Warning regarding travel returning to the U.S.
On Friday January 27, 2017, President Trump signed an Executive Order (“Order”) relating to visa issuance, admission to the U.S. procedures, and refugees. The Order is titled "Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States."
This Order, suspends entry to the U.S., by immigrant and nonimmigrant who are nationals of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen, for a period of 90 days from the date of the order. The list of countries could also be expanded. Passport holders, citizens, nationals, dual nationals (people who hold nationality from one of the listed countries and another country, such as Canada for example) will not be granted entry into the U.S. Additionally, after 90 days, return travel to the U.S. is not automatically reinstated.
We also have received information that processing of applications and petitions for immigration benefits for green cards, immigrant and nonimmigrant visas for nationals of the listed countries are being suspended by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service and visa appointments are being cancelled by U.S. Embassies and Consulates.
We are advising clients who might be affected by the Executive Order or have employees who hold permanent resident status/green cards, H-1B, TN, L-1A, L-1B, O-1, other nonimmigrant classifications, or advance parole to refrain from traveling outside of the United States.
Please note that due to these provisions, individuals of all nationalities, should expect increased visa processing times and delays while traveling.
The Butzel Long immigration team is monitoring the situation and reaching out, where appropriate, to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the U.S. Department of State, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in partnership with other immigration attorneys throughout the country and the American Immigration Lawyers Association, to obtain current information on how the U.S. Government is currently handling the entry of individuals from these countries and the processing of immigration applications involving nationals of these countries. We will continue to provide updated information as it becomes available to us.
Please understand that this situation is fluid and may change at any time. There are at least two forms of injunctive relief placing a hold on the actions provided in the Order. The court ordered holds are not currently being followed.
This alert is not legal advice. We recommend that you contact any of the following attorneys in our Firm’s Immigration Department to discuss specific concerns:
Clara DeMatteis Mager, mager@butzel.com (313) 225-7077
Linda Armstrong, armstrong@butzel.com (313) 983-7476
Reginald Pacis, pacis@butzel.com (313) 983-6929
Bushra Malik, malik@butzel.com (248) 258-4470
Amany Kasham, kasham@butzel.com (313) 983-6916
