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There is a better way forward. We deserve an immigration system that dynamically calibrates to workforce needs, strengthens American competitiveness, and ensures that critical industries can meet consumer demand. Here is how: www.aila.org/library/a-be...

A Better Way on Immigration: Principles for America’s Future

Informed by the experience of the more than 18,000 immigration attorneys who are members of AILA, this document outlines five core principles to restore trust, strengthen the rule of law, and build a ...

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Top Scientists Lead Exodus of Chinese Academics From U.S.

H1-B restrictions are hampering our competitiveness in AI and boosting China. International students make up 75–80% of full-time grad students in AI-related fields at US universities. We train them here, then slam the door, incentivizing them to go elsewhere.

insidehighered.com

Funding uncertainty and heightened scrutiny of China are some of the factors prompting thousands of Chinese researchers to leave the U.S.

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Trump's EO reveals employers paid the $100k fee only about 700 times and consular processing for new H-1B workers is down 97%. The admin's restrictions on employer access to foreign-born workers is building a wall that's literally keeping talent out.

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Trump Enacts New Immigration Policies Against H-1B Visa Holders

Trump has renewed his $100k fee on new H-1B workers & ordered agencies to scrutinize H-1B petitions more heavily. We expect a wave of evidence demands and denials and these policies are already making America less competitive on the world stage.

forbes.com

The administration enacted additional policies to restrict businesses from hiring skilled foreign nationals and renewed the $100,000 entry fee blocked in court.

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Ben Johnson @ailaexecdir.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

ICE is operating w/ unprecedented resources, expanded authority & a political mandate that prioritizes aggressive enforcement over transparency & accountability. If Congress is serious about restoring public trust, thorough oversight of ICE's conduct & accountability systems should be top priority.

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Ben Johnson @ailaexecdir.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

An ICE officer's shooting of Wilber Rafael Garces Perez in Austin is the latest in a disturbing pattern of enforcement actions resulting in serious injury & death: at least 22 people shot by on-duty ICE & CBP agents during the second Trump Administration, 8 fatally.

texastribune.org

Report: Immigration officer shoots, injures man in Austin

The reported shooting in Austin came more than two months after an ICE officer fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston.

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Immigration lawyers don't write asylum law. Congress does. They don't decide cases. Judges do. Their job is making sure people get the hearing the law promises.

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The hypocrisy is staggering: the US sent the military after Maduro for narcoterrorism, calls gang violence and state collapse in Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti & Nicaragua a "grave hemispheric security threat" then insists asylum claims from those exact conditions are inherently fake.

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An asylum claim isn't meritless or fraudulent because the government doesn't like it. Fraud requires knowing deception, not an adverse ruling, not trauma-related inconsistencies, not translation gaps, not missing evidence from a collapsing state.

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DHS routed asylum cases away from trained asylum officers into overwhelmed immigration courts, pushed for cases to get dismissed before people could present evidence, and arrested people outside courtrooms after they showed up for required hearings.

Policy Brief: Modernizing America’s Asylum System

The changes the Administration has made to the U.S. asylum system have effectively closed all access to asylum abroad, at the border, and in the interior of the U.S. This brief explores these changes ...

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DHS fired immigration judges, pressured their new hires to deny relief faster, restricted judicial discretion, and starved the system of resources (then poured money into detention and mass deportation instead of fixing adjudication).

Policy Brief: America Needs Independent, Fair, and Efficient Immigration Courts

The Administration has implemented many changes to the immigration court system that undermines its ability to deliver fair outcomes consistent with the law. This brief explores these changes and prov...

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We will fiercely defend lawyers who fulfill their ethical obligation to represent their clients, challenge unlawful government action, and insist that constitutional protections mean something in practice.

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DHS purposely broke the asylum system and now has the audacity to blame immigration lawyers & AILA for the wreckage. AILA won’t stand for the false claims, rather, we stand for the highest standards of professional responsibility.

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With no path to lawful status, TPS holders are unable to plan for the future. This Administration uses that uncertainty as a weapon to harm & undermine peoples’ lives & livelihoods. We must give certainty & stability to immigrants, their employers & their communities.

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Salvadorans have built lives here, worked, started families, gone to school. Even with this extension, there’s no certainty in what tomorrow may bring. This isn’t how our immigration laws should work. That’s why AILA built out our Better Way framework.

A Better Way on Immigration: Principles for America’s Future

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AILA's Immigration Lawyer Search

Salvadoran TPS holders are encouraged to consult with a qualified immigration attorney to understand their options and prepare for any future changes. ailalawyer.com

ailalawyer.com

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Failing to make a timely decision on TPS designations is a cruel pattern that follows the Administration’s failure to make a timely decision for Nicaragua, Honduras, S. Sudan, and Ethiopia.

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Ben Johnson @ailaexecdir.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

DHS just pushed the decision down the road to an uncertain date. Congress was clear that if DHS fails to make a designation, TPS should be extended to a minimum of 6 months, but the Admin has repeatedly shown that what the law states isn’t necessarily what they will pursue.

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The proposed pay-to-play fees do not make our country great, but signal to the world that the United States is closing its doors to scientists, doctors, engineers, and entrepreneurs who help build companies, expand research, and strengthen communities.

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America’s immigration system should be guided by transparency, fairness, and clear rules. Read AILA’s policy framework to create real change that strengthens security, supports economic growth, and restores trust in the rule of law.

A Better Way on Immigration: Principles for America’s Future

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We’ve seen this before. When families fear that using health care, nutrition assistance, housing help, or other support could jeopardize a loved one’s immigration future, many stop seeking help they are legally entitled to receive. That’s bad policy and bad governance.

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This 99-page guidance marks a dangerous break from decades of precedent. For the first time, DHS could weigh a U.S. citizen child’s or family member’s use of health or social services against a green card applicant, even when the applicant never used those benefits.

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American Immigration Council @immcouncil.org · 18/08/2026

USCIS’s new public charge guidance is a massive step backward. A policy that discourages families from accessing health care, food assistance, or education support undermines public health, family stability, and long-term economic resilience.

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Reposted by Ben Johnson

The U.S. wants high-skilled immigrants to treat patients, drive innovation, conduct research... But what happens when those workers want to build a more permanent life in the U.S.? They face increased uncertainty and mounting obstacles. (1/7) www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/press-releas...

americanimmigrationcouncil.org

New Data: Workers Seeking Green Cards Face Uncertain Path

New data shows that workers seeking employment-based green cards are facing greater uncertainty and mounting obstacles.

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This issue could land in the Supreme Court. The stakes could not be higher. A functioning immigration system requires accountability, consistency, and adherence to the rule of law. We can uphold both security and due process. AILA outlines how: www.aila.org/library/a-be...

A Better Way on Immigration: Principles for America’s Future

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Behind every case is a person: parents separated from children, workers detained after years of building lives here, and families left searching for answers. Due process and fundamental fairness are being thrown out the window.

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Federal judges across the country have described an unprecedented strain on the judicial system. Hundreds of judges have concluded the policy is unlawful, while courts race to hear cases before people are transferred or deported.

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More than a year ago, ICE and DOJ set a new mandatory detention policy that says immigration judges can no longer release people from detention while they wait for their cases to be heard. Now ICE is detaining thousands more people, many with jobs and families.

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‘We’ve never seen anything like this’: ICE’s detention crackdown swamps the courts

Under a new policy, ICE is detaining massive numbers of people despite federal courts having ruled over 16,000 times that ICE is violating the law. ICE is separating families and flooding courts with emergency cases.

politico.com

Families, lawyers and judges describe a year of frantic emergency cases after ICE began detaining people who have lived in the U.S. for years.

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This is not how you protect due process, much less children caught in high-stakes court proceedings. If the goal is ensuring children receive quality representation, the answer is to strengthen support for legal service providers with a proven track record, not to cut a big check to a MAGA friend.

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Children facing deportation deserve experienced counsel focused on their clients’ best interests, not lawyers operating under a system clouded by questions about political connections, qualifications, and government interference.

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Small Texas law firm set to receive $150M to represent unaccompanied migrant children

Representing children in immigration proceedings requires deep expertise and zealous advocacy. Yet reports indicate the firm selected to receive $150M has 24 attorneys and only two specialize in immigration law.

npr.org

The firm, Houston-based Burke Law Group has only two attorneys who specialize in immigration and asylum cases. Two of its founders have ties to the Trump administration.

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Now, after withholding millions in payments to the children’s lawyers, the administration is replacing that system with a $150 million contract awarded to a firm with close ties to Trump officials and barely any qualifications in immigration law.

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Unaccompanied migrant children at risk of losing legal representation

A nationwide network of legal providers represented more than 20,000 unaccompanied children in immigration court cases. The administration has undermined their right to legal representation by cutting off funding and demanding confidential client information.

pbs.org

Thousands of unaccompanied migrant children could lose legal representation, now that a federal contract with legal aid groups representing the minors is expiring. That contract, held by the non-profi...

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The U.S. benefits when laws facilitate cross-border travel by business leaders, families, and other lawful travelers. We need immigration policies that are effective, fair, and accessible, not barriers that make crossing borders more difficult for those who follow the rules.

A Better Way on Immigration: Principles for America’s Future

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U.S. will make visa bond program permanent, affecting mostly African countries

The numbers speak for themselves: Since the pilot program began last August, there was an 83% decline in the number of business and tourist visas issued to citizens of the 50 countries, mainly in Africa, that the visa bond applies to.

pbs.org

A draft notice published Friday in the Federal Register says a nearly year-long review “provided sufficient data” to suggest the bond program effectively enforces compliance with visa conditions, and ...

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This policy falls into a broader trend by the Administration of erecting more obstacles to lawful immigration and making it more expensive. With this price tag on entry, opportunity is reserved for the wealthy while countless qualified travelers are shut out.

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Ben Johnson @ailaexecdir.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

The State Department has made its visa bond program permanent, requiring some business and tourist B-1 & B-2 visitors to put down up to $20,000 before they can travel to the U.S. For many families, entrepreneurs, and professionals, it's an insurmountable financial barrier.

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This endorsement reflects AILA’s vision to build an immigration system that is fair, functional, humane, and rooted in opportunity. America is strongest when laws meet reality and are guided by our shared values. Read our Principles for America’s Future: www.aila.org/library/a-be...

A Better Way on Immigration: Principles for America’s Future

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Ben Johnson @ailaexecdir.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

The legislation also tackles notario fraud, strengthens accountability, and helps protect vulnerable immigrants seeking lawful status. These are solutions that support due process, uphold the rule of law, and foster trust in our immigration system.

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Ben Johnson @ailaexecdir.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

AILA is proud to endorse Sen. Cortez Masto’s Fairness for Immigrant Families Act, a commonsense step toward creating lawful pathways, protecting families, increasing transparency, and building a fairer immigration system. @cortezmasto.senate.gov

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Ben Johnson @ailaexecdir.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

This is one more nail the Administration has hammered into the coffin of the U.S. asylum system that has included closing off the border to asylum seekers, arresting them at court hearings, and sending them to dangerous, conflict-ridden countries where they’ve never lived or even set foot.

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Ben Johnson @ailaexecdir.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

These ICE enforcement actions at airports highlight the urgent need for immigration policies that strengthen security and restore public trust. Read AILA's Principles for America’s Future, and more AILA resources on airport detentions to come.