The National Interest Waiver (“NIW”) is a streamlined pathway to permanent residence for foreign nationals whose current or prospective work is in the national interest and therefore merits a waiver of the labor certification...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated its policy guidance on Jan. 15, 2025, to clarify how it will evaluate candidates’ eligibility for second preference employment based (EB-2) immigrant visa with a...more
In an era of increasing global competition for highly skilled professionals, U.S. employers often face challenges in recruiting and retaining top talent. The National Interest Waiver (NIW) is a special provision under the...more
On October 30, 2023, President Biden issued an Executive Order (EO) on Artificial Intelligence (AI), which may promote immigration policy changes to attract and retain AI talent in the U.S. The EO recognizes the importance...more
As we discussed in a recent post, equal pay transparency (EPT) laws are on the rise across the country. While complex in their own right, EPT laws introduce new risks and challenges for employers undergoing an already...more
Information regarding priority date retrogression, CBP stampless entry and increased DOL processing times are included in this month’s edition of Immigration Insider....more
October 1, 2023 marked the start of the federal government’s fiscal year 2023 (FY 2023), with the Department of State (DOS) October Visa Bulletin taking effect the same day. What is sure to be disappointing to many is the...more
In July 2022, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services will use the Final Action chart. China EB-2 Final Action cutoff dates will advance by one month and India EB-2 Final Action cutoff dates will advance by three months....more
After much anticipation and unprecedented delay, the U.S. Department of State has announced the per-country priority date cut-offs for the November 2020 Visa Bulletin. The monthly visa bulletins indicate who may file an...more
The October, 2020 Visa Bulletin significantly advanced the availability of green cards for most categories, allowing thousands of foreign nationals to file their last step in the green card process. Every month, the...more
The U.S. Departments of Labor (DOL) and Homeland Security (DHS) have jointly announced a new initiative to share data and records on immigrant and nonimmigrant petitions and workers....more
Often times, the first question asked by employment-based Green Card beneficiaries during an initial strategy consultation is, “How long until I have my Green Card in hand?” While the answer varies depending on the particular...more
Each month, foreign nationals await timely announcements from the U.S. Department of State’s (DOS) Visa Bulletin and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to determine whether they are eligible to move forward...more
In a recent precedent decision issued through its Administrative Appeals Office (AAO), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has created a new and flexible analytical framework for determining whether a foreign...more
Now that the election is over, focus turns to the U.S. immigration policy of President-elect Donald J. Trump’s administration over the next four years. Forecasts of this type are never easy with any new President; the task is...more
In accordance with President Obama’s Executive Actions on Immigration proposed in November 2014, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced a new system for determining immigrant visa availability, establishing bifurcated...more
On November 20 and 21, 2014, President Obama announced his plan for executive action on the United States’ immigration problems, known as the immigration accountability executive actions. The actions represent the most...more