On July 11, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the extension of its current Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for Venezuelans residing in the U.S. as of March 8, 2021. The 18-month...more
At the beginning of each fiscal year, U.S. government agencies announce their regulatory agendas, which guide the agencies’ future actions. Here are the most relevant short and long-term regulatory changes that have been...more
7/8/2022
/ Adjustment of Status ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Filing Fees ,
H-1B ,
Immigration Procedures ,
L-1 Visas ,
Prevailing Wages ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
US Department of State ,
USCIS
Announcement-
In welcome news to international travelers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on June 10, 2022, that effective June 12, 2022, all individuals traveling to the United States will no...more
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced on May 7, 2022, that it had selected this year’s Diversity Lottery (DV 2023) applicants. Since the DOS does not notify winners, entrants who submitted within the mandatory time...more
On May 4, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that effective immediately, it would increase the automatic extension period for employment authorization documents (EADs) for certain EAD renewal...more
Secretary Of Homeland Security Mayorkas Has Designated Ukraine for Temporary Protected Status for 18 Months, Commencing April 19, 2022 and Concluding on October 19, 2023....more
On March 18, 2022, U.S. Citizenship Services (USCIS) published further detail relating to employment authorization documentation for E and L spouses. By way of background, in November 2021, USCIS reached a settlement...more
On March 16, 2022, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas designated Afghanistan for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months. Temporary Protected Status is only granted to individuals already residing...more
Effective March 1, 2022, the United States government extended Temporary Protected Status to Ukrainians present in the United States and the relaxation of entry requirements for Ukrainian nationals.
On March 3, 2022,...more
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (USCBP) has begun the process of implementing a federal court order following a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security relating to the immediate ability of L and E spouses...more
On January 28, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the registration dates for FY 2023 H-1B cap filings with the agency. Filing submission dates are March 1, 2022, at 12 p.m. ET and the registration...more
Effective January 21, 2022, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security updated and expanded the list of STEM fields of study falling within the regulatory definition of “STEM field.” The list, known as the “DHS Stem Designated...more
1/25/2022
/ Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
F-1 Visa ,
Federal Register ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Students ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Joe Biden ,
SEVP ,
STEM ,
USCIS
Background-
The H-1B nonimmigrant visa is one of the most highly utilized and sought-after temporary work visas and facilitates the employment of foreign nationals entering the United States to perform employment in...more
On December 23, 2021, the U.S. Department of State announced that it will temporarily suspend in-person interviews for some nonimmigrant visa classifications in order to expedite visa issuance as the pandemic heads into its...more
In an effort to stem the rise in COVID-19 cases, and in particular, to combat the new Omicron variant, an Executive Order issued by the White House on December 2 included new entry restrictions and guidelines as of 12:01 am,...more
On November 26, the President issued a new Proclamation, to take effect on Monday, November 29 at 12:01 am, barring entry to foreign nationals, with few exceptions, who have been physically present in the past 14 days in...more
On November 19, U.S. Citizenship Services (USCIS) announced it had completed a third H-1B lottery selection for the fiscal year 2022 cap. This is the third H-1B lottery selection this year. USCIS allows for 85,000 H1-B...more
11/23/2021
/ Filing Deadlines ,
Filing Fees ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Lottery ,
USCIS ,
Visa Caps ,
Visas
On November 12, 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated its Policy Memo to automatically allow for employment authorization for dependent E, L and certain H-4 spouses of principal visa holders, and it...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is expected to release new guidelines for employment authorization which will affect H-4 and L-2 spouses resulting from a settlement agreement reached in a federal court...more
On October 19, 2021, the Department of Labor (DOL) and Department of Justice (DOJ) settled with Facebook over its alleged discrimination against U.S. workers relating to the manner it conducted recruitment under the permanent...more
11/5/2021
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Discrimination ,
Facebook ,
Foreign Workers ,
Immigration and Nationality Act ,
Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) ,
PERM ,
Recruitment Policies ,
USCIS
On October 25, President Joseph R. Biden issued a Presidential Proclamation officially rescinding all current COVID-19 regional travel bans and instead imposed a COVID-19 vaccine requirement on all nonimmigrants traveling to...more
In a Twitter announcement on October 15, the White House announced that the U.S. will introduce a new travel policy that will begin on November 8, permitting foreign nationals access to the United States provided they have...more
On Friday, October 1, the State Department announced that the dates for this year’s Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery filings will officially open on Wednesday, October 6 at noon, eastern daylight time (EDT). The entry period will...more
On September 20, 2021, the Biden administration announced that it would be relaxing its restrictions on the entry of foreign nationals to the United States commencing in November 2021. Not setting a date certain for now, but...more
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has mandated that all green card applicants for adjustment of status in the United States and immigrant visa applicants applying abroad at consular posts be vaccinated...more