Plain-language guides to USCIS case status, processing, and the immigration process.
A September 18 executive order tells three agencies to consider whether an H-1B employer has had layoffs in the past year, or plans them, in every labor condition application, petition, visa and entry. There's no guidance yet on how. Here's what the order actually says, how it differs from the layoff rules already in the law, and what H-1B workers at companies with recent cuts can do now.
Since December 2025, USCIS had frozen green card, citizenship, work permit and asylum decisions for people from travel ban countries. A Rhode Island court vacated the hold in June, and a California court ordered normal processing for a nationwide class in August. But an appeals court let one piece continue: re-reviewing benefits already approved. Here's where each piece stands.
El Salvador's TPS designation reached its end date on September 9, 2026 with no Federal Register notice either way. DHS says holders "retain protection," but USCIS's own pages disagree with each other. Here is what the TPS statute says happens when DHS misses its deadline, what employers are being told about Form I-9, and the choices worth avoiding until there is a formal notice.
On September 23, the Secretary of State announced visa restrictions on people who engage in or facilitate birth tourism, three months after the Supreme Court confirmed that nearly every child born in the U.S. is a citizen. The ruling didn't change visitor visa rules, and a 2020 regulation already presumes some pregnant applicants are traveling to give birth. Here's how it fits together.
Every October, millions of people enter the U.S. green card lottery. In 2025 the registration period never opened, and as of late September 2026 there are still no DV-2027 instructions, even though DV-2027's visa year begins October 1. Meanwhile, two new rules will change how you enter: a passport scan and a $1 fee. Here's where things stand and how to avoid lottery scams.
With the November 3 midterms five weeks away, federal prosecutors are charging noncitizens, most of them green card holders, with registering to vote or voting. Many cases start with a "yes" on a driver's license form. Here's what the law says, why intent matters less than people assume, the narrow exception that exists, and what to do if you think you were registered by mistake.
Starting October 1, 2026, the State Department will review the online presence of TN, TD and I visa applicants and tells them to set every social media profile to "public." Headlines have called this a new rule for Canadians, but most Canadians never apply for a TN visa at all. Here's who the rule actually reaches, what "public" means, and how to prepare without deleting your history.
A 2025 law ends federal Medicaid and CHIP funding on October 1, 2026 for many lawfully present immigrants, including refugees, asylees, parolees and trafficking survivors without green cards. It changes who qualifies for coverage and is separate from the public charge rule. Here's who keeps coverage, the exceptions for children and pregnant women, and what to do if your state sends a notice.
If your family member's immigrant visa interview abroad was canceled this summer, you're not alone. Three separate things happened in August: a court lifted the 75-country issuance pause, embassies reportedly paused interviews to retrain officers on public charge, and the State Department began asking some applicants to post public charge bonds. Here is how each one works and what you can do.
