Reminder – H-1B Cap Petition Filing Period Ends on June 30, 2024
June 13, 2024
- U.S. employers have until June 30, 2024, to file petitions for foreign nationals selected in the H-1B cap period.
- USCIS has not announced if there will be a second lottery and likely will not until they determine if they have enough filings to meet the annual H-1B cap of 85,000.
Lawmakers Urge Biden Administration to Protect Children of Green Card Applicants
- On June 13, 2024, a bipartisan group of lawmakers submitted a letter asking the Biden Administration to protect the children of green card applicants.
- Congress has not passed legislation providing legal status or green cards to young people who might “age out” because of the per-country limit and the low annual number of employment-based immigrant visas.
- The letter asks for three policy changes:
- Clarify the applicability of potential grants of deferred action on a case-by-case basis, where discretion is warranted, for children of long-term visa holders.
- Expand eligibility for Employment Authorization to child dependents of visa holders, and to individuals with approved I-140 petitions.
- Ask USCIS to create a process to allow children of long term visa holders who have aged out to seek parole on a case-by-case basis, if warranted for urgent humanitarian reasons or to advance a significant public benefit. However, this does not offer a clear pathway to permanent residence.
- Without a legislative solution or additional administrative action, young people who age out while waiting for their parents to obtain permanent residence will continue to leave the United States.
SOURCE: Stuart Anderson, Forbes, June 13, 2024: DHS, USCIS Urged To Protect Green Card Applicants And Their Children (forbes.com)