What employers are going through today is something that hasn’t been seen in more than a century. To stem the tide of a global pandemic, more and more state and local governments are entering “Stay at Home” or “Shelter in Place” orders requiring businesses to shut down and close their doors. Continue reading “Catch-22: Potential Nonimmigrant Visa Issues Employers Should Be Aware Because of COVID-19 Related Furloughs and Shut Downs”
Category: Temporary Worker Visas
USCIS Announces Temporary Suspension of Premium Processing for FY2021 Cap-Subject Petitions
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced the temporary suspension of premium processing service for fiscal year (FY) 2021 cap-subject.Petitioners filing FY 2021 cap-subject H-1B petitions will not be able to request premium processing when USCIS begins accepting cap-subject petitions on April 1. Until premium processing resumes for FY 2021 cap-subject H-1B petitions, USCIS will reject any Form I-907 concurrently filed with a cap-subject H-1B Form I-129.
As USCIS has done in the past, premium processing will resume in a two-phased approach during the FY 2021 cap season so that USCIS can best manage premium processing requests. The first phase will include FY 2021 cap-subject H-1B petitions, including those eligible for the advanced degree exemption, requesting a change of status from F-1 nonimmigrant status. The second phase will include all other FY 2021 cap-subject petitions.
Economic Times: US agency slows H-1B denials as lawsuits mount
A US agency that administers the visa application process is denying fewer H-1B visas following stepped-up filing of lawsuits, immigration lawyers said. This comes despite the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) seeking more Requests for Evidence (RFEs) from H1-B visa applicants.
Several immigration lawyers told ET that more lawsuits are being filed against the USCIS.
Deepali Khadakban, a member of an industry body representing over 1,250 small and medium staffing and IT firms doing combined business worth over $5 billion, said its member firms have taken the USCIS head-on in the last two years, filing over 133 cases challenging visa denials. The ITServe Alliance works with companies like Google, Ebay and Bank of America.
To read this article in full, please visit the Economic Times Tech website found here.
Forbes: Restrictions On H-1B Visas Found To Push Jobs Out Of The U.S.
Important new research concludes immigration restrictions that prevent companies from hiring high-skilled foreign nationals in the U.S. represent bad economic policy and are counterproductive. The first-of-its-kind study examining company-level responses to government immigration rules found H-1B visa restrictions carry the unintended consequence of pushing jobs outside the United States and lead to less innovation in America.
Read the rest of the Forbes article here.
Mechelle Zarou Presented at American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Sports Immigration Law Conference
Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick is pleased to announce that Mechelle Zarou, partner in the Toledo office, was a panelist at the Central Florida Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) first Sports Immigration Law Conference held on March 8, 2019 in Orlando, Florida. The conference focused specifically on the substantive law and practical challenges associated with sports immigration and featured sports immigration subject matter experts as well as sports industry professionals, including Olympic athletes. Continue reading “Mechelle Zarou Presented at American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Sports Immigration Law Conference”
Changes to the H-1B Program Are Coming
On January 31, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security announced two major changes to the H-1B program. Under the final rule, which takes effect April 1, 2019, employers seeking to file H-1B petitions will now be required to first electronically register with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) during a designated registration period. Continue reading “Changes to the H-1B Program Are Coming”
Rescission of H-4 EADs is Imminent
Over the last few months, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have unabashedly and repeatedly stated that is the current administration’s intent to rescind employment authorization for H-4 visa status holders. Continue reading “Rescission of H-4 EADs is Imminent”
Looking into our Crystal Ball to Plan Ahead for H-1B Season
It’s hard to believe that H-1B season is around the corner! United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (“USCIS”) will start accepting new H-1B petitions for fiscal year 2019 on Monday, April 2, 2018. As such, employers should start immediately identifying current and future employees who will require sponsorship for new H-1B petitions. Continue reading “Looking into our Crystal Ball to Plan Ahead for H-1B Season”
USCIS Resumes H-1B Premium Processing for Conrad Waiver Program Physicians
On Monday, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) resumed premium processing for all H-1B petitions filed for physicians under the Conrad Waiver program, as well as interested government interagency waivers. Continue reading “USCIS Resumes H-1B Premium Processing for Conrad Waiver Program Physicians”
Alert: USCIS Conducts Random H-1B Lottery for FY 2018
Today, after receiving 199,000 petitions, United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it conducted its lottery (a computer-generated random selection process) on April 11 to select the H-1B petitions that it will adjudicate for the 65,000 general-cap and 20,000 master’s cap visas available for FY 2018. Continue reading “Alert: USCIS Conducts Random H-1B Lottery for FY 2018”