For more than two decades, the Board of Immigration Appeals has treated some vacated criminal convictions as continuing to exist for immigration purposes. Under Matter of Pickering, 23 I&N Dec. 621 (BIA 2003), the critical question was why the
Cyrus D. Mehta & Partners PLLC
Cyrus D. Mehta & Partners PLLC is a New York City-based law firm with a global reach specializing in U.S. immigration and nationality law. The firm represents both corporate and individual clients in a wide range of immigration matters, including business immigration, labor certifications, removal defense, waivers, federal court litigation, citizenship, and asylum. It provides comprehensive legal services addressing complex and routine immigration issues, serving the needs of large corporations as well as individuals. The firm publishes the Insightful Immigration Blog, which offers detailed analysis and commentary on contemporary immigration law developments and policy changes.
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Latest from Cyrus D. Mehta & Partners PLLC
Court Strikes Down 75-Country Immigrant-Visa Ban as Unlawful Nationality Discrimination
By Cyrus Mehta and Damira Zhanatova*
On January 14, 2026, the Department of State announced that, effective January 21, 2026, it was pausing immigrant visa issuance to nationals of 75 countries. The Department publicly justified the policy on the ground…
BIA Overrules Arrabally: Advance-Parole Travel Can Trigger the Unlawful-Presence Bar
By Cyrus Mehta, Damira Zhanatova and Kaitlyn Box
On August 13, 2026, the Board of Immigration Appeals issued Matter of DelCarmen-Lara, 29 I&N Dec. 830 (BIA 2026), a decision that immediately changes how practitioners and noncitizens should evaluate advance-parole…
The 2026 Public Charge Rule: A New Tool to Restrict Legal Immigration
By Cyrus Mehta and Damira Zhanatova*
Starting September 18, 2026, DHS will significantly change how public charge determinations are made. The final rule rescinds the 2022 Biden-era public charge regulations at 8 C.F.R. §§ 212.20-212.23 and revises the public-charge-bond provisions…
Trump’s Latest Attack on Birthright Citizenship Is Still Blatantly Unconstitutional
By Cyrus Mehta
Following defeat in the Supreme Court in Trump v. Barbara on constitutional grounds of a presidential order limiting birthright citizenship, President Trump signed two new executive orders on August 6, 2026, to limit birthright citizenship for those he deems not…
ICE Targets Noncitizens at Domestic Airports Even When They Are Authorized to Remain
By Cyrus D. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box*
In recent weeks, reports have abounded of increased ICE arrests at domestic airports. Arrests occurred at airports in at least 15 different states, which some of the impacted noncitizens traveling only on domestic…
Beyond Loper Bright: Rodriguez v. Ortega and the Fifth Amendment Limit on Mandatory Immigration Detention
By Cyrus D. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box*
In its June 28, 2024 decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, the Supreme Court abolished the long-standing Chevron doctrine. Under this doctrine, courts were required to defer to the government agency’s…
H-1B for Entrepreneurs: Can You Transfer Your H-1B to Your Own Startup?
By Cyrus Mehta and Damira Zhanatova*
For years, many H-1B professionals treated a layoff as an immigration emergency and entrepreneurship as something they had to postpone. The January 17, 2025 H-1B modernization rule changes that somewhat. It gives H-1B workers…
Trump v. Barbara: How the Supreme Court Dodged a Bullet on Birthright Citizenship
By Cyrus D. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box
The Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. Barbara did far more than invalidate an overreaching executive order – it prevented a wholesale destabilization of American citizenship that could have echoed backward through generations.…