Due to COVID-19, USCIS field offices have been closed for in-person services since March 18, 2020. The closure will continue until on or about June 4, 2020 when USCIS hopes to re-open to the public. In preparation for...more
Due to COVID-19, USCIS announced that as of March 20, 2020, it is immediately suspending premium processing service for all Form I-129 and I-140 petitions until further notice. USCIS also said that petitioners that have...more
It is no secret that H-1B visa denial rates have been on the rise over the last two years. Recent reporting sheds light on the litigation ensuing from those denials and the impact of denials on H-1B beneficiaries.
Sanduja...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced it is implementing an electronic registration process in the next H-1B visa lottery. Employers seeking to file fiscal year 2021 H-1B cap-subject petitions...more
On December 6, 2019, USCIS announced it is implementing the registration process in the next H-1B lottery. H-1B employers have been awaiting confirmation of and details regarding the new registration process for H-1B...more
The Trump Administration would like to institute a “points-based” or “merit-based” immigration system, cut down on family-based immigration and eliminate the Diversity Lottery. To date, Congress has not passed any such...more
Despite litigation that enjoined USCIS from proceeding with the implementation of the Public Charge Rule, Department of State (DOS) seemed ready to proceed with it at Consulates abroad.
But, as of this week, DOS is no...more
U.S. District Court Judge George S. Daniels of the Southern District of New York enjoined the Trump Administration’s new Public Charge Rule scheduled to go into effect on October 15, 2019. The new Rule has been the subject of...more
The Trump Administration has been trying to put an end to Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for many countries including: El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal and Sudan. Upon legal challenges to TPS termination, the courts have...more
In Mosleh et al. v. Pompeo et al. in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, Chief Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill ordered the Administration to show that delays in granting travel ban waivers to Yemeni...more
We wrote yesterday on the U.S. Supreme Court declining to expedite review of DACA, as well as the recent and current legislative activity regarding the program. Later in the day on June 4th, the U.S. House of Representatives...more
The “Dreamers” have received another reprieve from the U.S. Supreme Court.
DACA litigation has been in the news since September 2017, when then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the DACA program would be terminated....more
Concerns regarding the rescission of the H-4 EAD Rule have heightened in the wake of the publication of the Department of Homeland Security’s Spring 2019 Regulatory Agenda. In response, two California congresswomen,...more
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) signed in 1992 was meant to make North America more competitive in the global economy by reducing trade barriers and increasing business development among the U.S., Canada and...more
On May 20, 2019, USCIS will begin premium processing for cap-subject H-1B cases that were filed concurrently with Form I-907 premium processing requests. Under the Premium Processing Service, USCIS guarantees 15-calendar-day...more
Hondurans and Nepalis in the U.S. in Temporary Protected Status (TPS) just got a break.
TPS for beneficiaries from Nepal was set to terminate on June 24, 2019. TPS for beneficiaries from Honduras was set to terminate on...more
Without warning, USCIS announced that as of March 12, 2019, it is resuming premium processing for all H-1B petitions. This means that for an additional fee of $1,410, USCIS will guarantee a 15-calendar day processing time. By...more
Prior to the government shutdown, it seemed that the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act might pass as an amendment to the spending package with strong bipartisan support. But that was not to be. Now members of the U.S....more
President Donald Trump has announced that the government shutdown is over, for now. He has agreed to sign a short-term spending bill that will re-open the government for three weeks, until February 14, 2019. The bill does not...more
President Donald Trump surprised the immigration community recently with an encouraging tweet about H-1B visa holders: -
"H-1B holders in the United States can rest assured that changes are soon coming which will bring...more
Although the number of petitions filed has decreased slightly over the past couple of years, the H-1B cap has been reached every year for the last six years. Due to the high demand, businesses must be ready to file their H-1B...more
USCIS announced that, effective immediately, it is terminating yet another humanitarian parole program. This one is for individuals living in the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). ...more
A potentially significant bill eliminating the per-country caps on employment-based visas may become law.
H.R. 392, Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act, first introduced in 2017, had 300 co-sponsors. It is now...more
On October 1, 2018 the premium processing fee for all Forms I-129 (Non-Immigrant Worker) and Forms I-140 (Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker) will be raised from $1,225 to $1,410. USCIS announced this almost 15% increase on...more
In 2012, then-President Barack Obama signed legislation allowing nationals of Israel to apply for E-2 treaty investor status, but benefit would not be available until Israel provided similar status to U.S. nationals. In March...more