US Implements New Immigration Policy Change Ahead of 2026 World Cup, Details Emerge
- The United States has announced new changes regarding the roles of USCIS, an
- The adjudicating agency has been given enforcement powers to effectively tackle people breaking the country’s immigration laws
- This comes as the U.S. readies to play host to countries from all over the world for the 2026 World Cup
The United States has heightened its immigration policies by revising the functions the roles of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), an immigration agency in the country.
With the new changes, the agency, which was previously an adjudication agency, has now been cloaked with enforcement powers.
Source: Getty Images
Shedding light on this new policy change, Akua Aboagye, a U.S.-based immigration lawyer, in a video on X, explained that the new law came into full effect on October 6.
She indicated that the agency was set up primarily to make decisions on immigration applications such as permanent residency, work permits, citizenship, and visas.
With this new rule, she disclosed that USCIS has gained enforcement powers and can now work with agents who are empowered to investigate, arrest, and present for prosecution people who violate immigration laws.
"USCIS, which is an adjudications agency, now has enforcement powers. They can arrest, deport, prosecute, investigate, and do a bunch of other things."
"These special agents by USCIS, they can arrest, they can carry firearms, they can execute searches, search warrants, arrest warrants, and other powers. That's standard for federal law enforcement. These powers were traditionally reserved for CBP (Customs and Border Protection) and ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement)."
Akua Aboagye raised concerns that the new rule could bring discomfort, as people who may have plans to apply for immigration benefits might harbour some fear over the possibility that the agency meant to review their applications might end up arresting them.
"But now USCIS, which was purely an adjudications agency, has been granted enforcement powers. And that is already in effect from Monday. You'll see them actively taking part in law enforcement at USCIS. Obviously, this is going to blur the line between adjudicating, because an agency that's supposed to be adjudicating my green card application, work permit application, if I come to you to adjudicate and now you start arresting me, then that's a problem because that could dissuade or discourage people from submitting affirmative applications."
The new change comes as the U.S. readies to host countries from all over the world for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Already, the U.S. announced in June this year that it had placed travel bans on twelve countries.
The countries included Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
US reverses visa restrictions on Ghana
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has confirmed that the U.S. has reversed the visa restrictions imposed on Ghana.
The Minister, in a statement, indicated that Ghanaians are now eligible for five-year multiple-entry visas.
This comes after the U.S. imposed visa restrictions on Ghana and several other countries in July this year, limiting affected citizens to three-month, single-entry visas.
Source: YEN.com.gh
