Where TPS Stands in August 2026: Four Countries Left, One Million Protections Ended, and the Alternatives That Remain
Seventeen countries held Temporary Protected Status designations when the administration took office. As of this month, four do, and one of those ends on September 9. A country-by-country close of the ledger, the Supreme Court decision that settled the litigation, and what a person losing TPS can still file.
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Browse by topic →The D.C. Circuit Sides With Fast-Track Deportation: What the June 23 Ruling Changes, and What It Has Not Changed Yet
A divided appeals court has vacated the order that blocked nationwide expedited removal for ten months. The policy is not yet back in force, because the court's mandate has not issued. When it does, anyone inside the country who cannot prove two years of presence is exposed. The evidence to prepare, and the words to say.
The Ruling That Ended the Hold: What the June 5 Decision Requires of USCIS, and What Two Million Applicants Should Expect
A federal judge in Rhode Island vacated the three memos that froze asylum decisions nationwide and every benefit for nationals of 39 countries. USCIS says it disagrees and is complying while it appeals. What the order does, what it does not, and why the backlog it leaves behind is the next problem.
Adjustment of Status as "Administrative Grace": The May 2026 Memo That Points Applicants Abroad
A USCIS memo dated May 21, 2026 tells officers to weigh the availability of consular processing against anyone applying for a green card from inside the United States, and to demand "unusual or even outstanding equities" from applicants with any adverse factor. Who is exposed, what it does not say, and why leaving to apply abroad can be worse than waiting.
Detention Without Bond: The Yajure Hurtado Rule, the Circuit Split, and What a Family Can Do
Since September 2025 the government's position has been that anyone who entered without inspection is ineligible for a bond hearing, however long they have lived here. Federal appeals courts are split down the middle on whether that is the law. Whether a detained person can ask a judge for release now depends on the state they are held in.
Advance Parole, Refugee Travel Documents and Reentry Permits in 2026: Which One, What It Costs, and Why Approval Is Not Admission
Every travel document for a non-citizen is requested on the same form and none of them guarantees you will be let back in. An update of this site's 2021 guide, with the 2026 fees, the processing times, and the travel ban that now decides who should not leave at all.
Family Petitions in 2026: Who Can Sponsor Whom, What It Costs, and How Long It Takes
The categories have not changed since this site first laid them out in 2021. The fees, the waiting lines and the scrutiny have. A current account of family-based immigration, from the citizen petitioning for a spouse to the asylee petitioning for a child.
Immigration Court in 2026: Checking Your Hearing, Missing One, and What Changed in the Courthouse
The immigration courts are carrying more than three million cases with a quarter fewer judges than a year ago, and since May 2025 the courthouse itself has become a place of arrest. How to check a hearing, what an in absentia order does, and how to undo one.
The One-Year Asylum Deadline in 2026: The Exceptions Still Recognized, and the Fees That Complicate Them
An asylum application must be filed within a year of your last arrival. The exceptions have not changed since this site first explained them in 2021. What has changed is everything around them: a filing fee, an annual fee, and an agency far readier to refer a late case to court.
This Week in Immigration
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Alien Registration and Form G-325R: Who Must Register, Who Already Has, and What It Costs You
A 1940 duty to register with the government, dormant for decades, has been enforced since April 11, 2025. Most people with any immigration paperwork are already registered without knowing it. The ones who are not face a decision with real consequences either way.
The Return of Neighborhood Investigations: What USCIS Is Now Asking Your Neighbors
A practice the immigration service abandoned around 1991 is back. Under an August 2025 memo, USCIS may investigate a naturalization applicant's residence and workplace for the five years before filing, and by January 2026 officers were visiting homes unannounced. What the law requires, and how to make the visit unnecessary.
Expedited Removal: The Fight Over Fast-Track Deportation, and How to Prove Two Years
In January 2025 DHS extended expedited removal to anyone inside the country who cannot prove two years of continuous presence. A federal court stayed the policy in August; the D.C. Circuit refused to lift the stay in November and heard the appeal in December. What the policy would do, what protects you, and what to carry.
The Expanded Travel Ban: 39 Countries, Two Tiers, and the Exceptions That Disappeared
Proclamation 10998 took effect at 12:01 a.m. on January 1, 2026, doubling the June 2025 travel ban to 39 countries and removing the exceptions for spouses, children, parents and adoptees. Who it reaches, who is exempt, and why the USCIS hold that came with it matters as much as the ban itself.
The 2026 Fee Schedule: What the Inflation Adjustment Changes on January 1
H.R. 1 indexes its immigration fees to inflation every fiscal year. Three Federal Register notices in November 2025 set the 2026 amounts. Most rise by $5 to $20, a few stay flat, and a filing postmarked on or after January 1 without the new amount is rejected.
The Asylum Hold: What USCIS Stopped After November 26, and What Pending Applicants Should Expect
On December 2, 2025, USCIS froze decisions on every pending asylum application in the country and on every benefit request from nationals of 19 countries, and ordered a re-review of green cards already granted. What the memo says, who it reaches, and what it does not do.
The End of the Automatic Work Permit Extension: File Early or Stop Working
Since October 30, 2025, filing a work permit renewal no longer extends the expiring card. The 540-day bridge that kept hundreds of thousands of people employed while USCIS caught up is gone. Who is affected, the timing, and what to do.
TPS Terminations: Where Each Country Stands, and What Happens to Your Work Permit
Between February and November 2025 DHS moved to end Temporary Protected Status for nearly every designated country. A country-by-country account of the notices, the court fights, and the rule that matters most: the termination date, not the date on your card.