On July 11, 2014, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigrant Services (USCIS) issued a policy memorandum that provides updated guidance to adjudicators to determine whether a particular nursing position meets the H1B category's specialty occupation requirement. This issue was last addressed by the USCIS in 2002. The...
In March 2014, the Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) Ombudsman recommended a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) policy change regarding the narrow interpretation of a provision in the law that impacts J-2 spouses of J-1 physicians. Under the USCIS interpretation of the law, these...
The Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman (CIS Ombudsman) 2014 Annual Report was submitted to Congress on June 27, 2014. The report details various deficiencies found within the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), according to the Ombudsman's office, including problems with H1B and L-1 processing...
Many foreign nationals are anxiously awaiting news related to the proposed rules that would make certain H-4 spouses eligible to apply for employment authorization documents (EADs). It remains unclear when - or even if - the proposal will go into effect. However, the deadline for...
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released a checklist now being utilized by officers to evaluate trade NAFTA (TN) applications. This is an apparent response to concerns over inconsistencies in decision making on cases requesting admission in the TN category. TN for Canadian and Mexican Professionals The...
With approvals coming in for cap-subject H1B petitions filed for fiscal year (FY) 2015 and those selected in the lottery, we have been receiving calls from H1B beneficiaries and employers, seeking clarification on how early they can apply for H1B visas based on approvals received...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has confirmed that the U.S. consular posts in Canada have an extremely limited number of appointments available this summer for third-country nationals (TCNs) applying for nonimmigrant visas. To that end, the DOS is urging visa applicants, other than Canadian...
On Monday, June 2, 2014, the Murthy Law Firm received our first batch of returned H1B filings for cases that were not selected in this year's H1B lottery. More than two weeks have passed since our firm last received any new receipt notices for H1B...
A U.S. federal district court recently ruled on a case involving an issue that is a vital component of every H1B petition. The H1B classification is only appropriate for positions that qualify as "specialty occupations." In the case at hand, CareMax Inc. v. Eric Holder,...
On May 12, 2014, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a proposed regulatory change in the Federal Register, which would make certain H-4 dependent spouses eligible to apply for employment authorization. This proposal is now subject to a sixty-day public comment period, after which...
