On Jan. 20, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) agreed to settle a class action lawsuit challenging H-4 and L-2 adjudication delays. According to this settlement, USCIS will now adjudicate I-539s and I-765s...more
Effective Sept. 26, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) automatically extended the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (also known as Green Cards) to 24 months for lawful permanent residents who file Form...more
In a continued effort to streamline the entry process for travelers, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has begun to eliminate the issuance of entry stamps in the passports of foreign nationals upon arrival in the...more
President Biden issued a Presidential Proclamation that lifted the country-specific travel bans on international visitors to the United States from Brazil, China, India, Iran, Ireland, the Schengen Area, South Africa and the...more
The White House has announced the precise date that it will lift COVID-19-related travel bans that apply to international travelers from more than 30 countries. Starting Nov. 8, 2021, travel bans will be lifted for fully...more
10/22/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Diversity Lottery ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Green Cards ,
Immigration Procedures ,
International Travel ,
Travel Ban ,
US Department of State ,
Vaccinations ,
Visas ,
World Health Organization
In news welcome to both travelers and U.S. consular officers alike, the Department of State (DOS) announced yesterday that it would extend the validity of National Interest Exceptions (NIEs). By way of background, as detailed...more
Recently, New York became the 16th state in the United States to legalize recreational marijuana. We wanted to remind you and your employees that the use, purchase or possession of marijuana is still a crime throughout the...more
Earlier this month the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act (H.R. 1044), an act that would radically change the way employment-based immigrant visas are allocated by eliminating...more
7/26/2019
/ Administrative Backlogs ,
Country of Origin ,
EB-5 ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
Green Cards ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Labor Condition Applications ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New Regulations ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Quotas ,
USCIS ,
Visas
Consulates Now Requesting Social Media Information From Visa Applicants A new State Department policy requires all U.S. visa applicants to submit information about social media accounts (such as Facebook, Twitter or...more
6/5/2019
/ China ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-9 ,
H-1B ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
No-Match Letters ,
Personal Data ,
Social Media Policy ,
Social Security Administration (SSA) ,
Social Security Numbers ,
Trump Administration ,
Visa Applications ,
Visas
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is suddenly, and without advance notice, refusing to adjudicate and process L-1 petition renewals submitted by Canadian nationals at ports-of-entry (POEs) and at Canadian international...more
Earlier this week, the U.S., Canada and Mexico reached agreement on a new trilateral trade pact to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The agreement will be known as the United States-Mexico-Canada...more
10/3/2018
/ Canada ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Relations ,
Foreign Workers ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Mexico ,
NAFTA ,
Non-Immigrant Visas ,
TN-Visas ,
Trade Relations ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
US Trade Policies ,
Work Visas
The Department of State has announced the opening of the registration period for the 2020 Diversity Visa (DV) lottery. As in past years, the DV lottery will allow a maximum of 50,000 "diversity immigrants"...more
As explained below, we advise that a company may not have STEM OPT individuals at its work site unless it is a direct employer that is part of the e-Verify program. ...more
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has issued a policy memorandum restricting Trade NAFTA (TN) nonimmigrant classification under the profession of Economist. USCIS advises that the TN Economist...more
12/21/2017
/ Customs and Border Protection ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Popular ,
TN-Visas ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
Following the arrest of a Turkish national employee of the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, the U.S. has suspended all nonimmigrant visa services at its consulates in Turkey. In response, Turkey has suspended all visa services for...more
The Revised Version of Travel Ban to Take Effect Next Month -
On Sept. 24, President Trump issued a proclamation that indefinitely bans certain citizens of Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Chad and North Korea from...more
9/26/2017
/ B-1 ,
B-2 ,
DACA ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Deportation ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-9 ,
Green Cards ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
National Security ,
Non-Immigrant Visas ,
Refugees ,
Terrorist Threats ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas