Your resource for all things immigration.
In its continuing effort to increase user-friendliness, USCIS has simplified the process for paying the USCIS Immigrant Fee –currently $165 – online in its electronic immigration system. Continue reading “Payment Process for Immigrant Fees Simplified”
The National Visa Center (the “NVC”) recently issued letters to immigrant visa applicants indicating that termination proceedings have been initiated. The affected individuals subsequently received e-mails from the NVC assuring them that, in fact, their cases were on track and that the previous letters should be ignored. Continue reading “NVC Errors Continue”
A recent decision by the Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer – United States of America V. Hartmann Studios, Inc. – has resulted in more than $600,000 in civil penalties for the employer/defendant. The $600,000 actually represents a decrease in the original penalty of $812,665.25. Continue reading “I-9 Violations Result in Harsh Consequences”
On August 12, 2015, Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dealt a blow to employers by vacating the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) 2008 interim rule expanding the optional practical training (OPT) program for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students in Washington Alliance of Technology Workers v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Civil Action No. 14-529 (D.D.C. Aug. 12, 2015). Continue reading “Immigration Alert: Decision Overturning 17-month OPT/STEM Extensions is stayed as USCIS scrambles to cure deficiencies”
August 18, 2015, is the deadline for eligible nationals of Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone to register for Temporary Protected Status (“TPS”). Also included in this group are people without nationality who last habitually resided in one of those three countries. The TPS designations for these three countries run from Nov. 21, 2014, through May 21, 2016. Continue reading “Deadline for Nationals of Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone to Register for TPS is August 18, 2015”
Due to a contempt hearing scheduled for August 19, 2015 in the case of the State of Texas v. United States, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is taking radical measures to recover all three-year Employment Authorization Document (EAD) cards issued prematurely under President Obama’s November 20 executive actions to over 2,500 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) recipients. Continue reading “Knock, Knock: Who’s there?”
Most business immigration practitioners tell H-1B employers an amended or new H-1B petition, along with a corresponding Labor Condition Application (LCA), is required whenever there is a material change in the terms and conditions of employment. But whether a change in the employment location constitutes a material change requiring an amended petition has been a topic of much discussion. Continue reading “Client Alert: Amended Petitions Required When Relocating H-1B Employees”
Birthright citizenship is a hotly debated topic. The United States and Canada are one of the few nations that automatically grant citizenship so expansively to children born within their borders. Anyone born in the U.S. is considered an American citizen regardless of whether the parents are U.S. citizens, legal residents, temporary visitors, or illegal immigrants in the U.S. Continue reading “Texas Denies Immigrant Children Their U.S. Citizenship”
Shumaker is proud to introduce our recent Immigration Practice Group video featuring our blog authors Maria del Carmen Ramos and Mechelle Zarou.
Our immigration practice handles all areas related to immigration, including the full range of family and employment-based visas and green cards, compliance, government agency interaction, outbound immigration and consultation regarding foreign travel. Shumaker’s immigration attorneys design solutions around our clients’ needs and constantly provide updates on the latest news and trends surrounding this ever-changing area.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYGaBAAhjco&w=560&h=315]
It is no surprise that the implementation of this administration’s executive actions has run into a series of political and legal snags. But what is surprising is the administration’s response or overall handling of the matter. Continue reading “Executive Action Update: 3 Year EADs Issued After 2/16/15 Injunction Must Be Returned”