Immigration Enforcement and the Gulf Coast Employer: Preparing and Reviewing Immigration Files at Year-End
Fall on the Gulf Coast means oyster season and Friday Night Lights football, while still keeping an eye on potential hurricanes. As we approach the end of the year, many employers see September and early October as peak hiring season ahead of Q4 and year-end wrap up. Corporate immigration attorneys are actively monitoring changes to immigration practice and developing ideas to prepare for the end of the year. Proactive employers can ensure their immigration files are up to date, ready for inspection, and ready for renewal if necessary.
I-864: New Form and 30-Day Grace Period
If employers are submitting an application requiring an affidavit of support under Section 213 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, please note that DHS changed its Form I-864 on August 31, 2026. However, USCIS announced a 30-day grace period during which they will accept the older (2024) edition of Form I-864 until September 30, 2026. Beginning October 1, 2026, the new form is required. Though the new form does not contain many changes from the old version, we still recommend proceeding line by line with each question and gathering support documents ahead of completion.
I-9 Compliance – Best Practices for Preparation
Federal worksite enforcement has been a top-of-mind issue for Gulf Coast employers in construction, hospitality, agriculture, and oil and gas, among other industries, throughout 2025 and 2026. Consequently, this makes I-9 compliance immediately relevant and urgent, especially when considering the many changes to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) policy and practice in recent months. Not only do we anticipate increased unannounced raids on businesses, we expect higher scrutiny of ordinary records that previously would not have caught attention. On August 31, 2026, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) updated its I-9 inspection fact sheet to list 35 types of violations ranging from not using the correct form version to failing to have the employee sign and date the correct I-9 section.
How can employers best prepare for this? Conduct internal audits against these listed violations, or let outside counsel conduct one. USCIS has additional guidance from 2015 in this regard. Keep in mind: do not select employees to audit based on their country of origin, do not take auditing action regarding an employee that could be viewed as retaliatory in any way, and keep good records that are easy to sort and understand.
USCIS Requests for Evidence (RFE)
On August 5, 2026, USCIS issued a Policy Alert shortening the respondent’s response time to Requests for Evidence (RFE) or Notices of Intend to Deny (NOID) from 84 to 30 days. USCIS states its new policy “will improve its ability to efficiently adjudicate benefit requests by discouraging frivolous, placeholder, or incomplete filings and requiring the requestor to meet his or her burden of proof by submitting complete benefit requests” (emphasis added). When submitting packages, we recommend having a few different sets of eyes review to spot any area where additional evidence may be needed. If an employer receives a RFE or NOID, we recommend the following:
- Calendar a deadline immediately. Thirty days pass quickly, especially when working across time zones to collect documents.
- The day an employer receives the RFE or NOID, map out a strategy for how to respond. Does an answer need to be clarified, or submit evidence already in the file, or collect new evidence? Develop a game plan to avoid scrambling at the last minute.
- Set a soft deadline for one week prior to the USCIS deadline – ensure the package is perfect, page-checked, and proofed. Check the final package against the RFE/NOID letter one more time – is anything missing from what they requested?
The End of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and What It Means for Businesses
The Trump Administration has ended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for multiple countries. The Secretary of Homeland Security designates TPS “due to conditions in the country that temporarily prevent the country’s nationals from returning safely due to armed conflict, environmental disasters, epidemics, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions.” TPS may also be granted where the country of origin is unable to handle the return of its nationals adequately, or where an individual without a nationality last resided in the designated country. USCIS may grant TPS to eligible nationals of certain countries (or parts of countries), who are already in the United States. Recent changes include:
- Last October, the Supreme Court allowed the termination for Venezuela to take immediate effect. According to USCIS, TPS beneficiaries who received TPS-related employment authorization documents (EADs), Forms I-797, Notices of Action, and Forms I-94 issued with October 2, 2026, expiration dates on or before February 5, 2025 will maintain work authorization and their documentation will remain valid until October 2, 2026.
- According to USCIS, an announcement on El Salvador’s TPS will be made at the appropriate time. Until such announcement is made, Salvadoran individuals present in the U.S. under TPS retain protection including work authorization.
- TPS for Haitian nationals ended July 27, 2026.
- TPS for Ukrainian nationals is designated through October 19, 2026.
If a worker’s TPS status ended, it may affect their or their family’s ability to stay and work in the United States absent other authority. Employers, if a worker comes from one of these countries where TPS has ended, investigate their status now. Do they have a different path toward residency or citizenship, such as marriage? Do they qualify for an L1 status such as an executive/manager or a professional with specialized knowledge? There may be other options available.
Key Takeaways
Galloway’s corporate immigration attorneys continue to track the changing policies and procedures at USCIS, DHS, and ICE to anticipate evolving trends and most importantly, prevent business interruption to operational stability. We partner with business leaders, in-house counsel, and Galloway’s employment law team to assist with these issues as needed.
Disclaimer: This material is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended to constitute legal advice, nor does it create a client-lawyer relationship between Galloway and any recipient. Recipients should consult with counsel before taking any action based on the information contained within this material. This material may be considered attorney advertising in some jurisdictions.
