Data from the Fiscal Year 2025 H-1B registration process has recently been released by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The data show that changes intended to reduce the number of multiple registrations for the...more
Long processing times for renewal Employment Authorization Documents has resulted in the loss of work authorization for many individuals because their EAD cards expired before new cards could be issued. Individuals who filed...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for many years has used an online system for the annual March lottery for petitions that are subject to the H-1B Cap. The USCIS has now expanded this system to allow the following...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued a new fee rule that imposes significant increases, particularly for employment-based petitions. The rule, and the higher fees, will apply to any benefit request...more
The annual H-1B cap season has begun for Fiscal Year 2025. Once again, there will be a two-step process – the registration step and then, if the registration is selected in the H-1B cap lottery, the petition step. Now is the...more
1/17/2024
/ Beneficiaries ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
NAFTA ,
STEM ,
USCIS ,
Visa Caps ,
Visas
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that fees will increase for all requests for Premium Processing. The increases will apply to all requests for premium processing that are postmarked on or after...more
On December 21, the U.S. Department of State issued regulations with details of its pilot program for issuance of renewed H-1B visa stamps in the United States. The pilot program eliminates the need for applicants to obtain...more
A federal judge has struck down final regulations regarding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, and the program itself may not survive.
The DACA program was established unilaterally in 2012 by an Obama...more
A variety of U.S. work visas require employers to pay a certain salary to foreign workers whom they employ in the United States. But one employer was recently surprised by an appeals court ruling that it was required to...more
Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security published its new I-9 regulations, which will take effect next Tuesday, August 1. The regulations have two components: (1) a remote I-9 document examination procedure, and (2)...more
The filing of an H-1B petition requires submission of a Labor Condition Application certified by the U.S. Department of Labor. The LCA certifies, among other things, that the H-1B beneficiary will be paid the prevailing wage...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued helpful guidance (available here and here) on how to apply for employment authorization documents based on compelling circumstances.
When a foreign national applies...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will now offer premium processing for individuals seeking to change their status to an F-1 or M-1 vocational student, or J-1 Exchange visitor, as well as their dependents....more
As expected, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced last week that the COVID-19 temporary flexibilities for Form I-9, which allowed for virtual inspections, will not be extended and will end on July 31. ...more
On Friday, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that there was a dramatic increase in multiple H-1B registrations for single individuals for Fiscal Year 2024.
The agency announced that it has...more
International travelers have long relied on receiving passport stamps when entering a country to document their entry. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is seeking to streamline its entry process and do away with...more
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, agencies involved in the implementation and enforcement of immigration law have relaxed certain filing and other requirements.
The federal government intends to...more
With waits for green cards of up to 10 years, many foreign professionals have faced the nightmare scenario in which their children reach age 21 before the children receive their green cards, meaning that they age out of the...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has expanded premium processing to certain I-140 petitions, and premium processing of certain I-765 and I-539 applications is expected to be in place this spring....more
The annual H-1B cap season has begun for Fiscal Year 2024. Once again, there will be a two-step process – the registration step and then, if the registration is selected in the H-1B cap lottery, the petition step. Now is the...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking with fee increases for immigration filings. Under the proposed rule, the most dramatic increases would apply to employment-based...more
It is a happy day when a foreign national becomes a Lawful Permanent Resident of the United States and gets a Permanent Resident Card, commonly referred to as a “green card.” Permanent resident status provides important...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has been making significant efforts to prevent the loss of available employment-based visa numbers for Fiscal Year 2022, as we reported in July.
The good news is that the...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced last week that it has reached the caps for the Fiscal Year 2023 regular and master’s (advanced degree) H-1B lotteries and has sent non-selection notifications to the...more
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, agencies involved in the implementation and enforcement of immigration law have relaxed certain filing and other requirements.
The U.S. Citizenship and...more