On June 26, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to lift part of the stay on some portions of the Trump Administration's travel ban.
The Executive Order (EO-2) banned entry of nationals of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen from the United States for at least 90 days and suspended the admission of all refugees for 120 days.
The Supreme Court did not fully reinstate the ban, but rather stated that it would not apply to foreign nationals who have a "credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States."
These relationships must be established before the issuance of this order. The same bar will apply to refugees, unless they can establish some connection to the United States.
According to the new court order, the ban will most likely not affect the following people:
- Individuals who have valid immigrant or non-immigrant visas issued on or before June 26, 2017;
- Individuals with visas coming to live or visit with family members;
- Workers who have accepted offers of employment with U.S. companies;
- Students admitted to a U.S. university; and
- Lecturers invited to address an American audience.
The ban went into effect on June 29, 2017, which gave the government a small amount of time to instruct relevant agencies directly involved with the implementation of the ban.
Given the quick time span, it is difficult to know how this ban will be enforced on a case-by-case basis.
For more background on EO-2, read the Feb. 15, 2017, blog post by Joseph Rivas.
