On June 22, 2020, the President issued an expansion of the Presidential Proclamation he signed in April (PP 10014, “Suspending Entry of Immigrants Who Present Risk to the U.S. Labor Market during the Economic Recovery Following the COVID-19 Outbreak”), which was originally issued for an initial 60-day period with the potential to be renewed. Through this new Presidential Proclamation 10052, President Trump expanded and extended the earlier Proclamation until December 31, 2020, and can be further extended by the President. The initial executive order was limited to overseas applicants for immigrant visas (i.e., green cards), but the renewal of the Proclamation expanded its application to nonimmigrant employment-based visa holders as discussed below.
The Presidential Proclamation suspended the issuance of visas, beginning June 24, 2020, for those seeking entry pursuant to a(n):
· H-1B visa, and any dependent;
· H-2B visa, and any dependent;
· J-1 visa (intern, trainee, teacher, camp counselor, au pair, or summer work travel program) and dependent; and
· L visa, and any dependent.
The Presidential Proclamation applies to those individuals listed above if they:
1. Are outside the U.S. on the effective date of the Proclamation (June 24, 2020);
2. Do not have a nonimmigrant visa in one of the categories now suspended that is valid on the effective date of the Proclamation; and
3. Do not have an official travel document other than a visa (such as a transportation letter, boarding foil, or advance parole document) valid on the effective date of the Proclamation.
A few weeks after the Proclamation was issued, the Department of State (DOS) provided some additional guidance via Twitter. The DOS confirmed that if an H-1B or L-1 holder is in the U.S. and not out of status, their dependent applicants outside the U.S. can receive a dependent visa. Further, the DOS later confirmed on Twitter that if an H-1B or L-1 visa holder was in the U.S. on June 24, 2020 and later departed the U.S. and then the visa expired, those individuals are not subject to the Proclamation and the visa may be renewed before December 31, 2020 (if the nearest consulate/embassy has resumed routine visa services).
There are exemptions to the Proclamation. The Proclamation does not apply to lawful permanent residents (LPRs), spouse or children of a U.S. citizen, an individual seeking entry to provide temporary labor essential to the U.S. food supply chain, and an individual whose entry would be in the “national interest” as determined by the Secretary of State, Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees.
Please note that individuals who are within the U.S. will not have their valid visa status or work authorization affected by the new order. If you are in the U.S. with valid H-1B or L-1 status, this is not being revoked. Pending applications for immigration benefits with USCIS or DOL (for example, H-1B amendments, transfers, extensions, cap-subject petitions, LCA’s, H-4 and EAD applications, etc.) are also not affected by the Proclamation. These applications will be adjudicated as they normally would.
By: KMH