Recently, the Supreme Court upheld president Trumps travel ban which led to a lot of questions being raised on changes that have been implemented. There have been no changes. The court ruling was a clear way of saying that the travel restrictions that have been in place since December when the high court lifted the order by the judge in Hawaii (order not to enforce the travel ban) are now fully enforceable. The countries that have been affected include Yemen, Libya, Iran, Somalia, Syria, North Korea, and Venezuela.
As U.S immigration attorneys, we believe that the travel ban in unconstitutional and discriminatory. Majority of the Supreme Court judges said it isn’t directed at specific individuals, given that North Korea and Venezuela were included in the list of banned countries. Fact is, potential travelers to the United States from those two countries are insignificant. In Venezuela’s case, the order applies to only a handful of officials and their families. For North Koreans, it has little practical effect since their government allows few citizens to travel to the United States.
The United States government says it has a comprehensive system for issuing what are known as waivers to people from the affected countries that need visas. It has described the criteria for waivers in broad terms, based on whether denying entry to an applicant would cause undue hardship, whether the applicant represents a security threat and whether entry would be in the national interest. The granting of waivers, the order said, is left to the discretion of consular officers responsible for reviewing applications.
Citizens of the banned countries who have some connection to the U.S. can request a waiver to travel to the U.S. for medical treatment, to visit a close family member, or for business or educational obligations. According to the Reuters news agency, of more than 8,400 applicants between December 8, 2017, and January 8, 2018, only 128 travelers from the banned countries qualified for and were granted a waiver.
At Goldberg & associates, we have dedicated our time and efforts towards fighting for the rights of immigrants. We make it our mission to reunite families separated by the travel ban. We are passionate about this, and that’s why we have opened an office near the Djibouti embassy so that we can see the situation on the ground and come up with the best solution to their cases. It is extremely painful seeing families torn apart, and children separated from their parents. If you have a relative in any of the banned countries and you are looking for a means for them to come to the United States, come to us so that we can work together to make it happen!
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