This afternoon, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) released the October 2016 Visa Bulletin. There is considerable movement in the final action (FA) chart for the employment-based, second preference (EB2) category. As of October 1, 2016, EB2 will be current for all countries of chargeability,...
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has released information on the initiation of an Electronic Visa Update System (EVUS). EVUS is designed to allow those enrolled in the program to update the biographical information of visas. EVUS is scheduled to start in November 2016...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has begun using Twitter as a mechanism to answer general questions from the public. While not a substitute for legal or case-specific guidance, this new option may be a convenient way for some to get more general information. Twitter...
Earlier today, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released details of a proposed rule that "…would allow certain international entrepreneurs to be considered for parole (temporary permission to be in the United States) so that they may start or scale their businesses here in...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) visa bulletin changed to a dual chart system as of the October 2015 Visa Bulletin. Almost a year since this change went into effect, however, there continues to be a great deal of confusion over when the cutoff dates...
On August 24, 2016, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) concluded its review of a proposed rule designed to allow the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to parole (i.e. grant temporary permission to enter the United States to) "…inventors, researchers, and founders of start-up...
Charles Oppenheim, Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division for the U.S. Department of State (DOS), supplies monthly visa bulletin explanations. This month's update includes predictions for October 2016, which is the start of fiscal year 2017. All information in this article pertains to...
The Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) reversed a PERM labor certification (LC) denial involving a change in the PERM application signatory at the time of an audit. This case illustrates the minute details that can determine success or failure in the PERM process....
Beginning in approximately January 2017, most nonimmigrant waiver applications that are approved will be granted with validity periods of five-years. Under the current policy, initial nonimmigrant waivers are typically only granted for one or two years. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Admissibility Review...
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) provides targeted quarterly information regarding PERM labor certification (LC) filings. The PERM LC process is the starting point or foundation of most employment-based, permanent residence ("green card") cases. The DOL statistics for the third quarter of fiscal year 2016...
