Court Enjoins Administration’s H-1B Travel Ban

Dallas immigration lawyers – Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, P.C.

Dallas, TX (Law Firm Newswire) November 24, 2020 – On October 1, 2020, a federal judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted a preliminary injunction that stops the Trump Administration from enforcing a temporary ban on the issuance of H-1B visas and three other categories of nonimmigrant visas, as well as admission of persons already holding those visas to the United States.

Judge Jeffrey S. White’s ruling in National Association of Manufacturers et al. v. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) et al. enjoins the Department of State and DHS from implementing Section 2 of Presidential Proclamation 10052 (PP10052). Trump’s June 22, 2020 proclamation suspended the entry of foreign nationals on H-1B, H-2B, L-1 and some J-1 temporary visas.

Judge White found that the president exceeded his authority when issuing the proclamation as the nonimmigrant visa ban is based on domestic economic policy. The Trump Administration has argued that reducing the entry of foreign nationals will protect the employment prospects of U.S. citizens during economic recovery amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“The district court properly hung its hat on the PP10052’s effort to replace portions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) addressing U.S. worker protections with its own interpretation of what the President wants the law to be, consistent with the Administration’s efforts to curtail immigration to the U.S. in all forms,” commented Stewart Rabinowitz of the Dallas and Frisco law firm of Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, P.C. “The court went on to say that PP10052 lacked a tie in to national security and foreign relations, and the conduct of foreign states, connections which prior PPs had. The injunction, while good news for U.S. employers who need a small but valued group of highly skilled foreign talent, is limited to classes of persons who are named plaintiffs.”

The injunction applies only to the National Association of Manufacturers, the Chamber of Commerce of the United States, the National Retail Federation, Technet, Intrax, Inc. and the associated members of those groups. While the suit is not a class action, the organizations’ named Plaintiffs are made up of hundreds and thousands of American businesses. The injunction also rested on contradictory findings in PP10052.

The preliminary injunction will remain in effect while the case is being litigated or pending any appeals.