As many MurthyDotCom readers know, the common qualifications for the employment-based, second preference (EB2) category is possession of an advanced degree or its equivalent. This requirement poses a challenge for many individuals who, because of their educational histories, are limited to filing in the employment-based,...
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has changed an important F-1 student-related procedure. As of July 31, 2013, the ICE Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) no longer mails I-797C, notice of action receipts for payments of Form I-901 Student and Exchange Visitor Information...
The anxiously-awaited September 2013 U.S. Department of State (DOS) Visa Bulletin, which is the final visa bulletin for fiscal year 2013 (FY13), contains good news for the family-based, second preference "A" (FB2A) category and the employment-based, second preference (EB2) category for India. There are also...
It is fairly common for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to transfer a designated type of case internally in order to achieve a better workload balance. However, while the USCIS may view such case transfers as routine, this sometimes causes concern among foreign...
The Murthy Law Firm has recently received reports that officers from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) Directorate have been contacting end-client companies to verify information contained in pending H1B petitions filed by IT consulting companies. Typically, the...
As was widely reported in the media, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) temporarily closed twenty-two embassies and consulates in early August 2013, due to al-Qaida related security concerns. Nineteen posts were closed through August 10, 2013. Subsequently, nearly all of the embassies and consulates...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has issued a set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) addressing issues pertaining to the availability of immigration benefits to same-sex spouses. Similar to the FAQs recently published by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), as discussed in the NewsBrief, Clarification...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) Visa Bulletin for September 2013 advances the cutoff date in the employment-based, second preference (EB2) category for India by more than five months, to June 15, 2008. Movement in the employment-based, third preference (EB3) category is even more substantial....
In recent months, attorneys at the Murthy Law Firm have received a number of phone calls from individuals seeking assistance in evidencing their prior work experience to support their respective I-140 employment-based immigrant petitions. It appears the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has begun...
On August 2, 2013, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) issued a Travel Alert, warning U.S. citizens of "the continued potential for terrorist attacks, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, and possibly occurring in or emanating from the Arabian Peninsula." To that end,...
