On May 29, 2020, President Trump issued a proclamation suspending the entry of certain Chinese F-1 and J-1 foreign students and exchange visitors who have ties to Chinese institutions that support the People’s Republic of...more
On Monday night, April 20th, President Trump ignited fierce speculation after he tweeted that he would be issuing an Executive Order to suspend immigration to the U.S. to protect American jobs in light of the COVID-19-related...more
Yesterday July 11, 2019, the Department of State (DOS) disappointed a lot of people when it published its August, 2019 Visa Bulletin. In this most recent Visa Bulletin, DOS announced that the 2nd and 3rd preference...more
On June 1, 2019 the Department of State (DOS) announced that it would immediately begin requiring visa applicants to the United States to provide additional personal information on U.S. visa applications, including social...more
The L-1 visa regulations mandate to employers that they must file an amended L-1 visa petition: to reflect changes in approved relationships; additional qualifying organizations under a blanket petition; change in capacity...more
In this five-part series, we highlight three important USCIS policy changes and provide eight best practice tips in light of the ever-tightening U.S. immigration environment. This is the fifth and final installment in the...more
In this five-part series, we highlight three important USCIS policy changes and provide eight best practice tips in light of the ever-tightening U.S. immigration environment. This is the fourth installment in the...more
The tilt in this Administration towards harsh immigration measures is well known because of high profile moves like the travel bans and the separation and incarceration of parents and young children from Central America who...more
On August 2, 2017 Republican Senators Tom Cotton (AR) and David Perdue (GA) unveiled an immigration bill titled The Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy Act (RAISE Act). While the stated purpose of this bill is...more
On June 26, 2017 the Supreme Court ruled that a limited version of the 90-day Travel Ban contained in President Trump’s Executive Order 13780 could go into effect. The limited Travel Ban went into effect on June 29, 2017....more
From time to time, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) conducts site visits at the offices of employers petitioning for temporary work visas on behalf of their employees. These visits are funded by the $500 “anti-fraud”...more
The European Commission is being urged to require U.S. citizens to obtain visas for travel to Europe in an effort to obtain full visa waiver reciprocity for all European Union (EU) nations.
Currently, five EU nations are...more
At the end of the 2016 calendar year, the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) published a welcome precedent decision, Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016). In this case, the AAO has significantly revised the...more
In light of the general unavailability of H-1B visas due to the limited and inadequate H-1B visa quota, it is more important than ever that U.S. employers and highly skilled foreign nationals be able to take maximum advantage...more
In a welcome development, on November 18, 2016 the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a final rule benefitting many highly skilled nonimmigrant foreign workers and EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 employment-based immigrant...more
11/22/2016
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
EB-1 ,
EB-2 ,
EB-3 ,
Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) ,
Foreign Workers ,
Grace Period ,
Green Cards ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigrants ,
Priority Date Cutoff ,
Visas ,
Whistleblowers ,
Work Visas
Effective December 23, 2016, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will be adjusting the fee schedule for immigration and naturalization benefit requests processed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). DHS...more
The Department of State released the visa bulletin for August 2016 and set cutoff dates for employment-based first preference Chinese and Indian chargeable applicants as well as second preference categories for “all other”...more
Carrie,
I appreciate the guidance you have provided regarding the documents the company needs to have in place when sending an employee on an assignment abroad.
Now I have a related question about immigration risks...more
On April 7, 2016, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it had received more than enough H-1B petitions to meet the numerical limit for fiscal year 2017 cap-subject H-1B visas, which includes both...more
In a welcome move, on March 18, 2016 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released policy guidance for its officers to help them decide “green card portability” cases....more
Yesterday, March 9, 2016, the Department of Homeland Security previewed the final rule governing STEM OPT, to be released on Friday. This rule is effective May 10, 2016, except the addition of 8 CFR 214.16, which is effective...more
On October 1, 2015 USCIS announced the launch of the Known Employer Pilot Program. Yesterday, March 3, USCIS confirmed the participation of five employers in the pilot. The purpose of the Known Employer Program is to expedite...more
From proposals to overhaul OPT to decreasing the number of H-1Bs, 2016 is already proving to be an interesting year for business immigration. In a series of posts, the Mintz Levin team will provide an overview of the cases,...more
2/26/2016
/ Arbitrary and Capricious ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
OPT ,
Rescission ,
US Department of State ,
USCIS ,
Visa Bulletins ,
Visas
From proposals to overhaul OPT to decreasing the number of H-1Bs, 2016 is already proving to be an interesting year for business immigration. In a series of posts, the Mintz Levin team will provide an overview of the cases,...more
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) will begin accepting cap-subject H-1B petitions on April 1, 2015, for start dates of October 1, 2015 or later. ...more