This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Tahmina Watson, a business immigration lawyer in Seattle. It’s been edited for length and clarity.
When I saw the administration’s new immigration policy memo last Friday, stating that I-485 forms will only be approved in “extraordinary circumstances,” I felt like the sky was falling.
The I-485 is the form used to apply for a green card (legal permanent residence) from inside the US. The last several days have been filled with fear, stress, and confusion, from people who don’t know what this means for their status, and if they’ll have to leave the country.
I’m the founding attorney of Watson Immigration Law. We specialize in business and family immigration. One of our areas of expertise is working with startup founders and businesses that are expanding into the United States, and many of my clients are tech workers.
It’s hard to wrap my head around the enormity of this decision because the I-485 is used in almost every category of immigration to allow people to adjust their status from visa to green card.
This change will have a ripple effect on everyone. Laid-off tech workers are in a particularly difficult spot. My advice is to get in contact with your lawyer now and gather documentation.
Green cards will only be granted to those in ‘extraordinary circumstances’
People can apply to adjust status to permanent residence from inside the US by filing Form I-485 with USCIS.
While the memo initially stated that I-485 forms will only be approved in extraordinary circumstances, a USCIS spokesperson clarified that those who bring economic benefits to the United States will be viewed favorably in their adjudication. However, there’s no real policy guidance yet.
Typically, if somebody has arrived in the United States legally, they can adjust their status to that of a green card holder without leaving. The memo is essentially saying the intent of the law is that people get their applications filed outside the US, and that they’re returning to the intent of the law.
The last 72 hours have been full of fear, stress, and confusion
Since Friday, my email has been blowing up with people asking, “What does it mean? What do we do?” The immigration lawyer community has been scrambling to figure out what this means as well, so Friday was very much about a lot of analyzing, discussing what we’re going to do, and setting up calls with our clients.
So much is still uncertain. As the week unfolds, we might see more clarification from the administration. We may actually see litigation on the subject where the policy could actually be completely or partially enjoined. I sincerely hope that the courts will enjoin this policy.
I think a lot of my guidance to people will be dependent on what we hear from the administration in the coming days.
If you’re on a work visa, start gathering documents that prove your economic benefits to the US
A lot of my clients work in tech, and the question that’s been coming up since the memo release is what happens to people with work visas, such as H-1B.
On page five of the memo, it states that “maintaining lawful status in a dual intent non-immigrant category is not sufficient on its own to warrant a favorable exercise of discretion.” To me, that means my clients need to file even more documentation to prove the economic benefit that they bring to the United States.
I’d advise people to get in contact with their lawyers and act urgently. For work visa holders, it will be important to sit down with their lawyers and figure out what kind of positive economic documents they can submit with their adjustment applications to prove the economic benefits they provide.
This policy will have a ripple effect on people and businesses
If a policy like this continues to go forward, families could be separated for years, likely because the consulates will not be able to shoulder the burden of the volume that will be required to adjudicate.
This means the people currently waiting will wait longer, and those who are being put into the system will exacerbate the system.
It will also mean that the businesses that invest in their workers are going to suffer because their workers will have to wait outside the country.
Laid-off tech workers are at risk
There are categories of people who never intended to be out of status, like folks who’ve been laid off from their tech jobs.
Laid-off workers have a 60-day grace period to find another employer to sponsor their visa or change their visa status to an interim visa, such as a tourist visa. However, it appears that the administration could be taking the perspective that those who apply for an interim visa have not maintained status.
If Big Tech companies are laying people off and not hiring, where are these people going to be able to get jobs to maintain their status? The ripple effects of this change are going to be felt everywhere.
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