News & Commentary

The new birthright citizenship order contradicts the regulation at 8 CFR 101.3(b).

Children of accredited diplomats have NEVER been citizens at birth. Full diplomatic immunity means they aren't “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States.

Under the regulation, children born to embassy and consulate employees who are not on the State Department's Diplomatic List ARE subject to the jurisdiction, making them citizens at birth.

Thursday's order aims to exclude this second group anyway.

The second order on “birth tourism” is confirming an existing policy that allows for visa refusal.

Neither order affects children born to H-1B, L-1, O-1, and F-1 families.

TSA has handed ICE records on more than 31,000 travelers. More than 800 arrests followed.

The people being arrested include an engineer awaiting his work visa extension, newlyweds married to US citizens, and a former au pair with valid work authorization. No one was accused of a crime.

This issue of The Global Talent Report walks through what the Times and Reuters reporting shows, what the TSA-ICE agreement actually says, why a timely filed application protects against the unlawful presence bars and not against an arrest, and what to do about travel right now. 🗽

CBP wants private investigators to find deported people abroad to give them collection notices.

DHS previously promised to forgive these fines for anyone who self-deports through the CBP Home app. This program pursues people who already left.

A separate $5,130 fee Congress created last year for certain in-absentia removal cases cannot be waived or reduced by statute.

WIRED reports the solicitation covers Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala and pays contractors per person. The underlying fines accrue at $998 per day under a 1996 failure-to-depart provision, with some notices reaching $1.8 million!

Pay.gov is the only payment channel named in the documents, and it requires a US bank account. The solicitation contemplates payment by someone other than the person fined. For those with family in the US, that liability could impact them. 🗽

🚨 USCIS can now deny a filing without issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE), according to a new Policy Memo that took effect today.

➡️ PA-2026-05 gives USCIS adjudicators full discretion to deny a case when required initial evidence is missing, with no RFE (or NOID) required.

➡️ The policy also applies to cases that are currently pending.

➡️ Additionally, USCIS clarifies that the 12-week RFE window is now a maximum timeframe, and officers may set shorter deadlines.

How this PM will be applied remains to be seen, but less time to respond to more detailed requests doesn't seem reasonable and could open USCIS up to more litigation.

I've been getting questions about rumors of a new $100,000 fee for F-1 students applying for OPT work authorization after graduation.

What I'm telling my clients: This administration is clearly pushing a policy-by-pricing approach to immigration when you look at the fee increases, elimination of fee waivers for naturalization, and a legally dubious “gold” card with a seven-figure price tag.

But with OPT, there is no rule, proclamation or Federal Register notice. Just a media outlet reporting an anonymous source, and a White House official who said nothing is imminent without denying the idea exists.

The end of Duration of Status is very real and begins next month. For context, we were told about that rule last summer and it is only now becoming reality.

To better understand a potential $100K OPT fee, look at legal battles on the H-1B $100K proclamation fee.