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U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced it has introduced a new push notification feature in the Trusted Traveler Programs (TTP) mobile app, enabling users to receive real-time status updates.
Key Points:
Additional Information: CBP operates four Trusted Traveler Programs that provide expedited entry into the U.S. each year. The TTP mobile app is available on Google Play and the Apple App Store.
This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.
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Today, the Department of Homeland Security published a Federal Register Notice (FRN) terminating the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation of Somalia, effective March 17, 2026.
Additional Information: DHS previously extended and redesignated Somalia for TPS for 18 months, from Sept. 18, 2024, through March 17, 2026.
BAL will continue to monitor related developments and provide updates.
The U.S. State Department has released the February 2026 Visa Bulletin. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced filings for employment-based visa preference categories must use the Dates for Filing chart in the February Bulletin, which shows movement only in the EB-3 category, advancing three months for all countries except China and India.
The Dates for Filing chart indicates who is eligible to submit their application and supporting documents for further processing, even if the green card itself is not available. Review BAL’s employer’s guide to reading the Visa Bulletin to better understand this monthly report.
Dates for Filing chart category movement:
EB-1 visa
EB-2 visa
EB-3 visa
EB-5 visa (unreserved)
Dates for Filing Chart for Employment-Based Visa Applications
Additional Information: Final Action Dates for the February Visa Bulletin can be found here.
As of Jan. 8, the State Department has updated its list of required ports of entry under the Temporary Final Rule Visa Bond Pilot Program, authorized by Section 221(g)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, adding six new ports of entry.
Additional Information: The launch of the visa bond pilot program was announced in August. The pilot will run for 12 months from Aug. 20, 2025, until Aug. 5, 2026. More details on the bond payment process, required ports of entry, visa bond compliance and visa bond breach can be found here. During the pilot, there will not be a waiver application process.
The Department of Homeland Security has scheduled a final rule to be published in the Federal Register on Jan. 12, 2026, that increases premium processing fees charged by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, effective March 1, 2026.
Additional Information: USCIS has implemented updated regular processing filing fees for certain immigration benefit requests, effective Jan. 1, 2026.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published an update on Jan. 2, 2026, informing E-Verify employers that they “now have until Jan. 22, 2026, to download records for E-Verify cases last updated on or before Dec. 31, 2015.”
Additional Information: Download instructions for retaining E-Verify records can be found here.
The Department of Labor posted the latest processing times for permanent labor certification (PERM) and prevailing wage determination (PWD) requests.
PERM Processing Times: As of Jan. 5, the department is adjudicating PERM applications filed in August 2024 and earlier and reviewing appeals for reconsideration filed in August 2025 and earlier.
These dates reflect the month and year in which cases were filed and are currently being adjudicated. The Reconsideration Request date for reviewing appeals reflects the month and year in which cases that are currently being reviewed were appealed. For various reasons, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) may be completing the processing of applications filed prior to the month posted.
Average Number of Days to Process PERM Applications
This date reflects the amount of time to process applications. Actual processing times for each employer’s PERM application may vary from the average depending on material facts and individual circumstances of the case. The OFLC is reporting the average processing time for all PERM applications for the most recent month.
PWD Processing Times: As of Jan. 5, the National Prevailing Wage Center is processing PWD requests filed in August 2025 for H-1B and PERM OEWS* cases. For H-1B and PERM Non-OEWS* cases, the department was processing requests filed in June 2025 and earlier.
*OEWS and Non-OEWS are the sources used for determining the prevailing wage for a job. OEWS stands for Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Non-OEWS refers to other sources used for prevailing wage determinations, such as collective bargaining agreements or private wage surveys.
Redeterminations were being considered on appeals filed in August 2025 and earlier for H-1B cases and September 2025 and earlier for PERM cases.
Center Director Reviews were being conducted for PERM cases filed in October 2025 and earlier.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has posted updates regarding Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designations for Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua and South Sudan in response to court orders in ongoing litigation.
Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua
South Sudan
Because litigation is ongoing in the above matters, employers and foreign nationals should continue to check the USCIS TPS page for further government guidance. BAL will continue to monitor related developments and provide updates.
As of Jan. 6, the State Department has updated its list of countries subject to visa bond requirements under the Temporary Final Rule Visa Bond Pilot Program, authorized by the Immigration and Nationality Act Section 221(g)(3). In addition to the 13 countries identified in its Dec. 17 update, the State Department has expanded the list to include 25 more countries.
H-2B visa filing and supplemental visa updates
On Dec. 31, 2025, the Department of Labor announced that it “will make an additional 35,000 H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker visas available for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026, on top of the congressionally mandated 66,000 H-2B visas that are available each fiscal year.”
The announcement states that the additional H-2B visas, including any eligibility criteria and filing requirements, are expected to be released “in the coming weeks” following the upcoming publication of a temporary final rule in the Federal Register.
The filing window to submit an H-2B Application for Temporary Employment Certification requesting work start dates of April 1, 2026, or later was Jan. 1-3, 2026.
On Jan. 5, 2026, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification announced publication of the list of randomized H-2B visa applications submitted during the filing window, which included assignment group(s) for 10,062 H-2B applications covering 162,603 positions with the April 1, 2026, work start date.
According to the announcement, on Jan. 4, 2026, OFLC provided written notice to each employer (and the employer’s authorized attorney or agent) with information regarding their respective assignment groups.
H-2B visa processing times updates
Following are the H-2B visa processing times updated as of close of business on Jan. 3, 2026.
Update on applications received for requested date of need from Oct. 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026 (FY 2026 first half of the visa cap):
DOL reported that as of Jan. 3, a total of 5,002 cases were issued Final Decisions. Certified positions for this period were allocated for 94,534 workers.
Update on applications received for requested date of need from April 1, 2026 (FY 2026 second half of the visa cap):
Although no final decisions and certified positions have yet been issued, DOL does provide a numerical breakdown of the assignment groups with total cases submitted and positions requested during the Jan. 1-3 filing window.
H-2B Prevailing Wage Determination (PWD) processing times:
As of Jan. 3, the number of remaining requests for H-2B visa PWD applications received in November 2025 was 4,054. The number of remaining requests for October was 32 and for September was 34. These numbers are the same as posted by DOL as of Dec. 1, 2025, reflecting little or no movement month-over-month.
Learn more about H-2B visas and how BAL can help H-2B employers with hiring seasonal workers here.