The Department of Homeland Security published a final rule Jan. 31 adjusting the filing fees for applications for immigration benefits submitted to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). For most application types...more
2/7/2024
/ Fees ,
Filing Fees ,
Form I-129 ,
Green Cards ,
H-1B ,
Immigration Procedures ,
L-1 Visas ,
Non-Immigrant Visas ,
O-1 Aliens of Extraordinary Ability ,
USCIS ,
Visas
The potential government shutdown Sunday would impact a host of federal government programs and agencies, and immigration is no exception. Here’s a look at the potential impact of a shutdown on immigration-related programs...more
COVID-19-related temporary flexibilities for Form I-9 end July 31, and employers face the daunting task of completing in-person physical document inspections for employees whose documents were inspected remotely by Aug. 30....more
7/27/2023
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
E-Verify ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-9 ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
New Guidance ,
Remote Working ,
Required Forms ,
USCIS
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated last year its policy guidance about a specific type of employment-based, immigrant visa petition known as a National Interest Waiver (NIW), clarifying and possibly...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final rule on March 30, 2022 that will increase access to its premium processing service, under which applicants for certain immigration benefits can obtain...more
The Biden administration has announced that it will lift current regional pandemic-related travel restrictions on foreign nationals in early November. The current restrictions will be replaced by a Covid-19 vaccination...more
9/30/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cross Border Privacy Rules (CBPR) ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Green Cards ,
International Travel ,
National Interest Waiver ,
Travel Restrictions ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
World Health Organization
In February, we outlined some immediate and anticipated changes in the business immigration environment after the Biden Administration took office. Now that several months have passed and the Administration has had time to...more
6/11/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Nationals ,
H-1B ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Minimum Wage ,
PERM ,
Public Charge ,
Regulatory Freeze ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
The first two weeks of the Biden Administration have seen a flurry of activity indicating it will move away from the more restrictive immigration environment of the Trump era, including for employment-based immigration...more
2/10/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Buy American and Hire American ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) ,
H-1B ,
H-4 Spouses ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Lottery ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Freeze ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
On January 8, 2021, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) published a final rule that would dramatically change how H-1B cap petitions are selected in the annual “lottery.” Under this final rule, the current random...more
1/14/2021
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Final Rules ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Lottery ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas ,
Wage and Hour
On October 8, 2020, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published new regulations that could dramatically tighten the eligibility requirements for H-1B visa petitions and...more
10/13/2020
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
Last night, President Trump signed a Presidential Proclamation imposing entry restrictions on certain foreign nationals in temporary work visa statuses, including H-1B, L-1, J-1 and H-2B, and related categories for...more
According to media and other sources, the Trump Administration will likely issue a Presidential Proclamation instituting additional immigration restrictions by the end of this month. The Proclamation is likely to extend the...more
The spread of COVID-19 is taking the world by storm with unprecedented and far-ranging consequences. During this extraordinary time, many employers are dealing with difficult issues regarding their workforces amidst office...more
In response to the significant challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of State (DOS) have recently implemented temporary operational changes and...more
On January 9, 2020, USCIS published a notice in the Federal Register to formally announce the implementation of the new registration process for H-1B cap-subject (lottery) petitions for fiscal year 2021. According to USCIS,...more
As we approach the holiday season, immigration practitioners, interested employers, and foreign nationals are gearing up for yet another H-1B lottery season. The upcoming lottery season will be significantly different than in...more
12/11/2019
/ Electronic Filing ,
Filing Requirements ,
Foreign Nationals ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Lottery ,
Registration Requirement ,
USCIS ,
Visa Caps ,
Visas
On September 3, 2019, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a notice of proposed rulemaking that would require employers seeking to file H-1B cap subject petitions to pay a $10 fee for each electronic...more
On May 31, 2019, the Department of State (DOS) updated its immigrant and nonimmigrant visa application forms (Forms DS-260 and DS-160, respectively) to require that visa applicants divulge their social media identifiers for...more
On January 30, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security announced a final rule amending regulations governing H-1B cap-subject petitions. The final rule reverses the order by which U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services...more
As 2018 draws to a close and much of the world is celebrating the holiday season, the immigration world is preparing to enter another H-1B lottery season. For an overview of the H-1B program and H-1B lottery, please see our...more
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published today in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking that would change how employers file cap-subject H-1B petitions and how USCIS conducts the H-1B lottery...more
In our July 12, 2018 blog, we discussed a new U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) policy requiring the issuance of a Notice to Appear (NTA), which initiates removal proceedings against a foreign national, upon...more
In the evening of July 13, 2018 (Friday), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) posted new policy guidance giving immigration adjudicators marching orders to deny an immigration application or petition without...more
On July 5, 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published new guidance that will generally require that USCIS issue a Notice to Appear (NTA), and thereby initiate removal proceedings, upon its denial of an...more
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report on March 9, 2018 entitled: “USCIS Has Unclear Website Information and Unrealistic Time Goals for Adjudication Green Card...more