Articles Posted in Trump administration

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Are you applying for an immigrant visa and want to know when your priority date will become current? Then you won’t want to miss our analysis of the February 2026 Visa Bulletin.

In this video, attorney Jacob Sapochnick explains what you can expect to see in terms of the movement of the family-sponsored and employment-based visa categories in the new year.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For adjustment of status filings to permanent residence in the month of February, USCIS will be using the Dates for Filing Chart for the employment-based and family-sponsored categories.

Highlights of the February 2026 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of February?

Employment-Based Categories

Final Action Advancements

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers

  • Except India and China, all countries will advance by 5.7 weeks to June 1, 2023

Dates for Filing Advancements

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers

  • Except India and China, all other countries will advance by 3 months to October 1, 2023

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I-751 denials for conditional residents are surging in 2026, and many conditional green card holders are being caught off guard. What used to be a routine filing is now under intense scrutiny, with even minor errors triggering denials. As USCIS tightens standards, understanding the risks—and how to avoid them—has never been more critical.

A conditional permanent resident is someone who received a two-year green card through a recent marriage and must file Form I-751 during the 90 days before it expires to prove the marriage is real and remove those conditions. Failure to timely file an I-751 application can lead a person to lose their status.

In this video, we break down exactly how to avoid becoming part of the rising denial statistics and set your application up for approval.

If you are Divorced, Expect a Tougher Review

In just recent months, the I-751 approval rate has plunged from roughly 85% to just under 60%.

A major driver of these denials is USCIS’s heightened scrutiny of divorced applicants. I-751 waivers are filed by applicants who are no longer married to the U.S. citizen spouse through which they originally obtained conditional residence.

Applicants filing I-751 waivers face tougher scrutiny, with officers increasingly questioning the legitimacy of marriages that ended in divorce.

What many applicants don’t realize is that you should only file an I-751 waiver after your divorce is final, because without a final divorce decree, USCIS will likely deny the case.

If you don’t have your final divorce decree within the 90-day filing window, you should work with an attorney to fully document your pending dissolution and explain the situation to USCIS.

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Overstaying a U.S. visa can feel overwhelming—but it doesn’t always mean your options are gone. In fact, there are legal pathways that may allow certain individuals to remain in the United States even after a visa has expired.

In this post, we’ll break down three lawful options, explain who they may apply to, and clarify common misconceptions—so you can better understand your situation and make informed decisions.

Legal Options After a U.S. Visa Expiration

Option #1 Marriage to a U.S. Citizen

Marriage to a U.S. citizen is one of the most common legal options for individuals who have overstayed a visa. Under U.S. immigration law, spouses of U.S. citizens are considered “immediate relatives,” which means they may be eligible to apply for lawful permanent residence (a green card) from within the United States, even if they later overstayed their visa.

This process typically involves filing several immigration forms, submitting proof that the marriage is bona fide (such as shared finances or living arrangements), completing a medical exam, and attending an in-person interview with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

While a visa overstay is often forgiven, recently there has been an increase in immigration enforcement actions where spouses of U.S. citizens have been detained due to visa overstays, during their marriage-based green card interviews.

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Many green card holders assume their permanent residency is secure—but one overlooked mistake could quietly put everything at risk. As immigration enforcement tightens heading into 2026, a single misstep may be enough to trigger the loss of your green card forever. In this post, we uncover the #1 silent mistake permanent residents make, why it’s becoming more dangerous than ever, and how to protect your status before it’s too late.

Holiday Travel Triggers New Return Issues for Green Card Holders

During the holiday season, many green card holders travel abroad to visit family, and recently, more are encountering issues with CBP when returning to the U.S. In this video, we cover five of the top concerns that you need to be aware of.

#1 Lack of Ties to the United States

A lack of strong ties to the United States is one of the most common reasons green card holders face problems when reentering the country. Extended time abroad, no U.S. job, limited family connections, or not maintaining a primary residence can make CBP question whether you’ve abandoned your permanent residency. Even if travel was meant to be temporary, weak U.S. ties can signal that the U.S. is no longer your primary home.

#2 Failing to Take Proper Precautions Before Extended Time Abroad

Failing to plan properly before spending extended time abroad can put your green card at risk. Long absences of more than 6 months without a reentry permit, clear travel purpose, or proof of intent to return may lead CBP to question whether permanent residency was abandoned. Even well-intended trips can create serious problems if the right precautions aren’t taken in advance.

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The Gold Card permanent residence program is now open. Under this initiative, foreign nationals—or their employers—may apply for lawful permanent residence by:

  • Paying a non-refundable $15,000 processing fee for each applicant and dependent, and
  • Making a gift donation of $1 million for individual applicants, or $2 million for corporate-sponsored applicants to the U.S. Treasury.

These contributions are not investments— they are treated as unconditional gifts.

The program, established by presidential executive order 14351, allows eligibility for a green card under the existing EB-1 (extraordinary ability) or EB-2 (National Interest Waiver) categories based on the qualifying donation.

Application Process

Applicants start with by submitting their initial information, along with payment of the $15,000 processing fee (per applicant) on the Gold Card website.

USCIS then notifies applicants when they can file Form I-140G on the USCIS website to verify lawful source of funds. Once the applicant demonstrates the lawful source of funds and passes security vetting, the applicant or sponsor will receive instructions to submit the required $1 million (individual) or $2 million (corporate) donation to the Department of Treasury via ACH debit or SWIFT wire.

Once approved and a visa number is available, applicants proceed with consular processing for their immigrant visa.

Corporate Sponsorship

Employer Gold Card sponsors will be subject to a 1% annual maintenance fee – presumably, 1% of the employer’s $2 million donation ($20,000). If the employer decides to transfer its donation to a different foreign national, a 5% transfer fee would apply ($100,000).

The government has not yet indicated whether the “annual” maintenance fee must be paid until the foreign national obtains their green card.

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Major changes are coming to the marriage-based green card process in 2026, including stricter vetting, heightened enforcement, expanded evidence requirements, and increased detention of applicants flagged for further review at interviews.

To find out more, please keep on watching.

What to Expect: Shift Toward Heightened Enforcement

In 2025, internal policy shifts at USCIS stopped the issuance of Requests for Evidence, required medical exams to be filed with adjustment applications in a single package, and, most notably, created an unprecedented rise in denials and detentions at green card interviews.

Detentions at Green Card Interviews

In recent months, things took a turn for the worst. USCIS officers have been increasingly working alongside Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to identify and flag green card applicants they believe are potentially ineligible for benefits. Those flagged for additional review have faced immediate detention at their green card interviews.

Although the law allows visa overstays to be forgiven for those married to U.S. citizens, USCIS officers have been reporting visa overstays to ICE during green card interviews, resulting in their immediate detention. This has occurred in recent weeks in San Diego to a Navy spouse, a breastfeeding mother, and even an elderly man, signaling that enforcement is being taken to an unprecedented level.

Under Trump, internal ICE policies have included numerical targets for deportations, effectively creating quotas for enforcement officers. These targets set specific numbers of removals to be achieved within given timeframes, which places added pressure on USCIS officers to flag these individuals for removal.

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Navigating the U.S. immigration system is difficult enough — but what many people don’t realize is that even legal immigrants can face deportation for mistakes they never knew were serious.

From minor paperwork oversights to everyday misunderstandings of immigration rules, these pitfalls can put lawful status at risk without warning.

In this guide, we break down the 7 most common mistakes that get even legal immigrants deported — and number 4 surprised even us. Understanding these risks is essential to protecting your future in the United States.

Mistake #1 Crimes of Moral Turpitude

Certain offenses—known as crimes involving moral turpitude—carry especially harsh consequences, including deportation, even for green card holders.

These crimes typically involve conduct considered dishonest, deceptive, or morally unacceptable, such as fraud, theft, domestic violence, or certain assault-related offenses.

What complicates things further is that even a single conviction could trigger removal proceedings for permanent residents and nonimmigrant visa holders.

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Navigating the H-1B visa process can feel like a maze, especially if you’re aiming to take the unconventional route of self-sponsorship. In 2025, more skilled professionals and entrepreneurs are exploring ways to secure an H-1B visa without relying on a traditional employer.

This guide breaks down the essential steps, requirements, and practical strategies for individuals looking to sponsor themselves, empowering you to take control of your U.S. work authorization journey.

What you’ll learn in this video:

  • What is the H-1B visa
  • How to sponsor yourself for the H-1B Visa
  • Requirements for self-sponsorship
  • Jobs that qualify for self-sponsorship

Overview of the H-1B visa

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant U.S. visa that allows foreign workers to live and work in the United States in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. It is widely used by professionals in fields like technology, engineering, healthcare, and academia.

Key Features

  • Employer-Sponsored: A U.S. employer must petition on your behalf.
  • Specialty Occupation Requirement: The job must require at least a bachelor’s degree or equivalent in a related field.
  • Cap-Subject: Most H-1B visas fall under an annual cap (currently 85,000 per fiscal year, with 20,000 reserved for U.S. advanced degree holders), though certain employers like universities are cap-exempt.
  • Annual H-1B Lottery: Because the number of petitions often exceeds the cap of 85,000 visas (65,000 regular + 20,000 for U.S. advanced degree holders), USCIS conducts a random lottery in March to select petitions for processing. This means that even qualified applicants may not be selected, making the H-1B highly competitive.
  • Dual Intent: H-1B visa holders can apply for a green card while on the visa, making it “dual intent” compatible.

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If you’re a U.S. Green Card holder, you might think your permanent residency means smooth sailing through Customs and Border Protection (CBP) after returning from temporary foreign travel. But 2025 has brought some surprising developments that remind every lawful permanent resident (LPR) to be extra cautious. These changes might sound a little crazy—but ignoring them could cause big problems at the port of entry.

New CBP Policy—Mandatory Data Collection Practice

Starting December 26, 2025, CBP will roll out a new policy mandating the collection of biometric data from green card holders and noncitizens upon their entry to and departure from the United States.

This new policy requires all noncitizens, including green card holders, to have their photograph taken and potentially provide additional biometrics (such as fingerprints, iris scans, or voice prints) when entering or exiting the U.S. via land, sea or airports.

The regulation is intended to strengthen border security, reduce travel document fraud and ensure more accurate records of departures and arrivals; however, it also raises significant privacy considerations as agencies will collect, store, and process biometric data from large numbers of individuals.

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Are you applying for an immigrant visa and want to know when your priority date will become current? Then you won’t want to miss our analysis of the November 2025 Visa Bulletin.

In this video, attorney Jacob Sapochnick explains what you can expect to see in terms of the movement of the family-sponsored and employment-based visa categories in the month of November.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For adjustment of status filings to permanent residence in the month of November, USCIS will be using the Dates for Filing Chart for the employment-based and family-sponsored categories.

Highlights of the November 2025 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of November?

Employment-Based Categories

There are no changes to the Dates for Filing and Final Action charts for the employment-based categories when compared to the October Visa Bulletin.

Family-Sponsored Categories

Final Action Advancements

  • F2B Worldwide, China, and India will advance by 9 days to December 1, 2016
  • F3 Mexico will advance by 16 days to May 1, 2001

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