Immigration Law Review - UK and USA

  On March 30, 2026, USCIS placed broad holds on many pending applications (asylum, adjustments of status, visas, EADs, etc.) from high-risk countries for re-vetting. This was outlined in policy memos and a USCIS alertpage originally dated March 30, 2026. Around late April 2026 (page shows last reviewed/updated 04/30/2026, despite the 03/30 release date), USCIS added (without a major announcement) " applications associated with medical physicians " to the list of categories eligible for hold-lifting and continued processing. This exemption allows physicians (often on H-1B, J-1 waivers like Conrad 30, or green card paths) from affected countries to move forward with extensions, work permits, adjustments, etc., rather than remaining frozen. Why doctors? Strong advocacy from hospitals, medical associations (e.g., AMA), and concerns over exacerbating U.S. physician shortages (immigrant doctors make up ~25% of the workforce, higher in rural areas). The pause had already ca...

  Fidencio Hernandez Alvarez and Ismael Cerro Perez are Mexican nationals who entered the United States without inspection (Hernandez Alvarez in ~2019; Cerro Perez in ~2015). Both had resided in the U.S. interior for years, had U.S. citizen children, and minimal or no criminal history (only minor traffic issues for Cerro Perez). They were arrested by immigration authorities following routine traffic stops in September 2025. DHS placed them in removal proceedings, charging them as inadmissible under 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(6)(A)(i) (entry without inspection). They were detained without bond hearings under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A), based on a recent BIA interpretation ( Matter of Yajure Hurtado , 29 I. & N. Dec. 216 (BIA 2025)) treating unadmitted aliens in the interior as subject to mandatory no-bond detention. Each filed a habeas petition (28 U.S.C. § 2241) in the Southern District of Florida, arguing that discretionary detention under § 1226(a) applied instead, entitling them t...