After lower courts rejected previous versions of the Trump travel ban, the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the Trump administration’s so-called Travel Ban 3.0 in a 5-to-4 decision. Travel Ban 3.0 applies to individuals from seven different countries, five of which have Muslim majorities. More specifically, the ban indefinitely suspends all immigrant and nonimmigrant visas to applicants from Iran, Somalia, Libya, Syria, and Yemen, whose citizens are predominantly Muslim, as well as applicants from North Korea and Venezuela.

​This ban potentially impacts more than 135 million people, most of whom are from the five Muslim majority countries. Arguably, the ban has the greatest impact on Iran, which has over 80 million citizens. Iran has a long history of students coming to the U.S. to further their education, as well as almost a million Iranian-Americans now residing in the U.S. According to the National Iranian American Council, many Iranians are opting to study elsewhere because of the difficulties imposed by this ban.

The high Court ruled that Travel Ban 3.0 was not a ban on Muslims, as many critics claim, for two reasons. First, the ban does contain exceptions or waivers for certain individuals from the countries impacted by the ban. Consular officers who review visa applications have the general discretion to grant these waivers based on three main factors:

• Whether denying entry to the U.S. would create an undue hardship;
  
• Whether the applicant represents a threat to national security; and,
  
• Whether granting entry would be in the national interest.
  

​While it is not clear how many waivers are being granted, the State Department reported that as of April 30, 2018, only about two percent of the waiver applications had been granted. The State Department also released a statement indicating that almost 1,000 applicants had been cleared for a waiver as of July 15, 2018. However, there is no information concerning whether all or any of these applicants actually have received their visas.

The Supreme Court also upheld Travel Ban 3.0 as a legitimate exercise of presidential authority because it includes restrictions on visa applicants from North Korea and Venezuela, which are not Muslim-majority countries. Some immigration advocates, however, state that the ban on Venezuela visa applicants affects only a small number of government officials and their families. The travel ban has practically no impact on North Korea at all, since the North Korean government permits very few of its citizens to travel to the U.S. under any circumstances.

​While it is not clear how many waivers are being granted, the State DepartmentAs a result of the Court’s ruling, the Center for Constitutional Rights and Muslim Advocates filed a lawsuit seeking clarity on the requirements and standards for receiving a waiver to Travel Ban 3.0. This lawsuit follows the organization’s failed attempts to obtain this information through a Freedom of Information Act request from the U.S. government after the Trump administration issued the ban in December 2017. Additionally, the Immigrant Advocacy & Litigation Center, PLLC filed a suit entitled Emami v. Nielsen in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, which requests that the Trump administration explain how it grants waivers under the ban. The suit also seeks an explanation of the apparent contradiction between the administration’s description of the waiver program as “clear and generous” and the fact that consular officials are granting very few waiver applications. One or our clients is named plaintiff in this lawsuit.reported that as of April 30, 2018, only about two percent of the waiver applications had been granted. The State Department also released a statement indicating that almost 1,000 applicants had been cleared for a waiver as of July 15, 2018. However, there is no information concerning whether all or any of these applicants actually have received their visas.

World One Law Group has contacted members of the U.S. House of Representatives, urging them to oppose Speaker Ryan’s “Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018” and Representative Goodlatte’s “Securing America’s Future Act of 2018” (H.R. 4760). Both bills hold Dreamers hostage in return for provisions that would upend our immigration system and betray our values.
 
Speaker Ryan’s “Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018” pairs Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) provisions with severe cuts to legal immigration, policies that undermine vital protections for vulnerable populations, and dramatic increases in funding for immigration enforcement. Among other provisions, the current bill would:

• Drastically reduce legal immigration by eliminating several family-based immigration categories and eliminating the diversity visa program.
• Undermine protections for vulnerable populations, including raising the credible fear standard for asylum seekers and eliminating certain TVPRA protections, sending children more quickly back to the countries from which they fled.
• Does NOT address the family separation crisis, which can be stopped right now by this Administration. Instead, the bill would jail children and their families for long periods of time.
• Balloon funding for enforcement, including additional Border Patrol agents, a $25 billion appropriation for the border wall, and funding to keep children and families in jail.
• Does NOT adequately protect Dreamers. The bill provides for contingent nonimmigrant status and creates a “point system” that would leave many Dreamers without protection.

Representative Goodlatte’s “Securing America’s Future Act of 2018”( H.R. 4760) is an anti-immigrant wish list that slashes legal immigration to untenably low levels, mandates unnecessary and harsh enforcement tactics, creates millions of criminals out of thin air by making unlawful presence a crime, and seems focused on excluding the largest number of Dreamers from the very few weak protections it claims to provide. Among other provisions, the bill would:

• Eviscerate legal immigration by gutting the family-based immigration system and eliminating the diversity visa program.
• Make employment verification mandatory for all employers.
• Criminalize unlawful presence, creating millions of criminals out of thin air.
• Mandate long-term detention of nearly everyone in removal proceedings despite due process, capacity, and cost prohibitions.
• Undermine access to asylum for individuals who have been persecuted abroad, including heightening the credible fear standard.
• Eliminate safeguards for vulnerable children by amending the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (TVPRA).
• Require a massive buildup of immigration enforcement, including construction of a wall, hiring of additional CBP, and waiving crucial polygraph requirements.
• NOT adequately protect Dreamers. As written, the bill provides only a contingent nonimmigrant status to eligible applicants for renewable three-year periods, excludes anyone who does not have valid DACA on the date of enactment, and imposes punitive eligibility requirements.

World One will continue to fight to protect the rights of all who seek to make a new life in the United States.  If you think you may need immigration help, please contact our office at (425) 250-8110, or by email at info@world1law.com.

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