President Donald Trump today issued an executive order temporarily suspending the entry of certain foreign nationals on immigrant visas to the United States.
The Executive Order is entitled "Proclamation Suspending Entry of Immigrants Who Present Risk to the U.S. Labor Market During the Economic Recovery Following the COVID-19 Outbreak".
President Trump explains in his proclamation that he took this action to temporarily protect U.S. citizen workers, permanent residents and persons with employment authorization in the United States who are now unemployed and could be displaced or compete for jobs with future immigrants. He also wants to reduce the work of U.S. Embassies around the world to focus on providing assistance services to Americans living abroad who have been affected by COVID-19.
The announcement affects immigrants applying for immigrant visas. from abroadnot to those already inside the country.
The order is effective as of Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. ET and will last for a period of 60 days, unless extended or blocked by court order.
Who is affected by President Trump's proclamation?
President Trump's proclamation applies to foreigners who:
1. Are outside the United States on the effective date of this announcement;
2. Do not have an immigrant visa that is valid on the effective date of this announcement; and 3.
3. Do not have an official travel document other than a visa (such as a letter of transportation, a proper boarding pass, or an advance entry clearance document) that is valid on the effective date of this proclamation or issued at any later date that permits him or her to travel to the United States and seek entry or admission.
To whom no President Trump's proclamation affect?
This not applicable to the following persons:
Lawful permanent residents of the United States.
2. Aliens seeking to enter the United States on an immigrant visa as a physician, nurse, or other health care professional; to conduct medical or other research to combat the spread of COVID-19; or to perform work essential to combat, recover from, or alleviate the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, as determined by the U.S. Secretary of State, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees; and their spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21.
3. Foreign nationals applying for a visa to enter the United States under the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program.
4. Aliens who are spouses of a U.S. citizen.
5. Unmarried aliens under the age of 21, who are the child of a U.S. citizen, or who is a prospective adoptee seeking to enter the U.S., under the IR-4 or IH-4 visa classifications.
6 Aliens whose entry is more important to the law enforcement objectives of the United States, as determined by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees, based on a recommendation from the Attorney General of the United States or his or her designee.
7. Members of the U.S. Armed Forces and their spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21.
8. Aliens seeking to enter the United States under a special immigrant visa in the SI or SQ classification, subject to such conditions as the Secretary of State may impose, and their spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21.
9. Aliens whose entry is in the national interest, as determined by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees.
Other important data
1. Consular officers will determine whether or not a foreign national is subject to President Trump's proclamation.
2. Nor applies to aliens seeking asylum, refugee status, withholding of deportation or protection under regulations issued pursuant to legislation implementing the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and U.S. laws and regulations.
3. Nor applies to foreign nationals on nonimmigrant visas, including temporary tourist or business visas. However, President Trump directed that within 30 days of the effective date of his proclamation, the U.S. Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, review nonimmigrant visa programs and make recommendations on other appropriate measures to stimulate the U.S. economy and ensure the prioritization, hiring and employment of U.S. workers.
4. An alien who circumvents enforcement through fraud, intentional misrepresentation of a material fact, or illegal entry will be a priority for removal by the Department of Homeland Security.
Possible legal action against President Trump's proclamation.
As has happened with other Trump administration orders proposing changes to immigration processes, it is anticipated that this measure will also face legal action to block its implementation.
Consult with an immigration attorney to determine your legal options as soon as possible.
Below is President Trump's proclamation issued on April 22, 2020 (Spanish translation from Google Translate):
Proclamation suspending the entry of immigrants who pose risks to the U.S. labor market during the economic recovery following the outbreak of COVID-19.
The new 2019 coronavirus (COVID-19) has significantly disrupted Americans' livelihoods. In Proclamation 9994 of March 13, 2020 (declaring a national emergency related to the new coronavirus disease outbreak (COVID-19)), declared that the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States constituted a national emergency, beginning March 1, 2020. Of course, the American people have united behind a policy of mitigation strategies, including social distancing, to flatten the infection curve and reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This necessary behavioral change has affected the U.S. economy, with national unemployment claims reaching historic levels. In the days between the national emergency declaration and April 11, 2020, more than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment.
In administering our nation's immigration system, we must be mindful of the impact of foreign workers on the U.S. labor market, particularly in an environment of high domestic unemployment and depressed labor demand. We must also conserve critical State Department resources so that consular officers can continue to provide services to U.S. citizens abroad. Even with their ranks thinned by pandemic-related staffing disruptions, consular officers continue to provide assistance to U.S. citizens, including through the continued evacuation of many Americans stranded abroad.
I have determined that, without intervention, the United States faces a potentially prolonged economic recovery with persistently high unemployment if labor supply exceeds labor demand. Labor oversupply affects all workers and potential workers, but is particularly harmful to workers on the margin between employment and unemployment, who are generally "last in" during an economic expansion and "first out" during an economic contraction. In recent years, these workers have been disproportionately represented by historically disadvantaged groups, including African Americans and other minorities, those without a college degree, and the disabled. These are the workers who, at the margin between employment and unemployment, are likely to bear the burden of excess labor supply disproportionately.
In addition, lawful permanent residents, once admitted, are granted "open market" employment authorization documents, allowing them immediate eligibility to compete for almost any job, in any sector of the economy. There is no way to protect already disadvantaged and unemployed Americans from the threat of competition for scarce jobs from new lawful permanent residents by directing those new residents to particular economic sectors with a demonstrated need that is not met by the existing labor supply. Existing immigrant visa processing protections are inadequate for recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak.
The vast majority of immigrant visa categories do not require employers to consider the posting of U.S. workers. While some employment-based visas contain a labor certification requirement, because visa issuance occurs substantially after certification is completed, the labor certification process cannot adequately capture the state of the current labor market. In addition, the introduction of additional permanent residents when our health care resources are limited strains the finite limits of our health care system at a time when we must prioritize Americans and the existing immigrant population. In light of the foregoing, I have determined that the entry, over the next 60 days, of certain aliens as immigrants would be detrimental to the interests of the United States.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 USC 1182(f) and 1185(a), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, determine that entry into the United States of the persons described in section 1 of this proclamation, except as provided in section 2 of this proclamation, would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, and that their entry shall be subject to certain restrictions, limitations, and exceptions. Therefore, I hereby proclaim as follows:
Section 1. Suspension and limitation of entry. Entry into the United States of aliens as immigrants is hereby suspended and limited to section 2 of this proclamation.
Sec. 2. Scope of suspension and limitation of entry. (a) The suspension and limitation of entry pursuant to section 1 of this proclamation shall apply only to aliens who:
(i) are outside the United States on the effective date of this proclamation;
(ii) does not have an immigrant visa that is valid on the effective date of this proclamation; and
(iii) does not have an official travel document other than a visa (such as a letter of transportation, a proper boarding pass, or an advance entry clearance document) that is valid on the effective date of this proclamation or issued on any later date that permits him or her to travel to the United States and seek entry or admission.
(b) The suspension and limitation of entry pursuant to section 1 of this proclamation shall not apply to:
(i) any lawful permanent resident of the United States;
(ii) any alien seeking to enter the United States on an immigrant visa as a physician, nurse, or other health professional; to conduct medical or other research to combat the spread of COVID-19; or to perform work essential to combat, recover from, or alleviate the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, as determined by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees; and any spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21 of any alien accompanying or following to join the alien;
(iii) any alien applying for a visa to enter the United States pursuant to the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program;
(iv) any alien who is the spouse of a United States citizen;
(v) any alien who is under 21 years of age and who is the child of a United States citizen, or who is a prospective adoptee seeking to enter the United States pursuant to the IR-4 or IH-4 visa classifications;
(vi) any alien whose entry is most important to the law enforcement objectives of the United States, as determined by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees, based on a recommendation from the Attorney General or his or her designee;
(vii) any member of the Armed Forces of the United States and any spouse and children of a member of the Armed Forces of the United States;
(viii) any alien desiring to enter the United States pursuant to a special immigrant visa in the SI or SQ classification, subject to such conditions as the Secretary of State may impose, and any spouse and children of any such individual; or
(ix) any alien whose entry is in the national interest, as determined by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees.
Sec. 3. Implementation and enforcement. (a) The consular officer shall determine, in his or her discretion, whether an immigrant has established eligibility for an exception in section 2(b) of this proclamation. The Secretary of State shall implement this proclamation as it applies to visas in accordance with such procedures as the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, may establish in the discretion of the Secretary of State. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall implement this proclamation as it applies to the entry of aliens in accordance with such procedures as the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, may establish in the discretion of the Secretary of Homeland Security.
(b) An alien who circumvents the application of this proclamation by fraud, intentional misrepresentation of a material fact, or illegal entry shall be a priority for removal by the Department of Homeland Security.
(c) Nothing in this proclamation shall be construed to limit the ability of any person to claim asylum, refugee status, withholding of deportation, or protection under the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, in accordance with the laws of the United States.
Sec. 4. Termination. This proclamation shall expire 60 days after its effective date and may be continued as necessary. Whenever appropriate, but not later than 50 days after the effective date of this proclamation, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Labor, shall recommend whether I should continue or modify this proclamation.
Sec. 5. Effective date. This proclamation is effective at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on April 23, 2020.
Sec. 6. Additional measures. Within 30 days of the effective date of this proclamation, the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall review nonimmigrant programs and recommend to me other appropriate measures to stimulate the United States economy and ensure the prioritization, recruitment, and employment of United States workers.
Sec. 7. Severability. It is the policy of the United States to enforce this proclamation to the fullest extent possible to promote the interests of the United States. Accordingly:
(a) if any provision of this proclamation, or the application of any provision of this proclamation to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder of this proclamation and the application of its provisions to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby ; and
(b) if any provision of this proclamation, or the application of any provision to any person or circumstance, is held invalid due to the lack of certain procedural requirements, the relevant executive branch officials shall implement those procedural requirements to comply with existing requirements. law and any applicable court order.
Sec. 8. General provisions. (a) Nothing in this proclamation shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or,
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget related to budgetary, administrative or legislative proposals.
(b) This proclamation shall be implemented in accordance with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
(c) This proclamation is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand the twenty-second day of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand and twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fourth.
DONALD J. TRUMP
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