Executive Order Suspends Entry of Immigrants Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic

23 April 2020

On Monday, April 20th, President Trump announced via Twitter:

“In light of the attack from the Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our GREAT American Citizens, I will be signing an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States!”

Yesterday, April 22nd, the White House released the Executive Order with the details of who will be impacted. And as usual, the exemptions mostly nullify the stated purpose of the Order, making this just another propaganda move by the President.

Here are the key takeaways:

1. The Executive Order suspends entry only to people outside the United States who are coming to the U.S. as a Permanent Resident, and they have not previously lived in the U.S. as permanent residents.

The order will be in effect for 60 days.

The order does not apply to immigrants in the U.S. who are applying for adjustment of status. Those applications will be processed.

2. The Executive Order does not impact nonimmigrants, or temporary visa holders, from entering the United States. This includes anyone that has a temporary worker visa, family based nonimmigrant visa, visitor visa, etc.

3. The Executive Order exempts many immigrant categories, including:

1. Lawful permanent residents (LPR);
2. Individuals and their spouses or children seeking to enter the U.S. on an immigrant visa as a physician, nurse, or other healthcare professional to perform work essential to combatting, recovering from, or otherwise alleviating the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak;
3. Individuals applying for a visa to enter the U.S. pursuant to the EB-5 immigrant investor visa program;
4. Spouses of U.S. citizens;
5. Children of U.S. citizens under the age of 21 and prospective adoptees seeking to enter on an IR-4 or IH-4 visa;
6. Individuals who would further important U.S. law enforcement objectives;
7. Members of the U.S. Armed Forces and their spouses and children
8. Individuals and their spouses or children eligible for Special Immigrant Visas as an Afghan or Iraqi translator/interpreter or U.S. Government Employee (SI or SQ classification); and,
9. Individuals whose entry would be in the national interest.

4. For clarity, the Executive Order becomes effective on Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 11:59 PM (ET), and suspends the entry of any person seeking to enter the U.S. as a permanent resident, and that person:

● Is outside the United States on the effective date of the proclamation;
● Does not have a valid immigrant visa on the effective date; and
● Does not have a valid official travel document on the effective date, or issued on any date thereafter that permits travel to the United States to seek entry or admission.