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| 2000 || December 21 || Legislation || Immigration and Naturalization Services; current equivalent United States Citizenship and Immigration Services || V, K-3, K-4 || The {{w|Legal Immigration Family Equity Act}} is passed. Among other things, the Act allows for the overlooking of unauthorized presence in the United States for people who have been in the queue for permanent residency for a long time. The Act primarily references immigrant processing functions now under USCIS rather than enforcement functions, but also contains some protection from removal proceedings. Specifically, protection from removal proceedings begins ''after'' the Form I-485 (green card application) is filed; people who are eligible for legalization in the future through this Act but are still in the queue may be subject to removal proceedings.<ref name=uscis-green-card>{{cite web|url = https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/other-ways-get-green-card/green-card-through-legal-immigration-family-equity-life-act|title = Green Card Through the Legal Immigration Family Equity (LIFE) Act|accessdate = February 8, 2016|publisher = [[United States Citizenship and Immigration Services]]}}</ref><ref name=procon>{{cite web|url = http://immigration.procon.org/view.answers.php?questionID=000793|title = What Was the 2000 Legal Immigration Family Equity (LIFE) Act?|publisher = [[ProCon.org]]|accessdate = February 8, 2016}}</ref><ref name=uscis-press-release>{{cite web|url = https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/pressrelease/LegalImmigFamEquityAct_122100.pdf|title = Legal Immigration Family Equity Act|date = December 21, 2000|accessdate = February 9, 2016|publisher = [[United States Citizenship and Immigration Services]]}}</ref>
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| 2002 || November 25 || Organizational restructuring || U.S. Department of Homeland Security || || The {{w|United States Department of Homeland Security}} (DHS) comes into formal existence. Eventually, the functions handled by the INS (which was under the Department of Justice) would move to the DHS.
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| 2003 || March 1 || Organizational restructuring || || Immigration and Naturalization Services and U.S. Department of Homeland Security || The Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) (that was under the Department of Justice) is disbanded. Its functions are divided into three sub-agencies of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security: {{w|United States Citizenship and Immigration Services}} (USCIS), {{w|U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement}} (ICE), and {{w|U.S. Customs and Border Protection}} (CBP).
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| 2004 || || Treaty or trade agreement || USCIS, U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs || H-1B1 || The {{w|Singapore–United States Free Trade Agreement}} and {{w|Chile–United States Free Trade Agreement}} becomes active. While mostly focused on trade, the agreement gives rise to the {{w|H-1B1 visa}} (available to people from Singapore and Chile), providing another option for people from the two countries who want to work in the United States.
| 2017 || October 25 || Leadership change || USCIS || || {{w|Lee Cissna}} becomes USCIS Director, replacing Leon Rodriguez, who had served as USCIS Director under the Obama administration.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Cairny|first1=Jordain|title=Senate votes to confirm key Trump immigration official|url=https://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/354051-senate-votes-to-confirm-key-trump-immigration-official|accessdate=July 5, 2020|publisher=The Hill|date=October 5, 2017}}</ref> According to a September 2018 profile in ''Politico'', as the head of USCIS, Cissna has "transformed his agency into more of an enforcement body and less of a service provider."<ref name=politico>{{cite news |last1=Hesson |first1=Ted |title=The Man Behind Trump’s ‘Invisible Wall’ |url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/09/20/uscis-director-lee-francis-cissna-profile-220141|accessdate=July 5, 2020|publisher=Politico |date=September 20, 2018}}</ref>
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| 2017 || December 6 || Leadership change || U.S. Department of Homeland Security || || {{w|Kirstjen Nielsen}} assumes the office of Secretary of Homeland Security, replacing acting Secretary {{w|Elaine Duke}}.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.dhs.gov/news/2017/12/06/kirstjen-m-nielsen-sworn-sixth-homeland-security-secretary|title=Kirstjen M. Nielsen Sworn-in as the Sixth Homeland Security Secretary|date=December 6, 2017|website=Department of Homeland Security |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206174245/https://www.dhs.gov/news/2017/12/06/kirstjen-m-nielsen-sworn-sixth-homeland-security-secretary |archivedate=December 6, 2017|deadurl=no|access-date=December 6, 2017}}</ref><ref name="NYT Confirmation">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/05/us/politics/kirstjen-nielsen-confirmed-homeland-security-secretary.html|title=Kirstjen Nielsen, White House Aide, Is Confirmed as Homeland Security Secretary|last=Nixon|first=Ron|date=December 5, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=December 5, 2017 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171205231406/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/05/us/politics/kirstjen-nielsen-confirmed-homeland-security-secretary.html |archivedate=December 5, 2017|deadurl=no|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> According to CNN, the hiring of Nielsen is based on a strong positive recommendation from White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly.<ref name=cnn-nielsen-departure/>
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| 2017{{snd}}2020 || || Quota change || U.S. Department of State || Refugee admissions || Under President {{w|Donald Trump}}, the United States' refugee program is significantly pared back. {{w|Executive Order 13769}} (January 27, 2017) puts a temporary moratorium on all refugee admissions. Refugee admissions are resumed in late October 2017, but refugees are not allowed from 11 countries, and other restrictions are added, causing a drop in the number of refugees. The administration further cuts the refugee quota in 2018 and 2019, and refugeee admissions are effectively halted in 2020 because Trump does not set a quota. Learn more at {{w|Immigration policy of Donald Trump#Travel ban and refugee suspension}} and {{w|Asylum in the United States}}.
