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Please feel free to share this announcement with your company representative. Future teleconferences will cover a wide variety of topics and will be announced on MurthyDotCom and in the MurthyBulletin. We will address many of the concerns shared by our readers. We plan to begin teleconferences for the general public in the near future.
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Copyright © 2007, MURTHY LAW FIRM. All Rights Reserved

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2. January Visa Bulletin : Bad News for EB2 India
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As MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers were advised in our December 11, 2007 NewsFlash, January 2008 Visa Bulletin: EB2 India Retrogression, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) Visa Bulletin was released for January 2008, and the news for EB2, India, is quite bad. The December Visa Bulletin brought significant retrogression in the EB2 category for both India and China. The January Visa Bulletin continues this trend for India, while EB2 China remains unchanged. There is slight forward movement in some EB3 chargeability areas. Categories that were previously current remain current. The latest Visa Bulletin chart is always available on MurthyDotCom.
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Summary of Visa Bulletin
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Employment-Based First Preference
This category remains current for all countries of chargeability.
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Employment-Based Second Preference
This category continues to be current for worldwide, Mexico, and the Philippines. The cutoff date for China remained unchanged, at January 1, 2003. This follows a three-year retrogression in December. The big news was India, which retrogressed by two full years, to January 1, 2000.
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Employment-Based Third Preference
The cutoff date for the EB3 worldwide category, China, and the Philippines each moved forward. The worldwide category moved forward by a month and a half, to October 15, 2002. China inched forward by half a month, to November 1, 2001; the Philippines moved by a month, to October 1, 2002. India remained unchanged, at May 1, 2001. Mexico remained at April 22, 2001. The "other workers" category continued to have an October 1, 2001 cutoff date for all areas of chargeability.
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Employment-Based Fourth / Fifth / Religious Workers and Targeted Employment
The EB4, EB5, religious workers, and the targeted employment categories are all current.
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Explanation and Prediction
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The reason for the EB2 India retrogression is high demand for visa numbers. The cutoff dates are set based upon the quantity of visa numbers remaining and the anticipated demand. The additional significant retrogression for January 2008 reflects a very small supply of visa numbers, as compared to pending EB2 I-485 cases and consular processing cases. Since the retrogression in December did not sufficiently limit the class of eligible cases, and the resulting demand for visa numbers, the dates moved backward once again.
 ©MurthyDotCom
Worse yet, the Visa Bulletin contained the announcement that it is likely the annual EB2, India, limit will be met in the next few months. This would make the category completely unavailable until the next fiscal year, which begins on October 1, 2008.
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Copyright © 2007, MURTHY LAW FIRM. All Rights Reserved

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3. Green Cards Without Expiration Dates Remain Valid
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The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a statement on December 11, 2007, dispelling the rumor that an older "green card," issued without an expiration date, is now invalid. In fact, the I-551 (informally referred to as the "green card") is still valid unless and until a final rule on this matter goes into effect.
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USCIS Proposal is Still Pending
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As MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers were informed in our August 31, 2007 article, Proposed Replacement of Older I-551 Green Card, the USCIS issued a proposed rule on August 22, 2007 that would require a permanent resident holding an older version of Form I-551, without an expiration date, to apply for a new card. If enacted, the proposed rule would give a permanent resident affected by the rule only 120 days in which to file Form I-90. Form I-90 is used for replacing green cards, whether or not they have expiration dates. The processing of an I-90 involves fingerprinting and a background check. In response to the proposed rule, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) issued a comment opposing the rule. [See our October 5, 2007 article, AILA Opposes USCIS Rule Invalidating Earlier I-551 Cards, available on MurthyDotCom.] In its comment, AILA argued that the rule, and the narrow window for filing for green card replacement, may negatively affect some individuals because of the delays frequently associated with this procedure.
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Conclusion
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The USCIS rule, proposing to require the replacement of green cards with no expiration dates, has not become a final rule as of the time of this writing. MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers are reminded that proposed rules do not go into effect until and unless they are published in the Federal Register as final rules. Watch for more on this topic, as new information becomes available. It should also be noted that most of our readers are not impacted by this matter, as green cards have carried expiration dates since 1989.
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Copyright © 2007, MURTHY LAW FIRM. All Rights Reserved

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4. USCIS Updates the Guide for New Immigrants
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The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a news release (32.1KB PDF) on December 11, 2007, announcing the release of an updated version of Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants. The new edition of the guide includes information essential for maintaining lawful permanent resident status in the United States and information on federal and community services concerning healthcare, the U.S. governmental system, naturalization requirements, settling into a new place of residence, schooling, English language, and adult education classes, preparing for emergencies, and information about various organizations that provide services to immigrants.
 ©MurthyDotCom
Guide to be Widely Disseminated and Translated into More Languages
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The USCIS has indicated that it disseminates the new guide to people who are in the U.S. and those who are still in their home countries, but will be settling permanently in the immediate future. This is an effort to ease their transition into the new country of residence. The guide is being made available in English and 12 other languages, which now include Polish and Urdu. These two new languages were recently added to the list of languages spoken by some 32 million individuals in the U.S., as per the 2000 census.
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Conclusion
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The new guide for permanent residents in the U.S. is a step toward better integration of those who are newly admitted for permanent residence. While it provides a number of essential resources regarding maintenance of status requirements, it is also designed to acquaint new immigrants with general aspects of life in the U.S. We at the Murthy Law Firm encourage all of our readers, regardless of their immigration statuses, to review this helpful publication, as it may contain information on matters of general interest to anyone who is already in the U.S., or considering coming here.
 ©MurthyDotCom
Copyright © 2007, MURTHY LAW FIRM. All Rights Reserved

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5. Avoid Negative Effects on Your Processing Time
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It is not at all unusual for Requests for Evidence (RFEs) to be sent by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) regarding pending applications or petitions, as many MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers know from personal experience. Likewise, requests for the USCIS to reschedule fingerprinting appointments or interviews are not unusual, whether to accommodate travel conflicts or for other reasons. What many such individuals do not realize, however, is just how these circumstances may affect the processing times of their filings. In fact, under current regulations, while the priority date is unaffected by the issuance of an RFE or a request to reschedule a fingerprinting appointment and/or an interview, the processing time may be stopped, or even restarted, depending upon the particular circumstances of each case.
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RFE for Initial Evidence & Request to Reschedule Interview Restart Clock
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Current immigration regulations specify that, whenever the USCIS calls for any required initial evidence missing from the original filing, or when any individual asks that his/her fingerprinting appointment or interview be rescheduled, the processing time for the type of filing in question will start over once the required evidence or request for appointment rescheduling have reached the USCIS. This does not mean that the case will be treated as a new filing or put to the back of any waiting line. It simply means that any required or expected processing time is measured from the receipt of the required evidence, not from the date of the first filing. If, for example, the USCIS accepts an application for an Employment Authorization (EAD) and finds that the required, initial evidence is missing, it may issue an RFE and hold an application until the requested evidence is received. The regulations assert that EADs be processed in 90 days. If an RFE is issued for initial evidence, the 90-day clock will restart only upon receipt of the requisite evidence. Of course, cases also can be denied if filed without the necessary, initial evidence.
 ©MurthyDotCom
RFE for Additional Evidence Stops Clock until Evidence is Received
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Under the same regulation, if the USCIS issues an RFE for information that is not initial evidence, the processing time stops on the date the RFE is issued. It will resume from the same point it stopped when the USCIS receives the requested evidence or response.
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Conclusion
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When receiving an RFE or requesting a postponement of a fingerprinting appointment or interview, it is important to take into account any repercussions that may affect one's immigration case. If there is any timeframe imposed on the USCIS to adjudicate an application or petition, it is more beneficial to respond to the RFE as soon as possible and to avoid rescheduling appointments, unless absolutely necessary. It is particularly important to avoid rescheduling interviews at local USCIS offices, since there are limited slots available and, since scheduling is generally not a local matter, the slots may be wasted when cases are rescheduled. Rearranging an interview at the local office is something that really should be limited to a true emergency, rather than a simple, routine inconvenience.
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Copyright © 2007, MURTHY LAW FIRM. All Rights Reserved

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6. MurthyDotCom : Did You Know about Our Rumor Control Page?
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Whether the result of spreading an erroneous understanding of the law or getting caught up in a media frenzy over some issue that is constantly changing, there are often items in U.S. immigration law needing knowledgeable, clear-headed explanations. MurthyDotCom has established a Rumor Control page for immigrants to find fiction separated from truth and the truth clarified by attorneys at the Murthy Law Firm.
 ©MurthyDotCom
MurthyChat : There will be NO CHAT on December 24th or 31st, in observance of the holidays. The next session MurthyChat will be Monday, Jan 07, 2008, 9:00pm Eastern Time (U.S.). Please check the chat page for any necessary changes to the schedule. Meanwhile, search the chat transcripts for answers to your questions. 
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MurthyForum : Consider joining those who have discovered the value of this service. Our message / discussion board is visited daily by one of our attorneys.
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MurthyDotCom - MurthyBulletin - MurthyChat - and MurthyForum - Your ultimate U.S. immigration resources on the Internet all start with MURTHY!
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Copyright © 2007, MURTHY LAW FIRM. All Rights Reserved

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7. Important Processing Times and Dates
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Processing Times : For links to processing times for the USCIS Service Centers, district (or local) processing times, the Administrative Appeals Office, Department of State visa bulletin, and Department of Labor dates for the processing of labor certification applications.
 ©MurthyDotCom
Copyright © 2007, MURTHY LAW FIRM. All Rights Reserved