Unknown: The Implications of Last Night’s “Presidential” Tweet about Immigration
Last night, Trump tweeted that he was closing immigration to the US. No one knows what that means. USCIS is the agency that processes immigration in the US. The Department of State’s embassies and consulates process US immigration from outside the US. The worst case scenario is that Trump actually effect a closure of both agencies’ immigration operations. While there is no “best” case scenario following such a hateful, incoherent xenophobic statement, the least worst thing that could happen is that Trump does not actually issue an order/proclamation doing what he claimed. With his record of inconsistency, that is possible. If he does make such an order, the “best” case scenario would be for the order to only affect one agency and for that order to be enjoined by a court, allowing operations to continue until the legal case goes to court.
My plan is to continue filing applications until USCIS and/or DOS tell us not to. Unfortunately, many cases will be stalled due to USCIS’s and DOS’s current in-person closures and restrictions. Nonetheless, USCIS continues behind the scenes processing of cases and in recent weeks has given indications that it is looking for creative solutions such as waiving in-person interviews and new biometrics, in order to allow cases to continue to process and be adjudicated.
If you have questions about immigration, please contact me to set up a consultation to discuss.