Wall Street Journal on the H-1B Program

Over the past months we have written extensively about the issues raised by today’s Wall Street Journal article “Slump Sinks Visa Program” but it is still an interesting read.   Most of our readers are aware of the current H-1B quota and the fact that a substantial number of H-1B visas still remain available (for comparison, [...]

DHS Estimates of the Legal Permanent Resident Population in 2008

In a report released this month, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) provides some estimates and analysis of the numbers and demographic composition of the legal permanent residents (“LPRS”) in the U.S. as of January 1, 2008 (yes, the data is 22 months old but the analysis is recent and should not have changed much [...]

USCIS Ombudsman Recommends Changes to LCA/H-1B Filing Process

In a formal recommendation to USCIS, its Ombudsman has reviewed the current H-1B filing requirements with respect to LCAs and has concluded that changes to the LCA/H-1B filing process are necessary to avoid a number of negative consequences prejudicing employees and employers alike.
The drive behind this policy review by the USCIS Ombudsman is a number [...]

Texas Service Center EB-1A RFEs

Our office is not alone in noticing the increased amount of RFEs issued in connection with EB-1A, Alien with Extraordinary Ability, filings.  We have noticed not only that some RFEs are very vague in terms of language and requirements but also that cases which are clearly well-documented and supported as part of the initial filing [...]

Pending Derivative Form I-485s Due to File Separation

We are aware of many cases in which USCIS approves Form I-485 for the principal applicant but does not do so for any derivative family members’ I-485 petitions.   While in some cases this may be due to missing evidence, security clearance difficulties, or some other legitimate reason, in many cases it is possible that the [...]

H-1B Administrative Site Audits – Overview of Information Sought

We have reported of increased H-1B employer site visits as part of USCIS’ Administrative Site Visit Verification Program (ASVVP).  Some of our clients have experienced such site visits and in this article we aim to describe the process and the kind of information sought by the site inspectors during each visit.
Generally, site inspectors arrive unannounced [...]

November 2009 Visa Bulletin – Minor Forward Movement for EB-3 China and India

The November 2009 Visa Bulletin was released by the State Department.  The second visa bulletin for the fiscal year 2010 does not bring much movement.  The slight forward movement can be observed in EB-2 and EB-3 China and in EB-3 India.  All other categories, including EB-3 Rest of World (ROW) remain unchanged.  Here is a [...]

USCIS Considers Fee Increase Amid Decreased Filings

We wrote in September about the gap in expected revenue by USCIS following the filing fee increase of Summer 2007.   We noted that the agency has a $282 million shortfall in expected revenues.
As a result of the announced 2007 fee increase, USCIS saw a surge in applications and hiring in 2007, ahead of a hefty [...]

H-1B Recapturing Time Spent Outside of the U.S.

H-1B Duration and Limits
By law, the maximum duration of stay in any H status is six years.  As a result, if a foreign employee held one or more kinds of H status, or held L status, then the total period spent in the U.S. in all of these statuses are added together to determine how [...]

Definition and Duties of H-1B Dependent Employers

The H-1B regulations impose certain additional recruitment and attestation requirements to so called “H-1B dependent employers.”  Therefore, it becomes to understand the definition of H-1B dependent employer.
Definition of H-1B Dependent Employer
Pursuant to 20 CFR 655.736,  an H-1B dependent employer is one which meets one of the following standards:

The employer has 25 or fewer full-time equivalent [...]