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Extension of work permits and TPS for Venezuelans

The extension allows beneficiaries to maintain their Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) until March 2024.

Through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) website, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that existing TPS beneficiaries from Venezuela can re-register to maintain and renew their Employment Authorization Documents.

The Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, previously announced the 18-month extension of Venezuela's TPS designation.

Given the processing times for TPS re-registration applications, the Department of Homeland Security acknowledges that not all re-registered individuals may receive new EADs before their current ones expire tomorrow (September 9, 2022). The agency clarified that it will automatically extend the validity of EADs until September 9, 2023.

Furthermore, those re-enrolling must do so during the 60-day re-enrollment period that runs from September 8, 2022 to November 7, 2022. They must also continue to meet the "eligibility requirements," meaning they must not have a criminal record and meet other requirements that could prevent them from obtaining immigration protection. 

Approximately 323,000 people are eligible for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) under Venezuela's initial designation, to join this program that seeks to protect citizens of countries experiencing violence and insecurity or that have suffered a natural disaster. However, only about 111,700 Venezuelans have applied for this immigration relief. 

USCIS will continue processing pending applications filed under Venezuela's initial TPS designation. Individuals with a pending Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status, or a Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization Regarding TPS, they do not need to resubmit any of the applications. 

Likewise, he reported that if one of the aforementioned forms is approved, this immigration relief will be provided until March 10, 2024, and a new EAD valid until March 10, 2024 will be issued.

Venezuelans who are currently eligible under the existing designation but have not yet applied for TPS must submit their applications by September 9, 2022. Finally, Venezuelans who arrived in the United States after March 8, 2021, are not eligible for TPS.

With information from: USCIS 

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US Visa: What You Need to Know

Delays in US visa applications, a phenomenon that occurs worldwide.

Waiting times for visa applicants are increasing, whether they are applying for the first time or renewing their visas. According to research conducted by the British media outlet Bloomberg, the five consulates that take the longest to issue visas are:

*Georgetown, capital of Guyana, with an average of 900 days
*Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, has an average waiting time of 874 days.
*Abuja, capital of Nigeria, with an 850-day wait.
*Kingston, capital of Jamaica, with 813 days.
*Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, with a 796-day wait.

The overall average wait times for citizens of these countries are over two years. According to the same research, these delays are primarily due to the coronavirus pandemic, which led to staff shortages and a reduction in consular services, resulting in long wait times.

On the other hand, in the specific case of Colombia, those who wish to travel to the United States for the first time for tourism or business trips will have to be patient, since the waiting days to obtain the American visa have increased to such an extent that there are already cases whose appointment has been scheduled for January 2025.

However, there are exceptions for visa cases in priority situations such as the death of a family member or urgent medical services. Furthermore, visas are also being prioritized for exchange students and workers.
The embassy also reported that there are visa cases that are exempt from interviews, some of which are:
-“Applicants under 14 years of age and over 79 years of age can apply for a tourist visa without an interview, provided they have not had a previous rejection of the visa application they are submitting (for those under 14 years of age, at least one of their parents must have a valid visa)”
-If it's a renewal, some visas that don't require an interview are: B1/B2 (tourism); F1 and M1 (student); J1 (exchange programs). For both of these, the first requirement is to be a Colombian resident.

Finally, it is important to highlight that if you want to reschedule your appointment, the only way is through the embassy's website; you should check it constantly, and this is free of charge.

Information taken from: Channel 1.

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A journey of no return: hardships and deaths

When you perform a search related to the word migration or immigration, specifically in the case of the United States, there are multiple headlines that highlight the hundreds of dangers faced by people who decide to pursue the American dream, using the services of so-called "coyotes".

Below are three (3) of the most listened-to news stories related to this situation so far in 2022:

Fifty-three (53) migrants died in San Antonio, Texas, found in sweltering conditions. This is one of the worst tragedies to have claimed the lives of migrants crossing the border from Mexico into the United States. The truck contained people from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, of varying ages, from children to the elderly. This tragedy is linked to human trafficking and the new methods used by gangs to evade border controls.

The Darien jungle, "jungle of death"«
Migrants undertake extensive treks through dense jungle and rivers, which can involve a journey of approximately seven days depending on their physical condition, health, age, travel companions, weather, among other factors.
Migrants frequently travel in unauthorized boats operated by smugglers or illegal groups in the region. These boats often capsize, resulting in the loss of human lives. Dozens of unidentified migrant graves, belonging to those who died while crossing the Darién Gap, can be found in the cemeteries of Necoclí and Acandí. Migrants also face the risk of sexual violence in the jungle. Doctors Without Borders has documented at least 120 cases of sexual assault against migrants in the Darién Gap so far in 2022.

Brothers die abandoned by the “coyotes”
Edgar Mendoza, 37, and his brother Carlos Enrique Mendoza, 23, are the names of the bodies found by the Border Patrol embracing.
According to his father, it was the same "coyote" who first called him to tell him what had happened. "He called me a week later, saying that one of my sons, Carlos Enrique, had become dehydrated and couldn't continue the trek (...) That's the way life is in the desert: if you stay, you stay. I asked him about my other son, Edgar, and he replied that he hadn't followed the group either, because when he saw his brother couldn't make it, he preferred to stay behind."«

Just like these, there are many stories about migrants who were abused, abandoned, did not receive medical attention, were kidnapped, fell off the wall, in short, are exposed to various dangers.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), so far in 2022, 192 migrants have lost their lives on their journey to the United States.
Likewise, it has reported that from 2014 to July 29, 2022, the deaths of 1,558 migrants or refugees have been recorded.

The IOM, together with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), has called on governments to preserve the lives and protect the rights of migrants.

Finally, rescues on the southern border of the United States, including rescues in dangerous water crossings, for the year 2021 according to the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are more than 12,833.

Information taken from: CNN, La Silla, El Tiempo and HispanTV.

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The United States Embassy in Cuba will resume the visa process.

The United States Embassy in Cuba announced that it will begin processing all categories of immigrant visas for immediate family members.

Through its social media channels, it announced that it expects to resume processing visas for the Cuban Family Reunification Program (CFRP) soon.

In a tweet posted on Sunday, the embassy announced a change in visa policy to expedite processes that were negatively impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic. The embassy also noted that the Department of Homeland Security will resume processing cases this summer and will work with the State Department to begin interviews in Cuba in early fall.

“We chose the immediate family categories recognizing the importance of family reunification for U.S. citizens and their immediate family members,” it explained.

“The U.S. is expanding pathways for legal migration. The Cuban Family Reunification Program provides a safe and orderly route to the United States for certain Cuban beneficiaries of approved family-based immigration petitions,” the diplomatic mission stated.

Dozens of Cubans joyfully received the announcement of the reactivation of the CFRP, understanding that it is a program that was halted under the administration of President Donald Trump, during which an average of 200 sanctions were applied in the territory.

During the first stage, US diplomats will process pending cases from the last five years, which could exceed 22,000 files, including interviews and final visa processing.

Finally, it is a new opportunity for relations between Cuba and the United States, which were strained during the Trump administration.

News report compiled using information from: Tampa Hoy, Univision and Periodico Cubano

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Agreement established to accelerate reunification of migrant children

The court settlement ends the secret program of the Donald Trump administration and will benefit families in the United States who seek custody of unaccompanied minors, who will be able to wait in freedom while their cases are resolved.

An agreement between the U.S. government, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and a group of lawyers will expedite the reunification process for unaccompanied minors detained at the border and prosecuted under the 1997 Flores Settlement Agreement.

The court agreement states that “unaccompanied minors cannot be deported; rather, an immigration judge must decide their future in the United States.” It also adds that they cannot be detained for more than 72 hours in Border Patrol facilities and must be released into the custody of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which then refers them to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).

The ACLU said the agreement reached "establishes a set of timelines for the government to schedule fingerprinting appointments and complete fingerprint processing for parents and sponsors seeking to reunite with children in government custody.".

The agreed timeframes are between “seven business days for an appointment and 10 business days for processing” of family reunifications.

The American Civil Liberties Union stated that the Trump administration “used fingerprinting and background checks to delay the release of immigrant children detained by immigration authorities.” This resulted in the children being separated from their parents for extended periods, adding weeks and months to their time in government custody, the rights group reported.

Finally, the civil rights organization reported that the procedure will be applied to all children nationwide in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) and the Department of Homeland Security (HHS). This marks the end of the secret program developed in 2018 by then-President Trump as part of his "zero tolerance" immigration policy. Ultimately, the agreement will prevent the future resumption of such harmful policies that hinder the reunification of families separated at the border.

News report based on information from: Univision

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“Say no to the coyote” CBP advertising campaign that seeks to warn migrants of the dangers

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) launched a digital advertising campaign Wednesday to discourage migrants from the Northern Triangle (Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador) from undertaking the dangerous journey to the U.S. border.

The ads aim to convey a clear message: smugglers are lying; illegally entering the United States is a crime. They also emphasize that smugglers, known as "coyotes," exploit and profit from vulnerable migrants.

“Smugglers use lies to lure vulnerable people into embarking on a dangerous journey that often ends with their deportation or death,” said CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus. “This public awareness campaign is an important component of the U.S. government’s efforts to prevent tragedies and reduce irregular migration.”.

The message warns that those who attempt to cross the U.S. border without authorization will be immediately expelled from the country or subjected to immigration deportation proceedings. Furthermore, they will receive information about the thousands of migrants who end up imprisoned, kidnapped, extorted, or even left to die by unscrupulous transnational criminal organizations. 

In fiscal year 2021, the northern Central American countries accounted for 44% of migrant encounters along the southwest border.

Finally, this campaign has emerged from the joint work of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) working closely with the State Department to track trends, share research, and coordinate messaging to counter the tactics used by smugglers to victimize vulnerable migrants.

These messages are an effort to counter the many lies spread by human traffickers and warn migrants about the dangers of being scammed and dying at the hands of these criminal organizations.

News report based on information from: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

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Immigrants in the USA will be key to addressing the labor shortage in 2030

It is estimated that there are two million fewer immigrants in the United States than there would have been if the rate of arrival had remained the same as in previous years; a situation that affects the scarcity of certain products and impacts certain sectors. 

The labor shortage in the United States reached a record 11.5 million job openings in March and is projected to reach 80 million by 2030, according to a report released by the American Immigration Council. The study also estimates that these job openings will be due to retirements, career changes, and people leaving the workforce.

Currently, the sectors most affected by the labor shortage are agriculture, construction, restaurants, and healthcare, among others. This has led them to take measures such as changes in food production and harvesting, increased restaurant prices, higher housing prices, and delays in delivery.

Additionally, the country is grappling with its highest inflation levels since the 1980s, and last year saw the highest job vacancy rate in the country in the past three years. The labor market is one of the factors contributing to the United States' highest inflation; other contributing factors include supply chain disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic and rising fuel and commodity prices since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Finally, the occupations with the greatest growth between 2019 and 2021 were those with the highest proportions of immigrant personnel.

It is important to highlight the significance of immigrants in the many sectors of a country where they make their professional contributions, such as healthcare, technology, mathematics, cleaning and building maintenance, and so on. Immigrants are part of the driving force that moves and transforms a country. 

This news report was compiled using information from: Telemundo, El PeriĂłdico USA, and Nuevo Herald.

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United States reveals the results of the 2023 Visa Lottery

On Saturday, the participants selected for the second stage of the 2023 visa lottery were announced. This lottery awards 55,000 green cards to immigrants who want to reside legally in the United States. 

The selection of lottery winners is carried out “by a random system based on the visa allocations available in each region and country, from all registered applications,” the State Department (DOS) said.

To check the status of your application, you must do so through the Diversity Visa (DV) lottery website, which will be updated to inform all participants whether their online registration was selected or not. To check the status, you need to enter the confirmation number you received when you completed your registration form; without it, you will not be able to check. 

Furthermore, the DOS states that it “will not send notification letters or notify those selected via email.” And that U.S. embassies and consulates “will not provide a list of those selected.”. 

Following this initial screening, participants who remain in the competition for the visa will be asked to provide additional information beyond what was submitted in their application, such as documents to verify their identity and resume. They will also be required to attend an appointment at a U.S. consulate.        

The State Department distributes visas among six geographic regions, and no country can receive more than 71 TP3T visas of the available DV visas in any given year. This year, eligible countries include: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominica, Ecuador, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay. Other countries that had the opportunity to participate included: Egypt, Algeria, Uzbekistan, Iran, Ukraine, Nepal, Afghanistan, Congo, and others. 

On the other hand, there are the countries with more than 50,000 citizens who emigrated to the U.S. in the last five years and cannot apply; some of them are: Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Hong Kong, Colombia, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Pakistan, South Korea, Venezuela, and Vietnam.

Finally, the State Department announced the randomly selected individuals, who will have until September 30th of this year to find out if they were selected or not.

News report based on information from: Univision and Telemundo.

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USCIS provides access to case processing times

The public will have access to immediate and clear answers regarding case processing times.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced changes Thursday to simplify and improve how the agency communicates case processing time data to the public. As part of an agency-wide commitment to improve transparency, efficiency, and customer service, these changes will also make it easier for people to get an immediate answer about when they can inquire about their case.

USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou announced that "USCIS is committed to listening to our applicants and stakeholders, and to continually improving our services," adding, "This is an important step, and certainly not the last, in the pursuit of improving the clarity and transparency of the data that USCIS provides to the public.".

The processing times that the agency makes publicly available provide the information needed to understand how long it may take USCIS to process a particular form. These estimated times are based on statistics from the previous six months showing how long it took USCIS to approve or deny a specific percentage of cases for a given form.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and due to resource limitations inherited from the previous administration, USCIS accumulated a significant backlog of cases and experienced increased processing times. In February, there were reports of 9.5 million pending applications. 

With the additional changes, users can now immediately find processing time information for their specific case type, instead of seeing an aggregate of all cases. These changes include:

- Drop-down menu for form categories. For example, if you want to check the current wait time for Form N-400 Application for Citizenship at the New York Service Center, you can limit the results by specifying the form category.

-The waiting time is now specified as a single number (e.g., 7.5 months) instead of a range (7.5 to 11 months).

-Review, simplify and add additional content to the processing times web pages to increase transparency, including a new FAQ page and an improved Additional Information page.

Finally, this initiative by the agency aims to improve how processing times are displayed, managing them in a meaningful, concrete, and useful way for both parties. However, it's important to emphasize that each case is unique, and some cases take longer to process than others, depending on their specific circumstances. 

This news report was compiled using information from: USCIS and Telemundo 47

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Immigrants with expired permits will be able to continue working

Most immigrants whose employment authorization has expired or will expire in the coming months will be able to continue working while the government processes their renewals. 

The new policy from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) was adopted in response to the massive backlog the agency is facing, which in April exceeded 9 million benefit applications. Some of the beneficiaries would be Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders and asylum seekers, among others. 

«The Temporary Final Rule (TFR) increases the automatic extension period for Employment Authorization Documents (EADs), available to certain EAD renewal applicants, to up to 540 days,» the agency said in a statement. The TFR, which applies only to EAD categories currently eligible for an automatic extension of up to 180 days, will temporarily provide up to an additional 360 days of automatic extension (for a total of up to 540 days) to eligible applicants with a pending Form I-765 renewal application filed on time during the 18-month period following the publication of the TFR while USCIS works with backlogs that increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The increase will take effect immediately on May 4, 2022, and will help prevent employment gaps for non-citizens with pending EAD renewal applications. This will stabilize business continuity for U.S. employers, according to USCIS. 

It is estimated that up to 420,000 immigrants who renew their work permits will be protected against losing their ability to work for the duration of the policy.

The government said the policy change allows eligible immigrants to work with expired documents for up to 540 days, instead of 180. That means even the tens of thousands of people who have passed their 180-day window have up to another year of work authorization.

However, it makes clear that some immigrants eligible for work permits, including DACA recipients and some spouses of H-1B visa holders, will not benefit from the new policy because they were never eligible for the 180-day extension of their expired authorizations.

Finally, it provides temporary reassurance for workers and employers, as they can continue their work while renewing and awaiting a response to their application. 

This news report was compiled using information from USCIS and Univision.