As an update to an earlier post, on Aug. 1, the president signed the Knowledgeable Innovators and Worthy Investors Act (KIWI Act) granting E-1 and E-2 status to certain New Zealand nationals under mutual considerations. This will permit citizens of New Zealand to apply for U.S. visas to carry on significant trade with the United States … Continue Reading
On April 25, 2018, European Union ambassadors reached an agreement between the European Council and representatives of the European Union Parliament for a European version of the U.S. Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).… Continue Reading
On Dec. 14, the Office of Management and Budget Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OMB) published the biennial Unified Agenda. A long-standing outgrowth of previous regulatory reform efforts, the Unified Agenda offers the public the “current thinking” of federal agencies on upcoming Agency regulatory priorities. Of importance to the immigration community, DHS USCIS posed … Continue Reading
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a report titled “USCIS Needs a Better Approach to Verify H-1B Visa Participants.” The report was published on Oct. 20, 2017, where OIG made the following findings, after which it gave four recommendations to USCIS:… Continue Reading
For over a decade, filing an extension of nonimmigrant status in visa categories such as the H-1B was a fairly routine process for cases involving the same employer and same underlying facts. This changed yesterday. As part of the Trump Administration’s Buy American, Hire American: Putting American Workers First initiative, USCIS rescinded a long-standing policy … Continue Reading
On Oct. 8, 2017, the White House released the promised Immigration Principles & Policies (Principles & Policies) which outline the Trump Administration’s position on immigration. This document is broken into three parts: 1) Border Security, 2) Interior Enforcement, and 3) Merit-Based Immigration. A summary of each part is broken down below.… Continue Reading
On Sept. 1, 2017, the U.S Department of State (DOS) updated the Field Adjudicators Manual (FAM) at 9 FAM 302.9-4(B)(3). The Field Adjudicators Manual (FAM) serves to guide consular officers in their adjudications process, and this particular section provides guidance regarding “misrepresentation” by applicants “at the time of visa application or to DHS when applying … Continue Reading
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is denying Advance Parole (AP) applications when an applicant travels internationally while the application is pending with USCIS. This represents a big adjudication shift by USCIS, which has for several years allowed certain AP applicants to travel abroad while waiting for USCIS to approve an AP application. By making … Continue Reading
On Monday, August 21, 2017, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow announced that starting August 23 all nonimmigrant visa operations across Russia will be temporarily suspended. The mission announced that it would recommence services in Moscow on Sept. 1, but visa operations at all other U.S. consular locations in Russia would remain on hold. All visa … Continue Reading
The Department of State (DOS) recently released the September 2017 Visa Bulletin. The charts show movement in some employment-based categories, with no movement in other employment-based visa categories. According to the September Visa Bulletin, the following are updates to Final Action Dates: EB-1: The Worldwide EB-1 category for India and China remains stalled at Jan. 1, … Continue Reading
Under the heading “Transparency for U.S. Workers,” the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) uploaded five reports today containing comprehensive data regarding its H-1B and Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) adjudications. The H-1B reports “provide information about the hiring practices of employers who petition for foreign national workers.” The H-1B trend report contains statistics about the H-1B program … Continue Reading
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and The Department of Labor (DOL) have submitted a final rule to the Federal Register, which will be published on July 18, 2017, increasing the number of H-2B visas by 15,000. DHS Secretary John Kelly determined, along with DOL Secretary Alexander Acosta, that there are not enough qualified and … Continue Reading
As previously reported, the Supreme Court of the United States lifted the injunctions that were granted by the Fourth and Ninth Circuits after President Trump issued his second Executive Order mandating a temporary travel ban. This means that the second Executive Order (EO) is now in effect as of June 29. The injunctions for the … Continue Reading
On June 21, President Trump issued an Executive Order Amending Executive Order 13597. This Executive Order rescinds a provision, subsection (b)(ii) of Section 2, of an Obama Administration era Executive Order Establishing Visa and Foreign Visitor Processing Goals and the Task Force On Travel and Competitiveness that read, “ensure that 80 percent of nonimmigrant visa applicants … Continue Reading
USCIS has determined that for July 2017, the Final Action Dates chart in the Department of State (DOS) Visa Bulletin must be used for both family-sponsored filings and employment-based preference filings. By way of background, individuals who are present in the United States are eligible to file a Form I-485, Application to Adjust Status in … Continue Reading
Yesterday, U.S. Secretary of Labor Jim Acosta announced an initiative aimed at addressing fraud and restoring transparency in U.S. non-immigrant visa enforcement. As released by the Department of Labor (DOL), the key initiatives include: Directing the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division (the Division) to use all its tools in conducting civil investigations to enforce labor … Continue Reading
According to the June 2017 Visa Bulletin released by Department of State and effective June 1, there will be significant retrogression in the EB-1 category for individuals born in mainland China and India. While the current cutoff date for worldwide chargeability in the EB-1 category will remain current, the final action dates for Chinese and … Continue Reading
Greenberg Traurig Shareholder Kate Kalmykov was recently quoted in The Jerusalem Post’s article, “Trumps Visa Policy May Harm Israeli Hi-Tech Innovators.” In the article, Kalmykov addresses Israeli hi-tech companies options for visas when looking to relocate employees to the United States. To read the full article, click here.… Continue Reading
The U.S. immigration agency’s busiest day of the year was marked with reminders about the dark side of the H-1B visa program. Acceptance of H-1B cap-subject petitions started on April 3, 2017. But the flurry of H-1B filings were met with announcements from agencies involved with the H-1B program about measures designed to tighten policies … Continue Reading
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced that its I-94 website will be under maintenance and will not be available during the following periods: (1) March 30, 2017 from 1:30 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. EDT; (2) April 2, 2017 from 1:30 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. EDT; and (3) April 6, 2017 from 1:30 … Continue Reading
The Business Immigration & Compliance Practice of Greenberg Traurig, LLP is pleased to announce that Jennifer Hermansky has been elevated to shareholder in the Philadelphia office. Hermansky focuses her immigration practice on both employment-based and family-based immigration. Specifically, she focuses her practice on EB-5 immigrant investor visas. She has prepared and filed many immigrant investor … Continue Reading
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Ian Macdonald was recently quoted by National Public Radio (NPR) for a story on the Marketplace Morning Report, which is part of the Marketplace portfolio of public radio programs. Macdonald provided an employer’s perspective on H-1B visas and challenges employers must face when sponsoring highly-skilled workers. To read the full article, click here. … Continue Reading
Due to a technical error, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) recently began issuing H-1B approval notices on Form I-797 that incorrectly list the class as “1B1.” This technical error affected H-1B approval notices for H-1B petitions that were filed with the Vermont, Nebraska, and California Service Centers. The California Service Center confirmed … Continue Reading
Beginning Feb. 16, 2016, USCIS began reissuing receipt notices on Form I-797 to applicants who continue to have pending applications for renewed employment authorization (EAD applications) under certain categories that were originally filed between July 21, 2016 and Jan. 16, 2017. EAD applications that were filed during this window did not fall within the benefits of … Continue Reading
