Secretary Mayorkas has extended Sudan’s temporary protected status. According to a DHS notification, Sudan’s temporary protected status (TPS) will now last for an extra 18 months, from October 20, 2023, through April 19, 2025. For the same reason, DHS redesigned TPS for Sudan, enabling Sudanese nationals who were in the country on August 16, 2023, to be eligible for TPS because of dire and temporary circumstances in Sudan that make it impossible for them to return home safely.
This letter serves as a special student relief notice for F1 non-immigrant students who are citizens of Sudan. Consequently, the students retain their F1 status for the duration of the TPS designation term and are able to request employment authorization, longer hours during the school day, and a reduced course load.
Why to Extend Visa?
After conferring with interagency partners, Alejandro and Mayorkas decided to extend and redesignate TPS for this population after giving it much thought. In April 2023, violent conflicts broke out, killing hundreds of people and causing political unrest, acts of violence and human rights abuses against civilians, food and water shortages, intercommunal violence, and internal displacement.
Tens of thousands of people have reportedly evacuated their homes to adjacent towns and countries as a result of the most recent war, according to current reports. For now, long-term residents and citizens of Sudan are unable to safely return due to these conditions.
Since the military toppled the country’s government, Sudan has seen political unrest, ongoing hostilities, and deadly conflicts that have exacerbated the humanitarian catastrophe. Secretary Alejandro and Mayorkas stated that until conditions in their home country change, we will keep providing safety and protection to Sudanese nationals.
1,200 existing beneficiaries may continue to receive TPS benefits through April 19, 2025. Under Sudan’s reclassification, an estimated 2,750 additional individuals may be eligible for TPS if they continue to meet the requirements. This group includes citizens of Sudan and the United States as well as persons who are either non-immigrants or undocumented immigrants.
More Specifics
If current beneficiaries wish to prolong their temporary protected status, they must re-register as soon as possible. An employment authorization without a gap is necessary to guarantee they keep their TPS during the 60-day re-registration period from August 21, 2023, to October 20, 2023. The reason for this is that it’s possible that some re-registrants won’t get a new EAD before their current one expires.
Any EADs that have already been issued will automatically be renewed by USCIS through October 19, 2024. USCIS will continue to process applications that were filed under prior TPS designations and are currently pending. Sudanese nationals do not have to reapply for employment permission or for temporary protected status using Form I-821 or its companion Form I-765.
Under Sudan’s previous TPS designation, if USCIS approves a pending form I-821 or form I-765, it will grant the applicant TPS through April 19, 2025, and issue them with an EAD that is also valid until that date. First-time TPS candidates under the redesignation of Sudan must file Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status, during the initial registration period, which runs from August 21, 2023 through April 19, 2025.
TPS applications and form I-821 can be submitted online. Applicants may also apply for an EAD by sending in a completed Form I-765 application for employment authorization, either with their Form I-821 at the time of application or separately at a later date. Candidates may also electronically submit form I-765.
The Federal Register notice outlines the eligibility conditions, deadlines, and procedures needed for both new applicants to make the initial request under the redesignation and apply for an EAD, as well as for current beneficiaries to re-register and renew EADs.
DHS Notifies Two More Companies in the PRC That Use Forced Labor Enforcement
In an effort to put an end to forced labor in US supply chains and promote accountability for the ongoing crimes against humanity and genocide against Uyghurs and other religious and ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region, the DHS has announced new enforcement actions.
Beginning in August 2023, products made by Camel Group Co Limited, Chang Wang Biotech Group Company Limited, and its subsidiary Chenguang Biotechnology group, Yanchiko Limited, will not be allowed to enter the United States due to the company’s participation in business practices that target members of persecuted groups, such as Uyghur minorities in the PRC.
Camel Group Company Limited, one of the largest manufacturers of lead acid batteries in China, is based in Xiangyang City, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China.
Shenguang Biotech Group Company Limited produces vitamins, food additives, natural colors, and plant extracts. Its headquarters are in Hampden, Hebei Province. Chang Wang Biotechnology Group, Yanchi Co Limited, its subsidiary, is based in the Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region.
DHS will release the revised UFL entity list as an appendix to a Federal Register notice. The commitment of the Biden-Harris administration to make businesses answerable for flagrant abuses of human rights. In addition, forced labor practices are prohibited by these enforcement proceedings.
Mayorkas and Alejandro Take
This notification lists 24 corporations as the total number of entities assigned to them on the UFL entity list. Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of homeland security, claims. While enabling the conduct of lawful trade, DHS will continue to collaborate with all of our partners to keep commodities made in Xinjiang using forced labor out of US commerce.
President Biden signed the UFL into law in December 2021. This prohibits the importing of products manufactured in Xinjiang or by businesses listed as UFL entities. The commissioner of US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) finds strong evidence, absent the contrary, that the products are free from forced labor.
CBP began enforcing the UFL in June 2022. Since then, CBP has examined more than 4,600 cargo items valued at more than $1.64 billion, as well as the US Trade Representative and the US Departments of Labor and State.
Congress has mandated that DHS release the plan’s 2023 changes, so here they are. Consequently, to forbid the importation of goods that were mined, produced, or manufactured in the PRC using forced labor.
The DHS Office of Plans, Policy, and Strategy
The Department’s efforts to change importers’ conduct and punish violators for serious forced labor offenses. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and CBP are in charge of this. The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force Chair said that the group is still sending a strong message to companies. Therefore, forced labor will not be permitted in US supply chains. They also won’t hesitate to speak out against inhumane work violations. Our focus is on putting a stop to forced labor globally.
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