According to reports, contrary to previous practice, various U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) ports of entry (POEs) and preclearance locations have begun to refuse to process L-1 renewal and extension petitions from Canadians pursuant to the North American Free Trade Agreement. Anecdotally, the affected POEs include Toronto, Winnipeg, Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal, Pearson, Edmonton, Seattle,… Read more »
On March 19, 2019, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the start of the fiscal year (FY) 2020 H-1B cap season, start dates for premium processing of cap-subject H-1B petitions, and the launch of its new H-1B data hub, while reminding petitioners of its new H-1B cap selection process. Below are highlights of the… Read more »
The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for April 2019 notes that Final Action Date movement in many employment-based preference categories continues to be greater than might ordinarily be expected. This is anticipated to continue for at least the next few months. The Department explained that this movement is a direct result of fewer applicants proceeding… Read more »
A reform of Art. 187 of the Migration Control Regulation, Executive Decree number 36769-G, passed on October 16, 2019, prohibits employers to hire a foreign national that has entered the country as a non-resident, even if they have a pending application in process. However, there are some exceptions to this rule, such as the below:… Read more »
The Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division (WHD) said it has seen a rise in the use of electronic notifications as workplaces increasingly provide their employees with documents by electronic means. Among other things, WHD noted, an H-1B petitioner must notify affected U.S. workers of its intent to hire H-1B nonimmigrant workers. This notification… Read more »
According to reports, the Trump administration plans to close international U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offices by the end of 2019. USCIS Director L. Francis Cissna told senior staff that the agency’s International Operations Division, which operates in more than 20 countries, will be closed down. The duties of those offices will be transferred… Read more »
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has resumed premium processing for all H-1B petitions as of March 12, 2019. All H-1B petitions may be upgraded to premium processing or filed originally with a request for premium processing. In recent years, USCIS has discontinued premium processing for H-1B cap cases in April to allow sufficient time… Read more »
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has received enough petitions to meet the congressionally mandated H-2B cap for the second half of fiscal year (FY) 2019. February 19, 2019, was the final receipt date for new cap-subject H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker petitions requesting an employment start date before October 1, 2019. USCIS… Read more »
The Department of State (DOS) has released the Visa Bulletin for March 2019, showing modest progress for EB-1 for all chargeability areas as well as EB-2 for China and India; EB-3 and Other Workers China, India, and the Philippines; and EB-5 China and Vietnam, with the remainder of the priority dates remaining Current. The specific… Read more »
According to statistics released by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the percentage of H-1B cases with requests for evidence (RFEs) has greatly increased. In the first quarter of fiscal year (FY) 2017, the rate of H-1B RFEs was less than 30%. In the first quarter of FY 2019, that rate skyrocketed to 60%. At the… Read more »
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