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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released the following statement on November 1, 2022. As the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) is no longer recognized as an accrediting agency by the U.S. Department of Education, individuals in various programs may be affected, with the possibility of losing their status under various immigration programs.

U.S. Consulates in India continue to be closed for regular options as of October 25, 2022. Over 100,000 appointment slots were opened for the H and L visa categories, resulting in the reduction of wait times to nearly half. Interviews began in September for B-1 and B-2 visitor visa applicants.

Due to processing backlogs and fluctuations in visa availability, many employment-based Adjustment of Status (AOS) applicants have resorted to filing a second AOS application in a different eligibility category with the hope of more quickly securing a Green Card. Applicants have also been filing a second I-765 for employment authorization (EAD) and I-131 for travel authorization (AP) concurrently with their second AOS application.

The U.S. Department of State is accepting online applications for the FY2024 Diversity Visa lottery. The registration period opened on October 5 and will close at noon EDT on November 8. The Diversity Visa is an opportunity for foreign nationals from a list of qualifying countries that are under-represented in U.S. immigration to apply for a green card. A total of 55,000 green cards, or legal permanent resident status, are available each year, as outlined by U.S. Congress.

The Department of Homeland Security announced that Ethiopia has been designated for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months. Only Ethiopian citizens already in the U.S. as of October 20, 2022, qualify.

A lawsuit filed to challenge Trump administration policies that delayed asylum-seekers work permit access should be eliminated, per the Biden administration. The basis of the claim is the policies enacted under President Trump are no longer in effect. Therefore, the very basis of the lawsuit no longer exists. And as such, the lawsuit should be dropped.

As previously noted, U.S. Embassies in India added an additional 100,000 appointments for H and L visas for first-time applicants. These appointments are now open. This is the first time since prior to the global pandemic that these appointments have been made available.

The EB-5 visa program gives qualifying foreign investors the option to apply for legal permanent resident status. The program was created by Congress in 1990 to attract foreign investors, create jobs, and stimulate the U.S. economy. The program was piloted in 1992. The program is reauthorized annually by Congress. In 2022, President Biden signed into law the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act. The EB-5 Modernization Rule was also enacted at that time. Subsequently, various legal efforts ensued over the interpretation of the Act. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCSIS) announced updates to the EB-5 visa program based on the legal resolution of filings.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced the details of the update for the H-2A application and temporary labor certification process. The H-2A visa allows foreign agricultural workers to fill temporary labor needs when enough U.S. workers are not willing, qualified, able, or willing to meet demand, and when bringing them in won’t adversely affect wages or working conditions of those already in the U.S.

A federal appeals court found the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) unlawful. However, they are allowing current enrollees to renew their status as the matter is sent to a lower court to review a new Biden administration regulation. The panel of three judges from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s ruling against the program. However, the introduction of the Biden regulation in August 2022 is sending the case to a lower court for consideration. The Biden regulation is meant to protect the program from legal challenges and will go into effect on October 31, 2022.