Trump Administration Expands Travel Suspension to UK and Ireland

President Trump has announced an expanded ban on travel to the U.S. for foreign nationals who, within a 14-day period preceding their entry to the U.S., were physically present in the U.K. or Ireland. The suspension will become effective as of 11:59 pm (ET) on Monday, March 16, 2020 and is an expansion of the ban on travel for foreign nationals present in any of the 26 countries in Europe which comprise the Schengen Area. Like the prior ban, the measure, which is in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, does not apply to United States Citizens (USCs), Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs), and certain family members of USCs and LPRs.


D&S is closely monitoring this and will provide additional updates as new information becomes available.

USCIS Issues Policy Memo Limiting Use of TN Economist Classification

This week the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced the issuance of a new Policy Memorandum titled “TN Nonimmigrant Economists Are Defined by Qualifying Business Activity.” The memorandum is part of USCIS’s effort to align its adjudication practices with the directives of the President's "Buy American, Hire American" Executive Order and seeks to clarify, and limit, eligibility for TN nonimmigrant status under the occupational category for Economists. In particular, the memo states that, for purposes of TN classification, the profession of Economist must not primarily include the activity of other occupations, including, but not limited to, those performed by Financial Analysts, Market Research Analysts, or Marketing Specialists, and notes explicitly that those three specialties do not qualify for TN visa issuance.

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President Trump Signs Executive Order Titled “Buy American and Hire American”

Today, April 18, 2017, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) titled “Buy American and Hire American” with the intent of making changes to the U.S. visa program to protect the jobs of American workers (which includes U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents).

In addition to provisions calling for the enforcement of laws which require, or provide a preference for, the purchase of goods produced in the United States, the EO directs various federal agencies to propose new rules and issue new guidance relating to the administration of the U.S. immigration system in order to protect the interests of U.S. workers. The EO indicated that these “Hire American” provisions are intended to create higher wages and employment rates for U.S. workers and to protect their economic interests.  Of particular note, the EO focuses specifically on reforms to the H-1B visa program, though it remains to be seen whether such reforms, once implemented, would impact other visa categories as well.

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