Instructions on Exceptions to Nonimmigrant Ban On February 24, 2021, President Biden revoked former President Trump’s proclamation issued in April 2020 that banned many immigrants from entering the United States. Biden Proclamation Revoking Immigrant Ban Included in the Trump administration’s freeze on immigrant admissions were green cards for new immigrants and certain family members. President… Read more »
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced an extension of flexibilities in rules related to Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) compliance due to continued precautions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The policy is extended until March 31, 2021. About a year ago, the Department of Homeland Security deferred physical presence requirements associated with the I-9… Read more »
The Biden administration withdrew a proposed rule to rescind the H-4 employment authorization document (EAD) program from review by the Office of Management and Budget. This means that about 100,000 H-4 EAD holders (spouses of H-1B workers who are mostly women from India) and their employers no longer need to worry about losing their work… Read more »
On January 20, 2021, a U.S. district court issued a modified order governing the manner and schedule in which the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) will reissue certain prevailing wage determinations (PWDs) that were issued from October 8, 2020, through December 4, 2020, under the wage methodology for a related… Read more »
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will continue to abide by previous filing fee amounts because of preliminary injunctions in ILRC v. Wolf and Nw. Immigrant Rts. Project v. USCIS. USCIS said it is complying with the terms of these orders and “is not enforcing the regulatory changes set out in the Final Rule. USCIS… Read more »
Travelers coming in by air, in addition to having to provide a negative COVID-19 test prior to boarding their flight, will be required to take a test immediately upon landing. Following the administration of the test, the travelers will be required to book a hotel room in one of the designated supervised hotels at their… Read more »
The Dutch immigration authorities (IND) have announced new minimum salary levels for knowledge migrant workers (aka Highly Skilled Migrants), graduates and Blue Card applicants coming to the Netherlands. Affected Applications These amounts are applicable for new applications for local hires, assignees (when outside the scope of the EU ICT Directive 2014/66/EU) or extension applications, received… Read more »
As Canada grapples with COVID-19, amidst new and more infectious variants entering the country, with no vaccine in sight for most of the population, Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) made an unprecedented move towards the goal of 400,000 new permanent residents in 2021. On February 13, in the latest round of invitations issued to… Read more »
According to reports, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) appears to have finished selecting H-1B cap-subject lottery registrations for fiscal year (FY) 2021 (Oct. 1, 2020-Sept. 30, 2021). Employers and counsel who have not yet been notified can check their accounts in https://my.uscis.gov/ for a Form I-797C, Registration Nonselection. (The nonselection notices include a typo referring to… Read more »
USCIS Updates Policies to Improve Immigration Services: Expedited Processing, RFEs/NOIDs, EADs U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued new policy updates to clarify the criteria and circumstances for expedited processing; improve guidance for requests for evidence (RFE) and notices of intent to deny (NOID); and increase the validity period for initial and renewal employment authorization… Read more »
Our team is eager to help your organization navigate the complexities of immigration law & relieve any visa processing frustrations that you are experiencing.
