On August 24, 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that, starting October 1, 2021, green card applicants will be required to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19. The complete vaccination history is documented by a designated civil surgeon on form I-693, which...
The U.S. Senate has confirmed President Biden's nominee, Ur Mendoza Jaddou, to serve as the Director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Director Jaddou, whose mother is from Mexico and father is from Iraq, is the first woman to be confirmed by the...
Answer Generally speaking, once the I-485 has been approved, it is no longer possible to port to a same / similar position pursuant to AC21. As discussed in the MurthyDotCom NewsBrief, Changing Employers After Receiving Employment-Based Green Card (09.Aug.2021), there may be risks associated with leaving...
Answer No, if you are not in the U.S., the H1B extension does not need to be filed before the current one expires. (19.Aug.2021)Sheela Murthy and other senior attorneys provide guidance that clarifies the law. For information on our FREE online services, click here. Access more...
Answer Initially, the guidance from the U.S. Department of State (DOS) regarding F-1 students returning to the U.S. was extremely vague. Fortunately, the DOS has recently clarified that F-1 students (including those on CPT or OPT) who will resume their programs on or after August 1,...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has signed a settlement agreement with a group of F-1 students affected by long delays in processing of optional practical training (OPT) and 24-month STEM OPT extension applications. The settlement agreement potentially benefits the entire class of OPT...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has released the September 2021 Visa Bulletin, which is the last visa bulletin for fiscal year 2021. All cutoff dates listed refer to the dates in the final action chart (i.e., Chart A), unless otherwise specified. The U.S. Citizenship...
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is considering a rule, which could be published as soon as next month - September 2021 - that would establish new benefit requests eligible for premium processing, consistent with the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA). Assuming the regulation...
This afternoon, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that, effective August 12, 2021, the validity period of a report of medical examination and vaccination record (form I-693) will temporarily be extended from two years to four years. Per the announcement, the USCIS may...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) requires foreign nationals to submit biometrics in-person at an application support center (ASC) before granting certain categories of immigration benefits. After the USCIS schedules the biometrics appointment, if the individual fails to attend and does not take any...
