absentia order of removal. This is a removal order issued by an immigration judge when a foreign national fails to appear for a scheduled hearing. If the government can prove the individual received proper notice of the hearing, the judge must issue the order. These orders are very difficult to overcome, which is why it is important that you attend.
If you are afraid, it is best to consult an attorney before you attend your hearing to consider your options.
TPS FOR HONDURAS AND NICARAGUA
On August 4, 2025, USCIS updated its website on Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for those from Honduras and Nicaragua. Employers can now rely on the USCIS website for the continuation of TPS for Hondurans and Nicaraguans to November 18, 2025, and the auto-extensions of the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) to November 18, 2025.
This means that Employees with expired EADs or expiring EADs will now be able to remain in the U.S. until November 18, 2025, and resume or continue working until November 18, 2025.