The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced this evening that it has completed the randomized H1B cap lottery selection process. The USCIS also confirmed that, as expected, it received more than 20,000 petitions that qualified for the advanced-degree exemption ("master's cap").The USCIS reported that...
While the teleconference series offered by the Murthy Law Firm is designed for employers and their representatives, employees and those considering launching startups may be interested in this information, as well. Many employers are familiar with the H1B and L-1 nonimmigrant visa programs, but there...
Answer In general, once one is counted under the H1B cap, it is possible to move back and forth between cap-subject employers and cap-exempt nonprofit employers until one has exhausted one's 6 years of H1B time. (08.Apr.2019)In frequent sessions of our Chat, Sheela Murthy and other...
Answer An H1B amendment is required if there has been a material change in one's job duties, or if one has moved to a new metropolitan area (MSA). Given that the new job is within the same MSA, an amendment likely would be necessary only if...
Similar to the policy announced this past fall for O-1/O-2 consultations, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is now accepting negative P consultations directly from labor unions. The measure is presumably to prevent fraud in the P-1, P-2, and P-3 petition process. Background on P...
On Friday, April 5, 2019, the USCIS announced that it had received sufficient filings for regular H1B cap subject cases for fiscal year 2020 (which will begin October 1, 2019). In essence, the USCIS confirmed that they had received more filings than the 65,000 regular...
Answer A client letter is never required - it is merely one type of evidence that can be provided. In practice, however, if no client letter is provided, an RFE is quite likely. A detailed eMail from a client manager will sometimes, but not always, suffice....
Answer One needs to be VERY careful with this. Although many states have legalized marijuana, it is still classified as a Schedule A drug under federal law (the same classification as drugs like heroin and cocaine). Even if state law allows the use of marijuana for...
Answer In general, if one has multiple H1B petitions approved for change of status, it would be possible simply to choose the employer for whom one prefers to work. The other employer/s then would withdraw their approval/s. (01.Apr.2019)In frequent sessions of our Chat, Sheela Murthy and...
Many nonimmigrant visa classifications allow children of the principal to apply for dependent status. For instance, an H1B worker's dependents typically may be admitted in H-4 status, while the dependents of an F-1 student may request admission in F-2 status. Upon reaching the age of...
