The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has released the February 2020 Visa Bulletin. All cutoff dates listed refer to the dates in the final action (FA) chart, unless otherwise specified. Visa Bulletin Summary Employment-Based, First Preference (EB1) Category The EB1 cutoff dates for China and India remain unchanged,...
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) is investigating the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for lack of adequate medical and mental health care in detention facilities across the U.S. This update is based on a...
This morning, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a notice in the Federal Register, officially announcing the implementation of the registration system for cap-subject H1B petitions being filed for fiscal year 2021 (FY21). This formalizes the announcement made to this effect by the...
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposed a rule that would further limit asylum eligibility. Under the current rules, a criminal conviction does not automatically make a person ineligible for asylum unless it is for a particularly...
Answer The USCIS technically only considers an H1B applicant counted against the numerical H1B cap if s/he is granted a change of status to H1B, or is issued an H1B visa from a U.S. consulate abroad. Absent one of the above, the USCIS may deny a...
Answer It certainly is possible to request the USCIS to expedite a pending H-4 EAD application, but the USCIS is very reluctant to expedite EAD applications. In fact, earlier this year, the USCIS updated the Adjudicator's Field Manual to state that "[t]he need to obtain employment...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has released the January 2020 Visa Bulletin. This month's visa bulletin also includes predictions for cutoff date movement in the coming months. All cutoff dates listed refer to the dates in the final action (FA) chart, unless otherwise specified. Employment-Based,...
H1B cap filing season is nearly upon us, and the new electronic registration system has altered the H1B lottery process significantly. Below are answers to a number of frequently asked questions sent from both foreign nationals and H1B employers. 1. What is the H1B cap? The...
This evening, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that "it has completed a successful pilot testing phase and is implementing the registration process in the next H1B lottery."The USCIS will open the initial registration period from March 1 through March 20, 2020. No...
Answer Several federal courts have blocked the new public charge rule from going into effect. Even if the rule eventually does go into effect, however, it normally would not have any impact on an application to become a U.S. citizen. There is no public charge analysis...
