As announced in December 2018, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is in the process of implementing a registration system for employers seeking to file cap-subject H1B petitions. This system would replace the current H1B "lottery" system. Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a change today in the direct mailing addresses for certain H1B petitioners.As has been USCIS policy since 2017, most H1B petitions must be filed at a designated service center based on the state where the petitioner's primary...
For the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to approve an application for naturalization (form N-400), the applicant for citizenship generally must first pass a U.S. civics and history test, and demonstrate the ability to read, write, and speak English. The USCIS has announced that...
On August 14, 2019, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published the final rule, Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds, that greatly expands the categories of public benefits considered in the determination of whether a foreign national may be deemed a public charge (i.e., a...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is scheduled to publish a final rule on August 14, 2019 that will greatly expand the categories of public benefits looked at to determine whether a foreign national may be deemed a public charge (i.e., a person who...
It is fairly common for dependents of a nonimmigrant worker to file an application to extend / change nonimmigrant status (form I-539) concurrently with the principal spouse's petition for a nonimmigrant worker (form I-129). Historically, if the I-129 was filed with a request for premium...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced an upgrade to its online tool, the Freedom of Information Act Immigration Records System (FIRST). FIRST now allows stakeholders to make Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests online for certain documents. Background FOIA, which went into effect in...
Processing times at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) have long been a point of concern. And the Trump Administration's efforts to implement roadblocks in the legal immigration system have only exacerbated the situation. Since the last fiscal year of the Obama Administration, the...
On June 10, 2019, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary Kevin McAleenan announced that Ken Cuccinelli would be assuming the role of Acting Director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). There is no consensus as to whether President Trump will confirm...
The USCIS has updated the Adjustment of Status Filing Charts from the Visa Bulletin webpage to clarify that the family-based, second preference "A" (FB2A) category is "current" under the July 2019 Visa Bulletin.The July 2019 Visa Bulletin contains an extremely unusual entry in the FB2A...
