Immigration Settlement Clears the Way for Thousands of H-1B and L-1 Spouses to Work in the US
A recent ruling in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia provides added protection and work authorization safeguards for H-4 spouses of H-1B visa holders facing potential lawsuits and administrative challenges....more
It’s hard to keep up with all the recent changes to labor and employment law. While the law always seems to evolve at a rapid pace, there have been an unprecedented number of changes for the past few years — and this past...more
On January 19, 2023, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reached a settlement in Edakunni v. Mayorkas. As a result of the settlement, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has agreed to resume its...more
As the result of a settlement of a class action lawsuit (Edakunni, et al. v. Mayorkas) challenging H-4 and L-2 adjudication delays, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on January 20, 2023, that it has...more
In response to a Lawsuit (Edakunni v. Mayorkas) filed on behalf of Spouses of H-1B and L-1 Visa Holders, USCIS has reached a settlement agreement which it will implement effective today, January 25, 2023....more
Federal immigration officials just agreed to streamline the process by which certain nonimmigrant dependent spouses are able to secure employment, reverting to a previous method that should reduce processing times and...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Starting January 25, 2023, USCIS will adjudicate I-539 and I-765 applications for H-4 and L-2 dependents when those applications are filed concurrently with the I-129 petition. The bundling of those...more
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath, backlogs for immigration benefits have been at an all-time high, with some benefits—such as the L-2 Spousal EAD—taking up to 12 months or longer. ...more
On November 19, 2021, the Quarles & Brady team issued an alert detailing U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service’s (USCIS) policy changes regarding work authorization for L-2, H-4, and E dependent visa spouses....more
On November 10, 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reached a settlement in the class action Shergill v. Mayorkas. As part of the settlement, USCIS agreed to update its policy relating to H-4 and L-2...more
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reached a settlement agreement on November 10, 2021, to allow automatic extensions of employment authorization for certain H-4 and L dependent spouses. Additionally, on November...more
On November 12, 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued policy guidance addressing the automatic extension of employment authorization for H-4, L-2, and E dependent spouses in response to a class action...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: USCIS issued a Policy Memorandum following the settlement of a lawsuit that significantly changes work authorization rules for H-4, E, and L-2 spouses. Specifically, certain H-4, E, and L-2 Employment...more
A settlement has been reached in Shergill v. Mayorkas, a federal lawsuit seeking to compel US Citizenship and Immigration Services to follow its regulations by automatically granting work permit extensions to L-2 and H-4...more
Because of persistent delays by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in the processing of applications for Employment Authorization Documents (EADs), a group of aggrieved noncitizen plaintiffs filed a class...more
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has agreed to a settlement in the case of Shergill, et al. v. Mayorkas, resulting in important policy changes immediately affecting L-2 and H-4 visa holders’ work authorization...more
On November 10, 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) settled the class action lawsuit Shergill v. Mayorkas. The settlement agreement will update USCIS policy related to certain H-4 and L-2 spousal...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a division of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has just closed its annual H-1B registration, and employers are anxiously awaiting news on whether USCIS has selected...more
On Monday, June 22, 2020, the White House issued a long-expected executive order outlining new U.S. immigration restrictions. The order extends and expands upon the earlier restrictions put in place by President Trump in...more
U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) confirmed it will utilize a new electronic registration system for the Fiscal Year 2021 H-1B lottery. By way of background, the H-1B visa program allows companies in the United...more
It has been widely reported, including by the American Immigration Lawyers Association, that on February 20, 2019 the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sent a proposal to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as per...more
DHS has made the first move to rescind the H-4 EAD Rule: sending the proposed rule to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The H-4 EAD Rule provides work authorization for spouses of certain H-1B workers...more
The Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has added Immigration Voice, a group that represents high-skilled foreign nationals, to defend the H-4 EAD Rule. Save Jobs USA v. United States Department of Homeland Security. The...more
The uncertainty regarding the rescission of the H-4 EAD Rule continues to drag on and the plaintiffs in Save Jobs USA v. United States Department of Homeland Security are getting tired of waiting. Save Jobs, a group of...more
In April 2017, three months after taking office, President Trump signed the “Buy American and Hire American” Executive Order, which confirmed that his administration would be taking a tough stance on business immigration,...more