The U.S. Department of State (DOS) Visa Bulletin for August 2012 contains no surprises for our readers. The employment-based, second preference (EB2) category for India and China is unavailable through the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2012. The retrogressed date of January 1, 2009 in EB2...
Minister Counselor James W. Herman, of the U.S. Embassy, New Delhi, India, advised in late June 2012 of ongoing consideration of a potential drastic reduction in the duration of B-1 (business visitor) visas issued to Indian citizens seeking to visit the United States. A recent...
The Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) issued a decision on June 14, 2012 overturning the denial of a PERM labor certification (PERM labor) despite a 0.0003 percent variation between the employer's offered wage and the U.S. Department of Labor's prevailing wage determination (PWD)....
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a notice, published in the Federal Register on July 9, 2012, regarding proposed changes to the labor condition application (LCA). The LCA form is a key requirement in the H1B process. The proposed changes are significant, and address...
On July 11, 2012 Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) announced that he was lifting his "hold" on H.R. 3012, The Fairness to High-Skilled Immigrants Act. The bill proposes a phased-in elimination of per-country numerical limitations in the employment-based (EB) green card categories. This bill was approved...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) issued a message of encouragement, with helpful information and advice for students who intend to study in the United States for the 2012-13 academic year. Summarized here for our readers are tips that were shared by the DOS. Majority of...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has provided detailed predictions and explanations regarding the movement of priority dates in fiscal year 2013 (FY13), which occurs from October 1, 2012 through September 30, 2013. The employment-based, second preference (EB2) category for India and China faces protracted...
The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) recently issued a precedent decision, which significantly changes prior interpretations regarding travel on advance parole (AP) after an individual has been unlawfully present in the United States. Under the BIA decision, Matter of Arrabally and Yerrabelly, an individual who...
The U.S. Supreme Court made a key decision on June 25, 2012 regarding the limitations on state authority over immigration control. In Arizona vs. United States, the Supreme Court struck down three of four contested provisions of Arizona's controversial immigration law, S.B. 1070. Visitors to...
The U.S. Department of State (DOS), Immigrant Visa Control and Reporting Division, expects to establish a cutoff date of August or September 2007 for the employment-based, second preference (EB2) category for India and China, in the October 2012 Visa Bulletin. They further predict that this...
