Business Immigration Insights

On October 3, 2018, California U.S. District Judge Edward Chen granted a preliminary injunction in the case of Ramos v. Nielsen, preventing the Department of Homeland Security from terminating Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador (scheduled to end on 9/9/19), Haiti (7/22/19), Nicaragua (1/5/19), and Sudan (11/2/18).  The injunction remains in place until the Court lifts it or the lawsuit ends.

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the October Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

• China: EB-1 jumps forward more than four years to June 1, 2016, EB-2 rebounds to April 1, 2015, and EB-3 continues to speed past EB-2 and moves to June 1, 2015
• India: EB-1 jumps forward more than four years to June 1, 2016, EB-2 moves ahead two years to March 26 ...

Earlier this year, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that it will terminate the temporary protected status (TPS) program for nationals of El Salvador on September 9, 2019.  Employment authorization documents (EADs) held by qualifying individuals that expired on March 9, 2018, were automatically extended through September 5, 2018, providing applicants time to apply for new EADs valid through the termination date.

Because the USCIS has been unable to process EAD extension applications in a timely manner, DHS has further extended the expired EADs through March 4 ...

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) has announced that the suspension of premium processing for FY2019 H‑1B cap cases, announced on March 21, 2018, has been extended until possibly February 2019.

USCIS also announced that effective September 11, 2018, premium processing will be suspended for H‑1B cases filed at the Vermont and California Service Centers, except for:

1. H-1B petitions filed by cap-exempt petitioners or by petitioners who will be employing beneficiaries at qualifying cap-exempt institutions, entities, or organizations; or

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the September Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

China: EB-1 remains stalled at January 1, 2012, EB-2 retrogresses to January 1, 2013, and EB-3 continues to move forward - advancing four months to November 1, 2014

India: EB-1 remains at January 1, 2012, EB-2 falls behind nearly two years to January 1 ...

The New York Times features Suzan Kern in an interview with María, a woman who was sexually assaulted by a Corrections Corporation of America guard while under the custody of ICE, following her release on bond from the Hutto detention center in Texas. CCA violated the terms of its contract with ICE, which mandated that female detainees be transferred with at least one female guard. Instead, CCA’s male guard, Donald Dunn, who assaulted María, transported women alone 77 times in less than a year. “When he let her out of the van at the Austin airport, she ran,” Suzan, María’s pro ...

On June 28, 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued a policy memo telling adjudicators when they are required to issue Notices To Appear after denying or while processing a petition or application for benefits.  The NTA is the charging document that, once filed with the Executive Office for Immigration Review (a branch of the U.S. Department of Justice), puts an individual into formal removal proceedings before an immigration judge.

U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (“USCIS”) announced today that it has now completed returning all petitions that were not selected in the Fiscal Year 2019 H-1B lottery.  Employers who filed petitions should now have received either a Form I-797 receipt notice with assigned receipt number, or the original rejected petition including filing fees.  USCIS will take inquiries if employers believe they filed during the required period – April 2 to April 6, 2018 – and have not received a receipt notice or rejected petition by August 13, 2018

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the August Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

• China: EB-1 remains backlogged to January 1, 2012, EB-2 moves forward - advancing two months to March 1, 2015 - and EB-3 leaps ahead eighteen months to July 1, 2014
• India: EB-1 remains stuck at January 1, 2012, EB-2 freezes at March 15, 2009, and EB-3 advances two ...

The Visa Bulletin is released monthly by the Department of State and is used to determine when a sponsored foreign national can submit the final step of the green card process. The complete visa bulletin can be found here.

Below is a summary of the July Visa Bulletin, including Final Action Dates and changes from the previous month:

• China: EB-1 remains backlogged to January 1, 2012, EB-2 jumps ahead four months to January 1, 2015, while EB-3 reverses course and retrogresses to January 1, 2013
• India: EB-1 remains stalled at January 1, 2012, EB-2 continues to creep forward, moving to March ...