On September 4, 2024, U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker for the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Division, signed an Order denying the Motion of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to lift his prior Order...more
Without a formal news release, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) started prioritizing pending requests for employment authorization (Form I-765) by adjustment of status (“AOS”) applicants (often referred to...more
Labor Condition Applications must be filed under the new DOL’S FLAG System -
As part of the U.S. Department of Labor’s (“USDOL”) technology modernization initiative, the FLAG System (Foreign Labor Application Gateway) was...more
On January 31, 2019, the USCIS published its final rule amending H-1B regulations which operate to change two important aspects of filing cap-subject H-1B visa petitions, effective April 1, 2019. ...more
January 2 marked the end of the public comment period on the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published on December 3, 2018 by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regarding a radical change in the annual H-1B...more
Certain news reports have hinted that the pursuant to President Trump’s “Buy America, Hire America” Executive Order of April, 2017, the Trump Administration is considering changes to the H Visa Program. ...more
1/10/2018
/ Buy America ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Domestic Hiring Policy ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
H-4 Spouses ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
STEM ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
Federal judges in Hawaii and Maryland have temporarily blocked the implementation of President Trump’s most recent travel ban, which was issued by Presidential Proclamation on September 24, 2017 (Proclamation) and set to take...more
10/25/2017
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
Green Cards ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
National Security ,
Refugees ,
Terrorist Threats ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration ,
Visas
With the recent change by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to mandate in-person interviews for employment based adjustment cases along with changes to require the review of social media and to what...more
10/10/2017
/ Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
I-140 ,
I-485 Applications ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration and Nationality Act ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Interviews ,
Ombudsman ,
Social Media ,
USCIS ,
Visa Applications ,
Visas
On September 5, 2017, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued the unfortunate Memo to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program (Memo). DHS Acting Secretary, Elaine C. Duke, noted that...more
9/7/2017
/ DACA ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Deportation ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) ,
Executive Orders ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Obama Administration ,
Path To Citizenship ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS
On August 28, 2017, the USCIS announced that beginning October 1st, the USCIS will begin to phase-in “in-person” interviews for Employment-Based, Adjustment of Status applicants (Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent...more
On August 8, 2017, the Department of State (DOS) updated its Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) to modify instructions to consular officers considering F-1 student visas. The modified instructions address how a consular officer...more
8/31/2017
/ Buy America ,
F-1 Visa ,
Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
OPT ,
Travel Restrictions ,
Trump Administration ,
US Department of State ,
Visas
In connection with the Trump Administration’s desire to crack-down on its perceived misuse of the H-1B visa category, various U.S. government agencies have announced a coordinated effort in re-interpreting regulations as well...more
4/17/2017
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Labor Condition Applications ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
The USCIS announced on March 3, 2017 that beginning April 3, 2017, it will temporarily suspend premium processing for all H-1B petitions. According to the USCIS, the suspension may last up to 6 months. While H-1B premium...more
3/9/2017
/ F-1 Visa ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Lottery ,
USCIS ,
Visa Caps ,
Visas
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) published new regulations effective January 17, 2017 which modernize and improve aspects of certain employment-based nonimmigrant and immigrant visa programs. The...more
12/27/2016
/ Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Extensions ,
H-1B ,
H-4 Spouses ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Non-Immigrant Visas ,
Popular ,
USCIS