Update: The United States District Court for the Western District of Washington issued a temporary restraining order against the entry restrictions in the Executive Order that is in effect as of February 5, 2017. Please follow our website for further updates.

On February 1, 2017, the Counsel to the President, Donald F. McGahn II, issued a Memorandum to the then-Acting Secretary of State, the Acting Attorney General, and the Secretary of Homeland Security titled "Authoritative Guidance on Executive Order Entitled 'Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States' (Jan. 27, 2017)."[1] The Memorandum concerns the enforcement of President Donald Trump's recent Executive Order suspending entry for aliens from seven specified countries [PDF version].

The Memorandum covers to sections 3(c) and 3(e) of the Executive Order. Section 3(c) suspends immigration from the seven countries specified in section 217(a)(12) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) for 90 days, while section 3(e) directs the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to submit to the President a list of countries recommended for similar entry prohibitions that do not provide adequate information needed to adjudicate visas, admissions, or other benefits under the INA. Specifically, the Memorandum clarifies to the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Homeland Security that the Executive Order does not apply to lawful permanent residents of the United States (LPRs).

The Executive Order was initially interpreted as applying to LPRs. After several federal district courts stayed the enforcement of the Executive Order against LPRs, the DHS issued guidance that the entry of LPRs from the restricted countries would generally be found to be in the national interest, which would allow entry under the Executive Order. The new guidance from the White House means that the Executive Order will not apply to LPRs. This means that going forward, LPRs from restricted countries will not require waivers or exemptions under the EO in order to enter the United States. Because many of the early court rulings against the EO were based on its application to LPRs, the White House's new position may serve to preempt much of the litigation on this issue.

Please visit the nyc immigration lawyers website for further information. The Law Offices of Grinberg & Segal, PLLC focuses vast segment of its practice on immigration law. This steadfast dedication has resulted in thousands of immigrants throughout the United States.

1. AILA Doc. No. 17020300 (Posted Feb. 3, 2017)

Lawyer website: http://myattorneyusa.com

Legal Articles Additional Disclaimer

Lawyer.com is not a law firm and does not offer legal advice. Content posted on Lawyer.com is the sole responsibility of the person from whom such content originated and is not reviewed or commented on by Lawyer.com. The application of law to any set of facts is a highly specialized skill, practiced by lawyers and often dependent on jurisdiction. Content on the site of a legal nature may or may not be accurate for a particular state or jurisdiction and may largely depend on specific circumstances surrounding individual cases, which may or may not be consistent with your circumstances or may no longer be up-to-date to the extent that laws have changed since posting. Legal articles therefore are for review as general research and for use in helping to gauge a lawyer's expertise on a matter. If you are seeking specific legal advice, Lawyer.com recommends that you contact a lawyer to review your specific issues. See Lawyer.com's full Terms of Use for more information.