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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services made minor changes to Form I-9 to align with statutory language and updated the Department of Homeland Security Privacy Notice. E-Verify/E-Verify+ citizenship status selection updates took effect April 3. Multiple previous editions remain valid until their respective expiration dates.
I-9 Form updates
E-Verify/E-Verify+ updates
Additional Information: More details on the updates can be found here.
This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services posted notice of new procedures for individuals covered by Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Hong Kong to apply for employment authorization documents (EADs) valid through Feb. 5, 2027, and automatically extends EADs issued under the program through Feb. 5, 2027.
Key Points:
Additional Information: The Federal Register notice outlines the process for Hong Kong residents under DED to obtain EADs and automatically extends DED-based EADs as described above. Additional information can be found on the USCIS website. The DED follows a memorandum issued by the Biden administration on Jan. 15, 2025, determining it was in the foreign policy interest of the U.S. to expand and extend the deferral of removal of certain Hong Kong residents.
Before today, DHS had not issued a Federal Register notice implementing an extension of DED-based EADs. The agency had provided guidance on Feb. 18, 2025, that although DED was automatically extended, DED-based EADs for Hong Kong residents were not being extended.
Pending further litigation, the 2023 Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for Venezuela will remain in effect in compliance with a U.S. District Court order, and the validity of employment authorization documents (EADs) with certain “Card Expires” dates have been extended through April 2, 2026.
Additional Information: Government updates regarding the program will be posted on the TPS page for Venezuela. USCIS guidance for completing the Form I-9 can be found here. BAL continues to monitor this litigation and related cases.
Last week, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that the H-2B visa cap was reached for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2025. The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Labor jointly published a temporary final rule on Dec. 2, 2024, increasing the numerical limit (or cap) on H-2B nonimmigrant visas by up to 64,716 additional visas for all of FY 2025. Of the 64,716 supplemental visas, 44,716 are available only for certain returning workers.
The breakdown of the H-2B supplemental visas for spring and summer is as follows:
For the early second half of FY 2025 (April 1 through May 14)
For the late second half of FY 2025 (May 15 through Sept. 30)
For the entirety of FY 2025
More information on the allocation of supplemental visas can be found here.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced it is updating its policy manual to recognize only two biological sexes, male and female.
Additional Information: While benefits won’t be denied solely for incorrect sex indication, delays may occur if the sex indicated differs from the birth certificate. The formal policy alert can be read here.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced it has received enough registrations to meet the fiscal year (FY) 2026 H-1B cap, including the advanced degree exemption.
Additional Information: USCIS randomly selected enough beneficiaries to reach the H-1B cap. An H-1B cap-subject petition must be properly filed at the correct filing location or online at my.uscis.gov and within the filing period indicated on the relevant selection notice. Petitioners filing for selected beneficiaries based on their valid registration must still submit evidence or otherwise establish eligibility for petition approval, as registration and selection only pertains to eligibility to file the H-1B cap-subject petition.
More details on the H-1B electronic registration process can be found here.
The Handbook for Employers M-274 (also known as the Form I-9 employer handbook) has been updated to reflect the final rule changing the automatic extension end date to April 1 of the applicable fiscal year for F-1 visa students requesting H-1B visa status.
Additional Information: The final rule modernizing the H-1B visa program was published by the Department of Homeland Security on Dec. 18, 2024. Additional Form I-9 guidance for F-1 students can be found here.
The Department of Homeland Security provided notice that the recent designation of Romania into the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is under review and that implementation of the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) for Romanian citizens will remain paused until the review is completed.
Additional Information: The VWP, managed by DHS and the State Department, allows citizens of designated countries to visit the U.S. for business or tourism for up to 90 days without a visa. In exchange, these countries must permit U.S. citizens to travel to their countries under similar conditions. The program enhances security through rigorous vetting and cooperation in counterterrorism, law enforcement and immigration enforcement. The current review of Romania’s VWP designation aims to ensure compliance with these security requirements, temporarily halting ESTA for Romanian citizens until the review is complete.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced it received enough petitions to meet the H-2B visa cap for the second half of fiscal year (FY) 2025 and that eligible petitions for supplemental visas must be received by Sept. 15, 2025.
Additional Information: On Dec. 2, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Labor jointly published a temporary final rule increasing the numerical limit (or cap) on H-2B nonimmigrant visas by up to 64,716 additional visas for all of FY 2025. Supplemental visas are available only to U.S. businesses that are suffering irreparable harm or will suffer impending irreparable harm without the ability to employ all the H-2B workers requested in their petition. Of the 64,716 additional visas, 44,716 are available only for certain returning workers. The remaining 20,000 visas are set aside for nationals of Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti and Honduras who are exempt from the returning worker requirement.
Refer to the Temporary Increase in H-2B Nonimmigrant Visas for FY 2025 page for more details, including who can petition for supplemental visas and other filing information.
The Department of Homeland Security announced the termination of the 2022 and 2023 categorical parole programs for Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela (referred to as “CHNV parole programs”). DHS is expected to publish a Federal Register notice March 25 to terminate these programs effective April 24.
Additional Information: The termination of the CHNV parole programs is anticipated to impact approximately 530,000 Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan and Venezuelan nationals. The Trump administration’s actions to suspend categorical parole programs are currently under litigation, and this termination will likely face similar legal challenges.
In terms of enforcement, the register states that “DHS generally intends to remove promptly aliens who entered the United States under the CHNV parole programs who do not depart the United States before their parole termination date and do not have any lawful basis to remain in the United States. DHS retains its discretion to commence enforcement action against any alien at any time, including during the 30-day waiting period created by this notice.”