On August 17, 2015, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a policy memorandum aiming to clarify the standard required for L-1B specialized knowledge visas. The memorandum notably begins by reminding...more
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) continues to experience worldwide technical problems with issuing visas, the result of an apparent hardware failure. On June 22, 2015, the DOS announced that the visa issuance problems have...more
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has provided an update on its ongoing technical problems with issuing visas. According to the update, the visa shutdown appears to be the result of a hardware failure. The DOS has over 100...more
On May 2, 2014, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that data entry for all FY 2015 H-1B cap petitions has been completed. The agency will now begin to reject and return all H-1B cap-subject petitions...more
The U.S. Department of State’s (DOS) Visa Bulletin sets out per country priority dates that regulate when an individual can begin the final phase of the “green card” process, either through adjustment of status or consular...more
An important issue for many employers that use electronic I-9 systems is the pre-population of employee information in Section 1 of the I-9 form by electronic I-9 programs. Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, is...more
A recent interim policy memorandum, released by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), clarifies the degree completion requirements for the 17-month extension of Optional Practical Training (OPT) available to...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), through the Civil Rights Division’s Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC), recently settled a claim alleging that the company in question...more
Since the creation of the L visa category in 1970, the L-1 statutory provisions have been modified several times. In recent years, L-1 cases have been subject to heightened scrutiny both by the U.S. Citizenship and...more
The L visa allows qualifying multinational companies with a parent, subsidiary, branch, or affiliate abroad to transfer managers and executives (L-1A) and employees with “specialized knowledge” (L-1B) to work in the United...more