News Release from Jewell Stewart & Pratt – February 4, 2017 On February 3, 2017, the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting the federal government from enforcing the travel ban in the January 27, 2017 Executive Order (EO) on a nationwide basis. All U.S. land and air ports of entry are prohibited from enforcing these portions of the EO until further ordered from the court.
- Travel & Admission Procedures: Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Field Offices have been instructed to immediately resume inspection of travelers under standard policies and procedures. All airlines and terminal operators have been notified to permit boarding of all passengers without regard to nationality. The Department of Homeland security also issued a statement of compliance with the court order.
- Cancelled Visas: The American Immigration Lawyers Association has confirmed with CBP that individuals who arrived last weekend and had their visas physically cancelled as a result of the EO will not need to reapply for a new visa and absent any other admissibility issues will receive an I-193 waiver (Application for Waiver of Passport and/or Visa) upon arrival to the U.S. For those traveling by air, airlines have been instructed to contact CBP to receive authorization to permit boarding.
- Revoked Visas: The Department of State has confirmed that assuming there were no other issues in the case, provisionally revoked visas have been reversed and are valid again. The Department of State has not indicated if or when visa processing at embassies and consulates worldwide will resume.
Finally, the U.S. Department of Justice indicated that it intends to appeal the court’s order. Therefore, the lifting of the travel ban may change at any time.
© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2017