Forty-eight days into a partial Department of Homeland Security shutdown, President Donald Trump has signed a presidential memorandum directing that all 260,000 DHS employees receive full compensation and benefits retroactive to 14 February—the day appropriations lapsed. The memo, released early Saturday, instructs newly sworn-in DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and OMB Director Russell Vought to tap any legally available funding streams with a “reasonable nexus” to homeland-security functions until Congress restores regular appropriations.
![Trump orders immediate back-pay for DHS employees as shutdown drags on]()
For organisations and individual travellers trying to keep cross-border plans on track during the budget turmoil, outside support can make a real difference. VisaHQ, for instance, maintains an online platform that monitors shifting U.S. consular requirements in real time and can expedite visa or travel-document filings when government processing slows; details and application tools are available at https://www.visahq.com/united-states/
Border Patrol agents, Transportation Security Administration screeners, Coast Guard sailors, FEMA emergency responders and immigration adjudicators have been working without pay for nearly seven weeks, leading to an exodus of contractors and escalating sick-outs at major airports. Industry groups representing airlines and global mobility managers had warned that prolonged staffing shortages at Customs and Border Protection were beginning to lengthen primary-inspection wait times and to jeopardise trusted-traveller enrolment appointments. The White House move sidesteps Congress but buys limited time: the stop-gap funding authority lasts only as long as existing programme accounts contain unobligated balances. Republican leaders say they hope to pass a DHS-only continuing resolution by early June, yet House Freedom Caucus members continue to demand deeper cuts to immigration benefits-processing and humanitarian parole. For multinational companies the immediate effect is positive—averting airport slowdowns and restoring momentum on immigration benefits such as EAD card printing and premium processing. Payroll teams, however, should monitor for future lapses: if CBP or USCIS fee accounts run dry, service reductions could again hit business-traveller lanes and case adjudications. Employers should also anticipate a surge in overtime adjudication once regular funding is restored and budget accordingly for expedition fees.
For organisations and individual travellers trying to keep cross-border plans on track during the budget turmoil, outside support can make a real difference. VisaHQ, for instance, maintains an online platform that monitors shifting U.S. consular requirements in real time and can expedite visa or travel-document filings when government processing slows; details and application tools are available at https://www.visahq.com/united-states/
Border Patrol agents, Transportation Security Administration screeners, Coast Guard sailors, FEMA emergency responders and immigration adjudicators have been working without pay for nearly seven weeks, leading to an exodus of contractors and escalating sick-outs at major airports. Industry groups representing airlines and global mobility managers had warned that prolonged staffing shortages at Customs and Border Protection were beginning to lengthen primary-inspection wait times and to jeopardise trusted-traveller enrolment appointments. The White House move sidesteps Congress but buys limited time: the stop-gap funding authority lasts only as long as existing programme accounts contain unobligated balances. Republican leaders say they hope to pass a DHS-only continuing resolution by early June, yet House Freedom Caucus members continue to demand deeper cuts to immigration benefits-processing and humanitarian parole. For multinational companies the immediate effect is positive—averting airport slowdowns and restoring momentum on immigration benefits such as EAD card printing and premium processing. Payroll teams, however, should monitor for future lapses: if CBP or USCIS fee accounts run dry, service reductions could again hit business-traveller lanes and case adjudications. Employers should also anticipate a surge in overtime adjudication once regular funding is restored and budget accordingly for expedition fees.
