Harvard/MIT Student Visa Case
Nota Bene Episode 77: Labor, Employment, and Immigration in a Pandemic World with Kelly Hensley, Denise Giraudo, and Greg Berk
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has completed its annual H-1B cap lottery selection process for fiscal year 2025. Given the high number of lottery registrations and the fixed number of...more
Companies sponsoring certain foreign national workers may now be able to take advantage of an additional way to receive premium processing of petitions to support their immigration goals. Last month, U.S. Citizenship and...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: USCIS has expanded premium processing for applicants seeking a change of status to F-1, F-2, M-1, M-2, J-1, or J-2 nonimmigrant status....more
On June 12, 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced an expansion of premium processing service for applicants filing Form I-539 to change their status to F, M, or J status. The initiative is part of...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
Years ago, people employed in manufacturing were seen as bit players in an industrial machine, but no longer. Many manufacturing jobs today require high-level STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) skills. ...more
Each year in March, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) conducts a lottery to award H-1B slots to enough foreign workers to meet its 85,000 visa annual cap. This number includes 20,000 slots reserved for...more
The H-1B visa is among the most popular working visas in the U.S. for individuals filling professional (degree-requiring) positions. Most H-1B visas are subject to an annual quota or “cap.” These are often referred to as...more
On January 21, 2022, the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security jointly announced a flurry of new actions and policy changes relating to various visa classifications that open new potential pathways and...more
On January 21, 2022, the White House released a fact sheet entitled “Biden-Harris Administration Actions to Attract STEM Talent and Strengthen our Economy and Competitiveness,” announcing several immigration-related policy...more
The Biden-Harris Administration announced an expansion of immigration policies to benefit Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) degree students and graduates, in a stated effort to strengthen the U.S....more
This alert was originally published on February 5, 2019. It has been updated as of June 23, 2021. Many visa options exist to enable U.S. manufacturing companies to employ talented professionals, researchers and managers...more
On April 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of State issued updated guidance on “National Interest Exceptions for Certain Travelers from China, Iran, Brazil, South Africa, Schengen Area, United Kingdom, and Ireland,” which should...more
On April 30, 2021, the Biden Administration issued A Proclamation on the Suspension of Entry as Nonimmigrants of Certain Additional Persons Who Pose a Risk of Transmitting Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). The proclamation...more
On March 2, 2021, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced new and more restrictive eligibility criteria for obtaining a National Interest Exception (NIE) to the COVID-19 travel bans for the European Schengen Area, the...more
Executive Summary: USCIS has announced the timeline for the H-1B FY22 Cap Petition Cycle. Similar to last year, USCIS will require H-1B sponsor employers to register H-1B candidates online starting March 9, 2021. USCIS will...more
Registration Dates Announced and Rule Prioritizing Selection of Highest Wage-Level Delayed - On February 5, 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the initial registration period for the...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will hold the H-1B electronic registration process for the fiscal year 2022 H-1B cap (from which the annual H-1B lottery will be run). Registration begins at...more
On Friday, February 5, 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the initial registration period for the FY2022 H-1B Cap Lottery will begin on March 9, 2021. ...more
Many international medical graduates (IMGs) from around the world come to the U.S. each year to complete a U.S. residency program and become licensed to practice in this country, filling a significant need due to physician...more
The Department of State has recently announced that U.S. Embassies and Consulates will begin a phased resumption of processing routine nonimmigrant and immigrant visas. Such cases will include travelers with urgent travel...more
On July 16, 2020, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced that business travelers, investors, treaty traders, and academics from the Schengen Area countries, the U.K., and Ireland may qualify for “national interest...more
On July 16 and 17, 2020, the U.S. Department of State (“DOS”) announced changes to two existing COVID-related travel restrictions. The first creates new exceptions to the Proclamation barring anyone who has been within a...more
On July 6, 2020, the Trump Administration announced that due to continued public safety concerns surrounding COVID-19, it is imposing far-reaching restrictions on the F-1 and J-1 programs. These restrictions have significant...more
On June 22, 2020, the President issued an extension and expansion of a previously issued Proclamation that suspends the entry of certain foreign nationals into the United States. The previous Proclamation suspended the...more