A seemingly benign application form known as the DS-160 nonimmigrant visa application form is completed online by all applicants seeking to work in temporary visa status in the United States. The form, available on the...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final rule requiring employers to pay a $10.00 non-refundable fee for each H-1B cap registration submitted, once the electronic system is implemented. This final...more
New regulations proposed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are slated to take effect for the 2021 H-1B cap filing period, which starts on April 1, 2020.
Proposed in January 2019, the new regulations mandate that...more
The Public Charge Rule, which had been scheduled to be implemented on October 15, 2019, was halted by U.S. District Courts in New York, California and Washington state late last week.
The preliminary injunctions issued in...more
On Friday, October 4, President Trump issued an unexpected proclamation ordering consular officials to bar immigrants seeking to live in the United States unless they "will be covered by approved health insurance" or can...more
On October 2, this year's Diversity Lottery Registration Program (DV lottery) becomes available to applicants from eligible countries. You can enter the DV lottery here. Entries can only be submitted electronically. All...more
On June 17, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced it is embarking upon a strategy to decrease processing times based on location for applications for U.S. citizenship and applications for adjustment of...more
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released its Spring 2019 Regulatory Agenda, announcing the agency's priorities and how it plans to continue furthering the current administration's immigration-related goals....more
6/27/2019
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
F-1 Visa ,
H-1B ,
H-4 Spouses ,
I-485 Applications ,
Immigration and Nationality Act ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Non-Immigrant Visas ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Registration Fees ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Visa Waiver Program ,
Visas
The U.S. Department of State has added a new social media question to its immigrant and nonimmigrant visa application forms.
Effective June 1, applicants filling out Forms DS-160 and DS-260 must provide the government with...more
Recent developments regarding the U.S. Department of State’s policy relating to children born abroad to same-sex couples are slowing making their way through the U.S. federal courts for final determinations regarding the...more
Unannounced changes at the Canadian border have disrupted Canadian L-1 intra-company transferee visa applicants' admission to the United States.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) appears to have shifted its...more
On April 5, USCIS announced that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to meet the Congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B regular "bachelor's degree" cap cases for this fiscal year.
USCIS will next determine...more
On March 19, USCIS made a surprise announcement - it will be phasing in a new two-tiered premium processing procedure and establishing a new H-1B data hub on its website.
On April 1, USCIS will commence accepting cap-subject...more
On March 11, USCIS announced that it would resume premium processing for all H-1B petition filings. Premium processing facilitates an expedited process for adjudication of nonimmigrant petitions including H1-B, L1, O1 and O2,...more
USCIS recently provided updated data showing there has been a decline in approvals and higher rates of requests for evidence (RFE) for several key employer-sponsored non-immigrant visa categories.
The newly released data,...more
USCIS announced that, as of Tuesday, February 19, it has resumed premium processing for all H-1B petitions filed on or before December 21, 2018.
An expedited process for facilitating swift adjudication of non-immigrant...more
Changes in the business immigration arena continue to affect non-immigrants in significant ways.
Rescission of H-4 Dependent Visa Holder Employment Authorization-
By March 18, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has updated its H-1B pre-registration policy for the upcoming cap season and clarifies new developments related to H-1B processing. In this alert, we explore how each of these...more
We welcome 2019 with the anticipation of yet another H-1B lottery filing season, this one filled with some major changes. Traditionally, the H-1B visa category has been utilized by U.S. companies to hire international talent...more
On October 30, USCIS announced that it will expand its Information Services Modernization Program to more field offices because it believes that most inquiries at local district offices can be accomplished through online...more
In November 2018, USCIS issued an updated policy memorandum clarifying the terms of visa eligibility for L-1 visa designates who may have worked abroad for a qualifying entity overseas and, in the interim, held a different...more
On December 3, 2018, USCIS proposed a rule removing the current requirement for U.S. employers to file cap-subject H-1B petitions commencing April 1 each year.
What is changing?...more
On November 8, the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals blocked the Trump administration's attempt at ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. In response, the Department of Justice asked the U.S....more
A group of U.S. colleges and universities, including The New School in New York City and Haverford College in Pennsylvania, have sued the Trump administration this week regarding the issuance of a new regulation affecting the...more
On October 10, 2018, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a proposed rule in the Federal Register suggesting changes to the "public charge" rules and how these rules would affect nonimmigrants and immigrants...more