IMMIGRATION

01.28.21

President Biden’s executive orders on immigration

BY Courtney H. New, Jason Gerrol, Brianna Thompson

In the first six days of his presidency, President Biden has issued seven executive orders directly related to U.S. immigration, as well as other actions paving the way for additional changes to come, signaling the importance of these issues to the new administration.

Travel Ban from Predominantly Muslim Countries

On January 20, 2021, President Biden issued a Proclamation on Ending Discriminatory Bans on Entry to the United States. This proclamation reversed an executive order issued by President Trump that prevented certain individuals from entering the United States. The executive order first targeted individuals from primarily Muslim countries, and later, following litigation, individuals from largely African countries.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals

On January 20, 2021, President Biden reaffirmed Preserving and Fortifying Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). This is a program from the Obama administration that shielded undocumented immigrants who arrived in the United States as children from being deported.

U.S. Census and Undocumented Individuals

On January 20, 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order on Ensuring a Lawful and Accurate Enumeration and Apportionment Pursuant to the Decennial Census. This proclamation states that undocumented immigrants will be counted in the census, overturning President Trump’s attempt to exclude them during the 2020 census.

Protections for Liberians

On January 20, 2021, President Biden issued a memorandum Reinstating Deferred Enforced Departure for Liberians. This memorandum blocks the deportation of Liberian refugees living in the United States, reinstating policies granted by the Bush and Obama administrations.

Immigration Deportation Prioritization

On January 20, 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order on the Revision of Civil Immigration Enforcement Policies and Priorities. This order revoked President Trump’s Executive Order 13768 of January 25, 2017, which was an order that eliminated most federal funding for sanctuary cities and states who sought to protect immigrant families.

U.S.-Mexican Border Wall

On January 20, 2021, President Biden issued a Proclamation on the Termination of Emergency with Respect to the Southern Border of the United States and Redirection of Funds Diverted to Border Wall Construction. This proclamation terminated the funding and construction of the wall at the U.S./Mexico border, citing the wasteful use of American taxpayer dollars.

Covid-19 Travel Restrictions

On January 25, 2021, President Biden reinstated COVID-19 travel restrictions affecting non-U.S. citizens traveling from Brazil and much of Europe. The current travel restrictions apply to the 26 European countries that comprise the Schengen zone (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland), the UK, Ireland, Brazil, Iran, and China. Further, the Biden administration added a similar restriction on travel from South Africa, where a new COVID-19 strain has been identified. Non-U.S. citizens who have been physically present in any of the aforementioned countries within the 14 days prior to traveling to the U.S. will be prohibited from entering the U.S. unless an exception applies (including obtaining a National Interest Exception). Importantly, President Biden’s actions do not impact Presidential Proclamations 10014 and 10052 (suspending issuance of immigrant visas, and certain non-immigrant visas abroad), which remain in effect until March 31, 2021.

On January 21, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order on Promoting COVID-19 Safety in Domestic and International Travel. While not strictly immigration-related, the order does direct various agencies to review the effectiveness of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s January 12, 2021, order mandating a negative COVID-19 test result, or acceptable “documentation of recovery,” for airline passengers traveling to the U.S., and leaves open the possibility of future “appropriate regulatory action” (such as additional testing or quarantine requirements for travelers). For more information on the details of this executive order, please refer to our previous blog post.

The above executive actions are in addition to a memorandum, issued on day one of the Biden administration, which suspends for 60 days, and requires further review of, all new and pending rules issued in the waning days of the Trump administration. This includes the new wage based H-1B selection process. Further, on January 20, 2021, by executive order, President Biden ordered the Revocation of Certain Executive Orders Concerning Federal Regulation, which revokes several executive orders issued by President Trump viewed as hindering the ability of executive departments and agencies to “use robust regulatory action to address national priorities,” including U.S. immigration. Both the memorandum and executive order signal that the Biden administration is just getting started on its attempts to reverse many Trump rules and policies, and introduce meaningful changes to the U.S. immigration system (many of which may require congressional approval).

Tags: Executive Actions, Law And Policy Updates, Travel Updates, DACA, Travel Ban

Search Exactly
Search All Words

Author

Courtney H. New

Counsel

Posts By this author

Thank you for your request to e-mail Courtney New.

While you are welcome to contact an attorney at Nixon Peabody LLP, you should be aware that this Web site presents general information about Nixon Peabody LLP and is not intended as legal advice, nor should you consider it as such. You should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel.

Please keep in mind that merely contacting Nixon Peabody LLP will not establish an attorney-client relationship. Nixon Peabody LLP cannot represent you until the firm knows there would not be a conflict of interest and the firm determines that it is otherwise able to accept the engagement. Accordingly, please do not send Nixon Peabody LLP any information or documents until a formal attorney-client relationship has been established through an interview with an attorney and you receive authorization in the form of an engagement letter from Nixon Peabody LLP. Any information or documents sent prior to your receipt of an engagement letter cannot be treated as confidences, secrets, or protected information of any nature.

Clicking on the link below acknowledges that you understand and agree with this notice.

Continue with e-mail to Courtney New.

;

Author

Jason Gerrol

Of Counsel

Posts By this author

Thank you for your request to e-mail Jason Gerrol.

While you are welcome to contact an attorney at Nixon Peabody LLP, you should be aware that this Web site presents general information about Nixon Peabody LLP and is not intended as legal advice, nor should you consider it as such. You should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel.

Please keep in mind that merely contacting Nixon Peabody LLP will not establish an attorney-client relationship. Nixon Peabody LLP cannot represent you until the firm knows there would not be a conflict of interest and the firm determines that it is otherwise able to accept the engagement. Accordingly, please do not send Nixon Peabody LLP any information or documents until a formal attorney-client relationship has been established through an interview with an attorney and you receive authorization in the form of an engagement letter from Nixon Peabody LLP. Any information or documents sent prior to your receipt of an engagement letter cannot be treated as confidences, secrets, or protected information of any nature.

Clicking on the link below acknowledges that you understand and agree with this notice.

Continue with e-mail to Jason Gerrol.

;

Author

Brianna Thompson

Associate

Posts By this author

Thank you for your request to e-mail Brianna Thompson.

While you are welcome to contact an attorney at Nixon Peabody LLP, you should be aware that this Web site presents general information about Nixon Peabody LLP and is not intended as legal advice, nor should you consider it as such. You should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel.

Please keep in mind that merely contacting Nixon Peabody LLP will not establish an attorney-client relationship. Nixon Peabody LLP cannot represent you until the firm knows there would not be a conflict of interest and the firm determines that it is otherwise able to accept the engagement. Accordingly, please do not send Nixon Peabody LLP any information or documents until a formal attorney-client relationship has been established through an interview with an attorney and you receive authorization in the form of an engagement letter from Nixon Peabody LLP. Any information or documents sent prior to your receipt of an engagement letter cannot be treated as confidences, secrets, or protected information of any nature.

Clicking on the link below acknowledges that you understand and agree with this notice.

Continue with e-mail to Brianna Thompson.

;

IMMIGRATION

President Biden’s executive orders on immigration

BY Courtney H. New, Jason Gerrol, Brianna Thompson

Tags: Executive Actions, Law And Policy Updates, Travel Updates, DACA, Travel Ban

Related Content

Presidential Proclamation 10052 has expired

H-1B Cap Selection Process Completed

Understanding USCIS receipt numbers

State Department further restricts travel to the U.S.

At least for this year, the H-1B lottery process remains the...

International air passengers to the U.S. must provide a...