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NEWS & uPDATES
USCIS will now Prioritize Pending I-539 Applications When Employers File I-129 Petitions With Premium Processing Service Requests
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently published an update to its web page outlining Options for Nonimmigrant Workers Following Termination of Employment. Notably, the agency indicated that it will prioritize a pending I-539 application to change status to B-1/B-2 visitor status when an employer subsequently files an I-129 change of status petition with a premium processing service request. Per the recent USCIS update, if an employer files a Form I-129 petition along with Form I-907 for premium processing service, the agency will generally process the pending Form I-539 and Form I-129 together during the premium processing timeframe and issue concurrent decisions. No formal request is required for the pending I-539 to be prioritized. Furthermore, USCIS has indicated that if the Form I-129 petition is filed with a premium processing request, the foreign national will be granted the nonimmigrant status requested on the I-129 petition, and not on the I-539 application, even if both forms are approved on the same day.
Date:05/26/2023
Department of State (DOS) Raised Consular Services Fees
DOS final rule raising most NIV application processing fees and the fee for a Border Crossing Card for Mexican citizens age 15 and over. The rule is effective 5/30/23. (88 FR 18243, 3/28/23)
The fee changes implemented by the rule are:
The application processing fee for non-petition based NIVs (except E category) will be raised from $160 to $185.
The application processing fee for H, L, O, P, Q, and R category NIVs will be raised from $190 to $205.
The fee for E category NIVs will be raised from $205 to $315.
The processing fee for Border Crossing Cards for Mexican citizens age 15 and over will be raised from $160 to $185.
The fee for the exchange visitor waiver of two-year residency requirement will be maintained at $120.
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
22 CFR Part 22
[Public Notice: 11954]
RIN 1400–AF33
Schedule of Fees for Consular Services—Nonimmigrant and Special Visa Fees
AGENCY: Department of State.
ACTION: Final rule.
Date:05/23/2023
USCIS Announces FY2024 H-1B Registration Numbers
On April 28, 2023, USCIS announced that for FY2024, it received 758,994 eligible registrations (compared to 474,421 registrations in FY2023). The newly released numbers also indicated that there were more than 780,884 registrations and only 110,791 selections. An eye-popping 408,891 registration applications were for individuals on whose behalf multiple employers submitted a registration, a 147% increase in multiple registrations from last fiscal year. Industry leaders and AILA agree that H-1B system does not meet legitimate demand and the registration system has been left vulnerable to exploitation.
Date:05/01/2023
Expansion of Premium Processing Services by USCIS
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final rule entitled, Implementation of the Emergency Stopgap USCIS Stabilization Act on March 30, 2022. In this final rule, USCIS codifies multiple changes to the premium processing benefit and clarifies when USCIS is to implement premium processing updates. Subsequently, on May 24, 2022, USCIS announced that it will begin accepting Form I-907 requests for Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker, on behalf of E13 Multinational Executive and Manager Petitions received on or before January 1, 2021. USCIS further announced that beginning July 1, 2022, it will accept Form I-907 requests for Form I-140 on behalf of E21 National Interest Waiver (NIW) Petitions received on or before June 1, 2021, as well as Form I-140 filed on behalf of E13 Multinational Executive and Manager Petitions received on or before March 1, 2021.
Date:05/26/2022
USCIS Increases Automatic Extension Period of Work Permits for Certain Applicants
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today a Temporary Final Rule (TFR) that increases the automatic extension period for employment authorization and Employment Authorization Documents (EADs), available to certain EAD renewal applicants, to up to 540 days. The increase, which will be effective immediately on May 4, 2022, will help avoid gaps in employment for noncitizens with pending EAD renewal applications and stabilize the continuity of operations for U.S. employers. The TFR, which only applies to those EAD categories currently eligible for an automatic up to 180-day extension, will temporarily provide up to 360 days of additional automatic extension time (for a total of up to 540 days) to eligible applicants with a timely-filed Form I-765 renewal application pending during the 18-month period after publication of the TFR while USCIS continues to work through pending caseloads that were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Noncitizens with a pending EAD renewal application whose 180-day automatic extension has lapsed and whose EAD has expired will be granted an additional period of employment authorization and EAD validity, beginning on May 4, 2022 and lasting up to 540 days from the expiration date of their EAD, such that they may resume employment if they are still within the up to 540-day automatic extension period and are otherwise eligible. Noncitizens with a pending renewal application still covered under the 180-day automatic extension will be granted an additional up to 360-day extension, for a total of up to 540 days past the expiration of the current EAD. Noncitizens with a pending renewal application and valid EAD on May 4, 2022, or who timely file an EAD renewal application before Oct. 27, 2023, will be granted an automatic extension of up to 540 days if their EAD expires before the renewal application is processed.
Date:05/04/2022
USCIS ANNOUNCES NEW ACTIONS TO REDUCE BACKLOGS, EXPAND PREMIUM PROCESSING, AND PROVIDE RELIEF TO WORK PERMIT HOLDERS.
Today, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is announcing a trio of efforts to increase efficiency and reduce burdens to the overall legal immigration system. USCIS will set new agency-wide backlog reduction goals, expand premium processing to additional form types, and work to improve timely access to employment authorization documents. To reduce the agency’s pending caseload, USCIS is establishing new internal cycle time goals this month. The agency’s publicly posted processing times show the average amount of time it took USCIS to process a particular form – from when the agency received the application until a decision was made on the case. This final rule expands the categories of forms ultimately eligible for premium processing services, including Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status; Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization; and additional classifications under Form I-140. Lastly, USCIS has begin streamlining many EAD processes, including extending validity periods for certain EADs and providing expedited work authorization renewals for healthcare and childcare workers. The temporary final rule aims to build on this progress and to ensure certain individuals will not lose their work authorization status while their applications are pending.
Date:03/30/2022
USCIS Updates Policy Guidance for Certain First-Preference Immigrants on March 23, 2022
USCIS updated guidance in its Policy Manual about two evidentiary criteria relating to immigrants of extraordinary ability and one relating to outstanding professors and researchers to more closely align with recently issued guidance pertaining to O-1A nonimmigrants of extraordinary ability. USCIS is updating its guidance about two evidentiary criteria relating to immigrants of extraordinary ability and one relating to outstanding professors and researchers to more closely align with recently issued nonimmigrant guidance pertaining to O-1A nonimmigrants of extraordinary ability. This guidance is effective immediately.
Policy Highlights
Clarifies that for the extraordinary ability and outstanding professor or researcher classifications, “published material” about the person (or the person’s work in the case of an outstanding professor or researcher) in professional or major trade publications or other major media need not be a printed article; rather, a petitioner may submit more varied forms of evidence including a transcript of audio or video coverage.
Clarifies that, in the extraordinary ability classification, a person may satisfy the leading or critical role criterion through a qualifying role for a distinguished department or division in addition to an entire organization or establishment.
Date:03/24/2023
Department of Homeland Security makes more international students eligible for STEM OPT.
The Biden administration has expanded students eligible for Optional Practical Training (OPT) in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. DHS published on January 21, 2022 a Federal Register notice announcing that “The Secretary of Homeland Security is amending the DHS STEM Designated Degree Program List [for OPT] by adding 22 qualifying fields of study.” This policy change is important because additions to this list will make more students eligible for the STEM OPT extension. The government uses the STEM Designated Degree Program List to determine F-1 students’ eligibility for the 24-month extension of their post-completion for OPT based on their STEM degree.
USCIS updates guidance on National Interest Waivers.
USCIS provided updated guidance on requests for “National Interest Waivers” related to job offer and labor certification requirements for advanced degree professionals and individuals of exceptional ability. The Biden administration aims to remove barriers to legal immigration under Executive Order 14012, Restoring Faith in Our Legal Immigration Systems and Strengthening Integration and Inclusion Efforts for New Americans. USCIS clarifies how the national interest waiver can be used by STEM graduates and entrepreneurs, as well as the significance of letters from governmental and quasi-governmental entities. The updated guidance also promotes effective and efficient processing of benefits consistent with the executive order.
Date: 01/29/2022
After Settlement Agreement, USCIS Issues Policy Guidance on Employment Authorization for Certain H-4, E, and L Nonimmigrant Dependent Spouse
USCIS issued policy guidance to address automatic extension of employment authorization for certain H-4, E, and L nonimmigrant dependent spouses. USCIS is updating its interpretation and implementation of 8 CFR 274a.13(d) to provide that this group of spouses will qualify for the automatic extension provided under this regulatory provision if certain conditions are met. The guidance is effective as of November 12, 2021. H-4, E, and L dependent spouses now qualify for automatic extension of their existing EAD if they properly filed an application to renew their H-4, E, or L-based EAD before it expires and they have an unexpired Form I-94 showing their status as an H-4, E, or L nonimmigrant. The EAD will automatically be extended to the earlier of the following: The Form I-94 expiration date, the approval or denial of the EAD renewal application, or 180 days from the date of the expiration of the previous EAD. This policy provision is aimed to mitigate gaps in employment authorization due to USCIS backlogs and delays in application adjudication. USCIS has 120 days in which to update the I-94 to reflect the automatic authorization. Until then, H-4, E, and L dependents with work authorization must rely on their current EADs to prove their eligibility to work.
Effective immediately, E and L dependent spouses are employment authorized incident to their status and therefore they are no longer required to request employment authorization by filing Form I-765 upon entering the U.S. in valid status. USCIS will modify the Form I-94 for E and L dependent spouses to notate immediate documentation of their employment authorization upon admission in valid E or L status. H-4 dependents must still file an I-765 upon admission to the U.S.
Date:12/15/2021
NEW STUDY SHOWS THAT U.S. EMPLOYERS SEEKING MORE HIGH-SKILLED IMMIGRANT TALENT.
The New American Economy (NAE) released a report on June 10, 2021 documenting that the U.S. does not have enough high-skilled workers to meet demand for computer-related jobs, and employers are seeking immigrant talent to help fill that gap. A bipartisan immigration research group found that for every unemployed computer or math worker in the country in 2020, there were more than seven job postings for computer-related occupations. Andrew Lim, director of quantitative research at NAE, said that “the evidence in this report is really adding more support to the idea that there are still needs from employers in the United States for computer-related workers that are not being addressed by current immigration policy.”
Thousands say diversity visa processing is at a standstill. Thousands of winners of the annual visa lottery sued the Biden administration, saying its policies have brought diversity visa processing to a standstill, negatively affecting their chance to live in the U.S. In a complaint filed Monday, roughly 24,000 lottery winners and their families accused President Biden, Secretary of State Blinken and two State Dept. officials overseeing the diversity visa program of instituting policies that have left them unable to secure the visas before they expire. The plaintiffs claim the State Dept. has stopped processing visa applications or conducting the final-stage consular interviews. The State Dept. has only issued 1,480 of the available 55,000 visas since the 2021 diversity visa program opened, the lottery winners say.
Feds Ask To Pull Back Trump-Era H-1B Base Wages Rule. The U.S. Department of Labor asked a California federal court to remand a disputed policy increasing the minimum wage businesses must pay H-1B specialty occupation workers, saying that critics have raised serious concerns warranting careful review.
USCIS Will Offer Filing Flexibilities Due to Delays at USCIS Lockboxes. USCIS announced filing flexibilities to provide relief to certain applicants and petitioners impacted by delays at a USCIS lockbox. These flexibilities are effective from June 10, 2021, until August 9, 2021, and only apply to benefit requests submitted to a USCIS lockbox and not to USCIS service centers or field offices. USCIS's announcement follows a letter AILA sent to the agency in April expressing concerns about USCIS's untimely rejection of applications and petitions, and urging equitable relief for those impacted by delayed rejections.
USCIS Issues Three Policy Updates to "Improve Immigration Services." USCIS issued three updates to the Policy Manual to clarify the criteria used to determine whether a case warrants expedited treatment; to address the circumstances in which officers should issue RFEs and NOIDs; and to increase the amount of time a grant of employment authorization is valid for applicants seeking adjustment of status.
International Entrepreneurs Now Have an Immigration Pathway to the United States. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced on May 10, 2021 the Continuation of International Entrepreneur Parole Program. Entrepreneur reports on the Biden administration's recent restoration of the International Entrepreneur Rule, which was created under the Obama administration and then stymied by the Trump administration. The rule will serve as a "startup visa" of sorts, available immediately to startup founders from around the world and those who are already in the United States.
Date:06/11/2021
USCIS MODIFIES H-1B SELECTION PROCESS TO PRIORITIZE WAGES.
On January 8th 2021, USCIS announced the final rule that will modify the H-1B cap selection process, amend current lottery procedures, and prioritize wages to protect the economic interests of U.S. workers and better ensure the most highly skilled foreign workers benefit from the temporary employment program. Modifying the H-1B cap selection process will incentivize employers to offer higher salaries, and/or petition for higher-skilled positions, and establish a more certain path for businesses to achieve personnel needs and remain globally competitive. The final rule will be effective 60 days after its publication in the Federal Register.
Date:01/08/2021
USCIS Premium Processing Fee Increase Effective Oct. 19, 2020.
The USCIS premium processing service allows petitioners to pay an additional filing fee to expedite the adjudication of certain forms, generally within 15 days. Any Form I-907 (Request for Premium Processing) postmarked on or after Oct. 19 must include the new fee amount. If USCIS receives a Form I-907 postmarked on or after Oct. 19 with the incorrect filing fee, we will reject the Form I-907 and return the filing fee.
Date:10/23/2020
USCIS issues interim final rule revising definition of “Specialty Occupation.”
On Thursday, October 8th 2020, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued an Interim Final Rule (IFR) regarding the H-1B visa program. The rule now restricts the program in several ways, including revising the definition of H-1B specialty occupation to include the requirement of a specific relationship between the required degree field(s) and the duties of the offered position. The rule also restores the requirement that employers provide contracts, work orders, itineraries or similar evidence to prove employer-employee relationship when sending H-1B workers to third party worksites. This requirement was defeated in federal court, and earlier this year DHS retracted its memo enforcing this requirement for third party placements, but this rule restores this requirement. The rule reduces the current three-year maximum validity period to one year. It also augments DHS’ power to determine compliance with worksite inspections and to oversee compliance before, during, and after an H-1B petition is approved. Inspections may be conducted at an employer’s headquarters, satellite locations, and work sites, including third-party worksites. USCIS will have the authority to deny or revoke H-1B petitions if it determines the employer or third party fails or refuses to cooperate with site visits. The IFR takes effect December 7, 2020.
DOL issues interim final rule making changes to computation of “Prevailing Wage” effective October 8, 2020.
. DOL interim final rule (IFR) submitted to the Office of the Federal Register for publication amended existing regulations governing permanent labor certifications and labor condition applications (LCA). Specifically, the IFR changes change the computation of prevailing wage levels, resulting in higher prevailing wages for all occupations for each OES-based wage level.
Level I Wage: 45th percentile (from 17th percentile)
Level II Wage: 62nd percentile (from 34th percentile)
Level III Wage: 78th percentile (from 50th percentile)
Level IV Wage: 95th percentile (from 67th percentile)
This IFR took effect on October 8, 2020. This rule will only apply to applications for prevailing wage determination (PWD) pending with the NPWC as of the effective date of the regulation; applications for prevailing wage determinations filed with the NPWC on or after the effective date of the regulation; and LCAs filed with DOL on or after the effective date of the regulation where the OES survey data is the prevailing wage source, and where the employer did not obtain the PWD from the NPWC prior to the effective date of the regulation. DOL will not apply the new regulations to any previously-approved prevailing wage determinations, permanent labor certification applications, or LCAs, either through reopening or through issuing supplemental prevailing wage determinations or through notices of suspension, invalidation, or revocation. This will effectively increase the “required wage” associated with H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 benefit requests, as the “required” wage is defined as the higher of the actual wage and the prevailing wage. The IFR will result in higher wages associated with employment-based immigrant visa petitions that rely on OES-based PWD applications.
Date:10/09/2020
USCIS HAS INCREASED FEES STARTING IN OCTOBER
USCIS is almost entirely fee-funded, and a decrease in applications in recent months and years has caused the agency to be in a serious budget deficit. On July 31, USCIS announced that it would increase fees for a range of immigration and naturalization applications. In order to encourage online filing, USCIS will decrease fees by $10 for anyone who files an application or petition online. The new rule and fees will go into effect on October 2, 2020.
https://www.uscis.gov/news/news-releases/uscis-adjusts-fees-to-help-meet-operational-needs
USCIS ISSUES EB-5 REDEPLOYMENT GUIDANCE
On July 24, 2020, USCIS issued a Policy Alert entitled “Clarifying Guidance for Deployment of Capital in Employment-Based Fifth Preference (EB-5) Category.” The Policy Alert summarized the published updates to the USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part G, which contains USCIS guidance on EB-5 Immigrant Investors, including Form I-526 and Form I-829. The changes to the USCIS Policy Manual focus on the rules for “redeployment” of immigrant investor capital into new investments to meet the “at risk” requirement as interpreted by USCIS.
Date:08/07/2020
SEVP Modifies Temporary Exemptions for Non immigrant Students Taking Online Courses
07/07/2020
USCIS Offices Preparing to Reopen on June 4
04/24/2020
GREEN CARD BAN
04/23/2020
Immigration Suspension
04/21/2020
USCIS Temporary Office Closure For In-Person Services Extended Until At Least May 3rd 2020
04/01/2020
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