U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Announces FY 2026 H-1B Cap Registration Period U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will hold the H-1B electronic registration process for the fiscal...more
Significant modifications to the H-1B visa program are expected to be implemented by the Department of Homeland Security. The agency issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPR) that would “modernize the H-1B specialty...more
USCIS Proposes New Registration Requirement to File H-1B Cap Petitions for Fiscal Year 2020 and Reverses Order of H-1B Cap Lottery - On December 3, 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USICS”) proposed new...more
There were no lazy days of summer to be had in 2018—at least not when it came to the introduction of new immigration policies by the Trump administration. The momentum with which it announced and implemented new policies over...more
On May 10, 2018, the U.S. Customs and Immigration Service (USCIS) published a Policy Memorandum offering guidance in the calculation of unlawful presence for those in student (F), vocational student (M), or exchange visitor...more
The Trump Administration has been targeting outsourcing and staffing firms that use H-1B non-immigration visas, the most popular employment-based visa for foreign professional workers. The Administration has issued guidance...more
Now that the election is over, focus turns to the U.S. immigration policy of President-elect Donald J. Trump’s administration over the next four years. Forecasts of this type are never easy with any new President; the task is...more
I. DOS Announces 2018 Diversity Lottery - The U.S. Department of State (“DOS”) just released its instructions for the DV-2018 Diversity Visa (DV-2018) lottery. The registration period begins on Tuesday, October 4,...more
The new STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT) regulation extends the practical training for F-1 students with qualifying degrees from 17 months to 24 months. It also introduces an employer requirement to complete a training...more
Many of our clients employ international students in a status known as "F-1/OPT," which is "Optional Practical Training," a program similar to an internship that allows international students to get practical work experience...more
US immigration laws have not been created with the growing global economy’s need for foreign talent in mind, and should be reformed to promote hiring the best minds for the US economy. With globalization of the modern...more
The USCIS received over 236,000 H-1B petitions during this year’s FY2017 filing period for the annual supply of 85,000 new H-1B visas (65,000 for regular cap plus an additional 20,000 for workers with a U.S. Master’s degree)....more
Both F-1 students and employers have been following the litigation over the F-1 OPT (optional practical training) program. The government was sued by tech workers in Washington, D.C. regarding a part of this program, the...more
On March 9, 2016, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released an advance copy of the final rule pertaining to optional practical training (OPT) for certain students with degrees in science, technology, engineering, or...more
USCIS to accept new H-1B filings beginning April 1, 2016. Filing by April 7th will be critical: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will start accepting filings of new H-1B petitions on April 1st for the fiscal year...more
On January 23, 2016, Judge Huvelle of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted a motion to extend the current stay of her prior order which will allow the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to utilize...more
USCIS Will Complete the H-1B Cap Random Selection Process on April 7th - NOW is the time to identify employees who may need H-1B status to continue working in the United States and begin preparations to file an H-1B petition...more
On August 12, 2015, Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dealt a blow to employers by vacating the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) 2008 interim rule expanding the...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)’s announcement last month that it received nearly 233,000 H-1B petitions for fiscal year 2016 beginning October 1, 2015—a record total, and a 35% increase over last...more
The United States Citizenship & Immigration Service announced yesterday that it received nearly 233,000 H-1B visa petitions in the first week of the application window for the 85,000 cap-subject visas available for fiscal...more
Technology companies, industry groups, and trade associations are enthusiastically supporting a new Senate bill that would make it easier for foreign nationals working in the technology sector to stay and work in the United...more
When President Barack Obama first addressed the nation to unveil his Immigration Accountability Executive Actions, the media and the internet were in a frenzy to see who could get the story out first. Despite the fact that...more
President Barack Obama’s immigration directives, announced on November 20, 2014, include a plan to ease visa restrictions, “mak[ing] it easier and faster for high-skilled immigrants, graduates, and entrepreneurs to stay and...more