Immigration Blog (Page 4)

On October 1, 2026, new Medicaid and CHIP rules took hold for many lawfully present immigrants. Under the 2025 reconciliation law (H.R. 1, Public Law 119-21), Medicaid immigrant eligibility restrictions now limit federal funding for full coverage to U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, Cuban and Haitian entrants, and COFA migrants. KFF published its analysis of…

The U.S. Department of State has issued the Visa Bulletin October 2026, the first bulletin of fiscal year 2027. Most family-based dates moved forward or held steady, but several employment-based dates for most countries moved backward. Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP broke down the changes in its October 2026 visa bulletin analysis, noting that U.S. Citizenship…

As of October 4, 2026, Vega & Associates is tracking a confirmed USCIS fee increase tied to the H.R. 1 reconciliation law. On October 1, 2026, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a Federal Register notice that raises several H.R. 1 filing fees for fiscal year 2027, effective October 16, 2026. The agency’s own…

An immigration attorney for removal proceedings is the lawyer who defends you in immigration court, where a government attorney argues for your deportation and you fight for the right to stay. Facing removal proceedings feels like a countdown with no clear rules: a notice arrives, a hearing date gets set, and one missed deadline can…

Facing immigration court is scary. You may hear two terms that sound alike but lead to very different futures: voluntary removal and deportation. Voluntary removal, known in law as voluntary departure, lets you leave the United States on your own terms instead of under a formal order. This choice can protect your chance to come…

In August 2026, Sen. Mazie Hirono and a group of Senate colleagues asked the Department of Homeland Security to rethink a planned naturalization fee increase. They also want DHS to keep fee waivers in place for low-income citizenship applicants who qualify. The proposal, published by DHS in June 2026, would raise the current $760 Form…

As of August 24, 2026, green card applicants have about three weeks left to prepare for a major policy shift. USCIS’s new public charge rule takes effect September 18, 2026, replacing the framework used since 2022, Arias Villa Law reported this week. Officers can now weigh more factors, including a relative’s use of public benefits…

A single arrest years ago can still threaten your green card today. Many Houston families ask the same question: which criminal convictions inadmissible findings actually block a visa or a green card? The truth is, category matters more than how long ago the offense happened. Immigration officers screen every applicant against the USCIS Policy Manual…

The unlawful presence bar catches many people off guard. Leaving the United States after you build up unlawful presence can trigger this bar, and it can keep you out for three or ten years. The unlawful presence bar doesn’t punish you for staying; it punishes the act of leaving. Many applicants build up unlawful presence…

Green card application fees 2026 look different than they did last year. Congress passed H.R. 1, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) folded new charges into an already long list of costs. So if you filed a form before, expect a few surprises this time around. Before you send another form, it helps to…