Immigration Insights & Issues Blog
Key legal insights into modern immigration challenges.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) introduced a new H-1B cap registration process for fiscal year (FY) 2021. This process was continued for the FY 2022 H-1B cap lottery, and it will be substantially the same for the FY 2023 H-1B cap lottery. For FY 2021, USCIS received 274,237 registrations and initially selected 106,100. USCIS …
Continue reading “Employer Tips for the Fiscal Year 2023 H-1B Cap Registration Process”
During this challenging time for employers in search of workers, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) have managed to cooperate to coordinate a response to the litigation settlement (Settlement) reached in Shergill, et. al. v. Mayorkas announced on November 12, 2021. The Settlement will finally recognize that spouses …
Just as the world breathed a sigh of relief for the easing of almost 18 months of travel restrictions, just as quickly did the feelings of dismay wash over viewers when it was revealed in Empire Strikes Back that Vader was Luke’s father, in one of the greatest plot twists in cinema. In a similar …
Continue reading “Travel Restrictions and New Requirements for Air Travel”
Monday, November 8, marks a reopening of international air travel for vaccinated foreign nationals as well as entry to the United States (U.S.) via the land border for non-essential vaccinated foreign visitors due to a recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This change marks the first time since March of 2020 …
Continue reading “U.S. Land Border Reopens to Non-Essential Vaccinated Travelers November 8”
Employers who wish to sponsor foreign national employees through the PERM Labor Certification process should take special note of the settlement agreements announced by Department of Justice (DOJ), Civil Rights Division, Immigrant and Employees Rights Section (IER) and Department of Labor (DOL) last week. These settlement agreements are connected to the U.S. worker discrimination suits …
Continue reading “Facebook Discrimination Settlement and the Future of PERM Recruitment”
According to various news reports, a White House official stated that foreign travelers subject to the various travel bans will be able to enter the U.S. as of November 8 without obtaining a National Interest Exception (NIE) due to their presence in restricted countries in the fourteen days before planned travel to the U.S., if …
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a number of important updates in September of 2021. Four of the most significant updates include COVID-19 vaccination requirements for immigrant medical examination, extension of flexibility for responding to agency requests, lockbox filing location updates, and expansion of USCIS’ credit card payment pilot program. COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement for Immigration …
Any corporate immigration program must consider what documents to retain, how long to retain them, and where to store them. In an era of increased inter-agency cooperation, a heightened focus on compliance, and an increasingly mobile workforce, it is important for a company to review its document retention practices. There are three primary types of …
Continue reading “Corporate Immigration Compliance: Dealing with Document Retention”
Beginning October 1, 2021, COVID-19 vaccinations will be required for all immigrant visa applicants in the United States and abroad who receive their medical examination from a Civil Surgeon (U.S.) or a Panel Physician (abroad) on or after October 1, 2021. This new requirement is according to recent instructions issued by the Centers for Disease …
To reduce the backlogs of National Interest Exception (NIE) applications required by the Presidential Proclamations (Proclamations) regarding travel from designated countries to the U.S. due to the pandemic, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced on July 6, 2021, that it will extend the validity period of NIEs from 30 days to 12 months from …
Continue reading ” Department of State Extends NIE Validity Providing Relief for Travelers”