Headlines:
DOS Resumes Visa Processing for Overseas College students and Change Guests, Publicizes Enhanced Social Media Vetting – The Division of State resumed visa processing for brand spanking new and returning college students and change guests (F, M, and J nonimmigrants) however introduced enhanced social media and on-line presence screening and vetting procedures. Consular posts could resume processing of expedited appointment requests and are directed to prioritize physicians making use of for J visas and candidates finding out at U.S. universities the place worldwide college students represent 15 p.c or much less of the entire scholar physique.
President Trump Backtracks on Pause in ICE Enforcement Towards Resort, Restaurant, and Farm Employees; Worksite Enforcement to ‘Massively Develop’ – President Trump has reversed the pause he referred to as for per week in the past on deportation-related raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on worksites within the agricultural, hospitality, and restaurant industries.
OFLC Reminds Employers of Three-Day Submitting Window for H-2B Employees With October 2025 Begin Date, Provides Submitting Suggestions – The three-day submitting window to submit an H-2B Utility for Momentary Employment Certification (Type ETA-9142B and appendices) requesting a piece begin date of October 1, 2025, will open on July 3, 2025, and shut on July 5, 2025.
Trump Administration Considers Increasing Journey Ban to 36 Extra International locations – Following the Trump administration’s issuance of a journey (entry) ban on 19 international locations, President Trump is contemplating increasing the ban to as much as 36 further, largely African, international locations.
Particulars:
DOS Resumes Visa Processing for Overseas College students and Change Guests, Publicizes Enhanced Social Media Vetting
On June 18, 2025, the Division of State resumed visa processing for brand spanking new and returning college students and change guests (F, M, and J nonimmigrants) however introduced enhanced social media and on-line presence screening and vetting procedures. All candidates for F, M, and J nonimmigrant visas will likely be instructed to regulate the privateness settings on all of their social media profiles to “public” at their visa interviews. If the consular officer finds them in any other case eligible for the visa sought, the officer will problem the scholar an INA § 221(g) resolution whereas they collect extra data and documentation earlier than issuing a closing dedication.
The steering directs consular officers to evaluate visa candidates’ on-line presence for “any indications of hostility in the direction of the residents, tradition, authorities, establishments or founding rules of america.” Consular officers will evaluate extra than simply social media accounts with explicit consideration to candidates with a historical past of political activism. Officers will comprehensively display screen each visa applicant “for potential safety and non-security associated ineligibilities.” Though the web content material discovered could not alone be enough to disclaim a scholar’s visa, officers will conduct further vetting to find out if the applicant will respect U.S. legal guidelines and “have interaction solely in actions according to” their standing. Whereas some vacationers have taken to briefly wiping their social media accounts, consular officers will likely be taking screenshots throughout their vetting course of to protect information of their findings.
Lack of a public on-line presence or refusal to make websites accessible will increase a pink flag. If no derogatory data is discovered, the officer could decide on the visa software. Nevertheless, based on the steering, “[i]f doubtlessly derogatory data is discovered, submit ought to refuse the case underneath the suitable refusal code; or, if wanted, submit ought to name the applicant again for a follow-up interview.”
In accordance with the steering, consular posts could resume processing of expedited appointment requests and are directed to prioritize physicians making use of for J visas and candidates finding out at U.S. universities the place worldwide college students represent 15 p.c or much less of the entire scholar physique.
President Trump Backtracks on Pause in ICE Enforcement Towards Resort, Restaurant, and Farm Employees; Worksite Enforcement to ‘Massively Develop’
President Trump has reversed the pause he referred to as for per week in the past on deportation-related raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on worksites within the agricultural, hospitality, and restaurant industries. He mentioned raids can be targeted on “Democrat-run cities,” which he claimed on Fact Social are the “core of the Democrat Energy Middle.”
Tom Homan, the White Home “border czar,” mentioned that “[w]orksite enforcement operations are going to massively broaden.” On June 16, 2025, Tricia McLaughlin, Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs on the Division of Homeland Safety, mentioned that worksite operations “are very a lot a cornerstone” of the Trump administration’s enforcement efforts. “There is no such thing as a protected harbor, whether or not it’s a church or a courthouse or a worksite. We are going to come for you; we’ll arrest you; you may be deported.” Following President Trump’s newest feedback, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement held a name with its company leaders within the area, ordering them to renew raids on resort, restaurant, and agricultural worksites.
The earlier change in coverage for these industries, carried out final week, got here after President Trump posted on Fact Social, “Our nice Farmers and other people within the Resort and Leisure enterprise have been stating that our very aggressive coverage on immigration is taking superb, very long time staff away from them, with these jobs being virtually unimaginable to exchange. … We should defend our Farmers, however get the CRIMINALS OUT OF THE USA. Modifications are coming!”
In accordance with studies, some public firms are actually warning traders about disruptions of their workforces. Smithfield, a significant meatpacking firm, mentioned in its securities submitting in March, “Elevated enforcement efforts with respect to present immigration legal guidelines by governmental authorities could disrupt a portion of our workforce or our operations.”
OFLC Reminds Employers of Three-Day Submitting Window for H-2B Employees With October 2025 Begin Date, Provides Submitting Suggestions
On June 20, 2025, the Division of Labor’s Workplace of Overseas Labor Certification (OFLC) reminded employers that the three-day submitting window to submit an H-2B Utility for Momentary Employment Certification (Type ETA-9142B and appendices) requesting a piece begin date of October 1, 2025, will open on July 3, 2025, and shut on July 5, 2025.
This three-day interval is the earliest an employer could file an software for an October 1, 2025, work begin date, OFLC mentioned, warning that “H-2B purposes requesting October 1, 2025, work begin dates will likely be denied if they’re filed earlier than July 3, 2025, at 12:00 a.m. Japanese Time.” After the three-day submitting window closes, OFLC mentioned it’s going to randomly order purposes for task to analysts for evaluate and processing.
OFLC supplied the next submitting suggestions:
- Just one H-2B Utility for Momentary Employment Certification per job alternative must be filed to stop duplicate filings and delayed processing.
- If “sure” is chosen for “Board, Lodging, or Different Services” underneath part F.d.5, Type ETA-9142B, and deductions aside from these required by legislation could also be constructed from the employee’s pay, particulars must be included concerning the deductions and quantities to cowl the affordable price of board, lodging, and different amenities in part F.d.6.
- The employer should submit with its H-2B software a duplicate of the job order being submitted concurrently to the State Workforce Company (SWA) serving the realm of meant employment. The job order submitted should be a duplicate of the particular job order or a accomplished job order type utilized by the SWA for posting in its job clearance programs.
- Unique signatures and dates on Appendix B should be present.
Trump Administration Considers Increasing Journey Ban to 36 Extra International locations
In accordance with studies, following the Trump administration’s issuance of a journey (entry) ban/restrictions on 19 international locations, President Trump is contemplating increasing the ban to as much as 36 further, largely African, international locations.
The 36 international locations have 60 days to “mitigate ongoing vetting and screening issues, develop corrective motion plans to remediate deficiencies and consider progress.” A associated cable reportedly mentioned there have been a variety of issues however didn’t specify what the issues have been for every nation. Normally, the cable cited issues together with unreliability in id paperwork, felony information, passports, and visa overstays, amongst different points. The international locations may scale back the issues, the cable mentioned, if they comply with settle for deportees or asylees from different international locations despatched by america.
The international locations on the brand new record reportedly embrace Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Ethiopia, Egypt, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, South Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Agency within the Information
Cyrus Mehta was quoted by Forbes in Immigration Restrictions Mount Towards People and Authorized Residents. Discussing a brand new proclamation that features an exception for spouses, kids, and fogeys of U.S. residents coming to america however requires U.S. residents to beat a brand new normal—clear and convincing proof of id and household relationship (e.g., DNA)—Mr. Mehta mentioned, “This normal is larger than the preponderance of proof normal that exists presently for U.S. residents to assert their relationship to family members they want to sponsor for everlasting residence. Usually, the usual solely escalates to the clear and convincing normal in conditions involving suspected fraud, comparable to when a respondent in removing proceedings marries a U.S. citizen or when there have been situations of prior fraud.” Relating to the Trump journey ban, Mr. Mehta mentioned, “There appears to be a method to stop immigration and future citizenship from … primarily African international locations,” including that he considers the ban on lawful everlasting residents sponsoring their spouses or kids “draconian.” He mentioned that though “it could be tough to problem your entire proclamation on its face as unconstitutional underneath equal safety or First Modification rules after Trump v. Hawaii, plaintiffs could attempt to take pictures at difficult narrower provisions comparable to the availability rendering it more durable for U.S. residents to sponsor rapid family members from the banned nation.” Mr. Kurzban mentioned the journey ban “doesn’t enable individuals to reunify with members of the family, and it forces individuals to stay in or be deported to situations that america and the remainder of the world have acknowledged as completely horrific.”
