The New Policy:
The Department of State has extended its visa interview waiver policy. This policy gives U.S. consulates discretion to waive the visa waiver interview for certain nonimmigrant visa categories. Each consulate will decide internally whether it will be implementing the policy and to what degree. Here are the biggest changes under the new […]
The President Signs an Executive Order Banning Entry of Some Foreign Nationals Applying for Work Visas
On Monday, June 22, 2020, the president signed an Executive Order banning the entry of many foreign nationals hoping to apply for work visas abroad. The visa categories included in the Order are H-1B, L-1, and H-2B, as well […]
As of March 12, the USCIS is resuming premium processing services (PPS) for all new and pending H-1B petitions. Employers may upgrade pending cases to PPS by filing Form I-907 with the $1,410 USCIS fee. PPS is now available for H-1B extensions of status, changes of employer, amendments, and quota-exempt H-1B filings. It appears […]
As is widely known, employment-based immigration cases have come under increased scrutiny in recent times. For example, in March of 2017 the USCIS issued a policy memorandum indicating that the position of “computer programmer” is no longer considered a “specialty occupation” for H-1B visa eligibility. This runs contrary to decades of prior rulings otherwise. As […]
Over the past few months, the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) has tightened restrictions for H-1B workers placed at third-party worksites. These changes are in accordance with the presidential administration’s “Buy American and Hire American” executive order.
In a policy memorandum from February 2018, the USCIS announced that it would require all U.S. employers to […]
The USCIS states on May 15 that is has finished the initial data entry of all H-1B cap cases selected in the lottery. Selected petitioners are now receiving case filing receipts by mail. Without indicating a time frame, the USCIS has also indicated that it will soon begin returning to petitioners by mail the […]
Since January 2018, our firm has seen a sharp increase in administrative processing for U.S. visa applications at consulates in India and China. This has caused significant delays in visas being approved and has resulted in foreign nationals spending an additional three weeks to two months in the country of the visa interview, as […]
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) recently changed its mission statement to remove the section describing the U.S. as “a nation of immigrants.” Before the recent change, the USCIS’s mission statement read:
“USCIS secures America’s promise as a nation of immigrants by providing accurate and useful information to our customers, granting immigration and […]
Based on current political talks, work permits (“EADs”) for H-4 visa holders may no longer be an option. The current law states that spouses of H-1B visa holders, also known as H-4 visa holders, may not apply for work authorization. The exception to this rule is that H-4 spouses may apply for work authorization […]
The 12 Notes of Christmas H-1B Sponsorship: What U.S. Employers Should Know About the H-1B Lottery
The holidays are just around the corner, closely followed by the H-1B lottery during the first week of April. Though the deadline may seem far off, now is when U.S. employers should begin to consider which foreign workers they […]