The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a new version of the application to register permanent residence or adjust status (form I-485). Effective August 25, 2017, the USCIS will only accept the new version of the I-485, which lists an edition date of 06/25/2017...
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has released a smartphone app to assist those who are studying to take the civics portion of the naturalization test. The app, which is called USCIS: Civics Test Study Tools, is available for both Apple and Android devices. Background One...
As of Monday, July 24, 2017, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) resumed accepting requests for premium processing for certain cap-exempt H1B petitions. As explained in the USCIS news release:Premium processing will resume for petitions that may be exempt from the cap if the...
In a brief, unsigned Opinion today, the United States Supreme Court allowed a lower court’s restrictions on the Trump Administration’s travel ban on six Muslim-majority countries to remain in place. The Supreme Court had previously allowed parts of the travel ban to go into effect,...
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Wage and Hour Division is reinstating its policy of issuing opinion letters upon request to provide guidance to employers and employees on the Fair Labor Standards Act and other U.S. labor laws. Per a June 27, 2017 DOL announcement,...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) released the August 2017 Visa Bulletin this afternoon. In the final action (FA) chart, the cutoff dates in the employment-based, first preference (EB1) category remain unchanged, leaving India and China stuck at January 1, 2012. In the employment-based, second...
On July 3, 2017, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that citizens of India can now enroll in the Global Entry Program. In a largely unreported story that should have gained substantial news media coverage, India is among only eleven countries in the...
Major news media recently announced there would be a laptop ban in the cabins of most Middle-Eastern flights bound for the United States. What has been largely unreported is that the ban has been lifted against four major carriers. The four airlines are Etihad, Emirates,...
The January 17, 2017 regulation for employment-based applicants includes a provision to allow for up to a 10-day grace period both before and after the work authorization period for certain foreign nationals in E-1, E-2, L-1, or TN status. These grace periods have also long...
The E-3 visa is a nonimmigrant, employment-based visa category available to qualifying Australian citizens. While very similar to the H1B classification, the E-3 classification has a few unique requirements and benefits. General Requirements Parallel Those of H1B Category The E-3 category allows an individual to enter the...
