Today, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the data entry process has been completed for all cases selected in the fiscal year 2020 (FY20) H1B lottery. The USCIS will now begin returning all cap-subject petitions that were not selected.The USCIS notes that,...
Answer In general, no, this would not impact the H1B change-of-status request because OPT is not a status - one's status during OPT would still be F-1. Once an H1B change-of-status is approved, the F-1 status and corresponding OPT are terminated as of October 1st (or...
Answer In general, there is no requirement that one have a particular period of validity remaining to enter the U.S. in H1B status. Assuming the position is still available, one may request admission in H1B status for the remaining three-month period. (13.May.2019)In frequent sessions of our...
Answer Under the contiguous territory rule, one generally can go to Canada or Mexico using automatic visa revalidation ("AVR") for up to 30 days if one's I-94 is unexpired. A valid visa stamp is NOT required to reenter the U.S. However, one cannot use "AVR" if...
As of May 20, 2019, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will accept only the latest version of the petition for a nonimmigrant worker (form I-129), which has a 01/31/19 date printed at the bottom of each page. The USCIS will reject any prior...
Legalization or decriminalization of marijuana at the state level can mislead noncitizens into thinking using marijuana in accordance with state law is legal. Marijuana, however, is a controlled substance under federal law. Therefore, the use, sale, purchase, or even the mere possession of marijuana, in...
Answer If an H1B petition is filed within the 60-day grace period (i.e., 60 days of the last date of employment, not the last date of a paycheck), then it generally is treated as a timely filing and the individual is permitted to work based on...
Answer The National Benefits Center (NBC) takes care of scheduling all interviews, however the timing of that appointment is based on availability at the specific office that has jurisdiction for where you live. Every office is different. There is some general processing information on the USCIS...
Answer Usually, the receipt notice arrives within 2-to-3 weeks (if not filed with premium processing). However, in some cases where the lockbox is significantly backlogged, it can take longer. Regardless of how long it takes to issue the notice, the receipt date is determined by when...
Answer If the original petition is still valid, then yes, you should be able to keep working pursuant to that petition. In the meantime, your employer may wish to challenge the H1B denial, and/or consider refiling the H1B extension, providing additional evidence to support the argument...
