New Immigration Rules in 2024

Given the ever-changing political landscape in the United States, many people easily become confused about new immigration regulations, especially during a year that marks a presidential election that might alter the landscape even more. It’s impossible to cover every change that’s happened so far this year. Instead, this guide covers some of the most important changes and their impact on legal proceedings.

Unlawful Entry

In 2024, President Joe Biden used executive orders to prevent anyone who crossed the border in the South through unlawful means from receiving asylum status. He also guaranteed that any visa-granted corporate CEO or government officials in other countries who profited from unlawful migration would have their visas revoked permanently. Additionally, he announced the expansion of prosecution options against anyone who violates U.S. immigration laws.

Temporary Residency

The Department of Homeland Security received approval for a new temporary residency process set to start in August. Known as temporary permission to remain in place (i.e., Parole in Place), it’s designed to keep families together by allowing specific noncitizen children younger than 21 and spouses married to a citizen who lived within the U.S. for a decade or longer to apply for green cards and eventually permanent residency without first leaving the country. Undocumented children and spouses who have no criminal record and pose no threat receive temporary legal status and continue to live, study and work in the country for three years to give them enough time to apply for residency and wait for their application review.

Business

The Administration also announced DACA recipients and other types of Dreamers who received a degree from a U.S. higher education institution and employment in their field inside the U.S. would enjoy a faster work visa process. Also, an Obama period regulation known as the International Entrepreneur Rule, suspended during the Trump era and then restored under Biden, would allow legal temporary and undocumented noncitizen entrepreneurs currently living in or hoping to relocate to the U.S. to pursue the growth of a business that provides a “significant public benefit” (i.e., grow the business rapidly and create jobs).

Legal Assistance

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services recently implemented policy changes that redefine stateless people and allow them to seek and receive temporary discretionary relief (i.e., action deferral or Parole in Place) while seeking permanent residency status. Stateless individuals are people who don’t have proper documentation like a valid birth certificate, ID or passport or a country to return to if given a deportation order, such as asylum seekers who fled a country that no longer exists and undocumented persons who have no birth certificate in any country or a birth certificate with invalid information. These changes allow stateless people and immigration lawyers to pursue new forms of assistance.

Final Conclusions

These and other immigration rules announced or implemented in 2024 provide a stark reminder that the United States is the home of millions of noncitizen immigrants who need help navigating the twists and turns of the immigration systems in place. At the end of June, the Supreme Court compounded this problem by overturning the Chevron doctrine that allowed the USCIS and other federal agencies to “interpret and implement” relevant laws. Any decisions by agencies now fall under greater judicial scrutiny. The SCOTUS ruling even allows courts to reverse previous rulings and forces Congress to create clearer rules. This act could cause future confusion and result in legal arguments that favor challenges to immigration law interpretations made by DHS and USCIS personnel. It could also hobble the executive branch and prevent future executive actions from leading to new rules.