Answer At the end of 2021, Charles Oppenheim retired from his position as the Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division for the U.S. Department of State (DOS). Until his retirement, Mr. Oppenheim had been providing visa bulletin updates most months. We would then, in...
The Murthy Law Firm often receives questions from permanent residents ("green card" holders) regarding their options for traveling abroad for extended periods. There are certain common misunderstandings within the immigrant community regarding U.S. immigration laws for such travel by permanent residents. Here, we address some...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released guidance to clarify that if a foreign national files an application to extend / change nonimmigrant status (form I-539) online, and biometrics are required, the USCIS will transmit the biometrics notice solely via the applicant's USCIS...
Answer The USCIS has not yet announced when the registration period for the fiscal year 2023 lottery will take place. However, we expect that the USCIS will release this information by early February. (19.Jan.2022)Sheela Murthy and other senior attorneys provide guidance that clarifies the law. For...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has released the February 2022 Visa Bulletin. The most notable movement is in the employment-based, second preference (EB2) category for foreign nationals born in India. All cutoff dates listed refer to the dates in the final action chart (i.e.,...
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has lifted the non-essential travel restrictions that were in place at the U.S.-Canada and U.S.-Mexico land borders since early in the pandemic. This broad travel restriction is replaced...
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has withdrawn a final rule promulgated during the final days of the Trump Administration, which would have replaced the H1B lottery registration system with one that prioritizes cases filed based on wage level. The withdrawal comes after several...
A group of twenty-three Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives have sent a letter to Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, urging him to take steps to reduce processing times for applications for employment authorization (form I-765) filed by H-4...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has issued a temporary final rule that provides consular officers discretion to waive the personal appearance and in-person oath requirement of certain repeat immigrant visa applicants who were issued an immigrant visa on or after August 4, 2019. This...
Answer Trying to secure an appointment at a consulate has been an issue throughout the pandemic. The recent change to allow many more visa applicants to be eligible for an interview waiver (i.e., drop box) is a big step in the right direction, but it will...
