On June 26, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act ("DOMA"). In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court held that DOMA is unconstitutional because the word "marriage" in any federal law meant only a union of a man and a woman. Until yesterday, DOMA denied a number of federal benefits, [...]
Many of our clients and readers are already aware of the move by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service ("USCIS") to issue what are hundreds, or perhaps even thousands, of very similar, if not identical, requests for evidence ("RFE") on pending employment-based primary and derivative Form I-485, Application to Adjust Status. Most of the RFEs were [...]
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has just provided some updated numbers in connection with the 2014 fiscal year (FY2014) H-1B cap. Many of our readers are aware that on Friday, April 5th, USCIS announced that they have received sufficient number of H-1B petitions to close the FY2014 H-1B cap as of Friday. [...]
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced earlier this afternoon that they have received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to meet the annual H-1B cap for the 2014 fiscal year (FY2014). According to USCIS, they have received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions filed for beneficiaries with U.S. master's degree and more than the [...]
As many of our clients and readers are aware, unless Congress decides to act on a long-term federal deficit-reduction plan before March 1, the government will suffer automatic slashes under the looming "sequester" plan passed in 2011. It will cut 8 percent from U.S. military spending and 5 percent from other domestic spending budgets. The [...]
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service ("USCIS") has issued new guidance to employers regarding the employment verification and documentation process for employees with valid and pending Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (“DACA”) applications. According to recent USCIS figures, there have been approximately 420,000 DACA applications filed and as approvals are starting to be sent out, [...]
The Department of State ("DOS") has announced and launched an online system which allows applicants who have cases pending with DOS to check the status on their applications. The system works for both Immigrant Visa (IV) and Non-Immigrant Visa (NIV) applications filed/pending at either the National Visa Center (NVC) or at a U.S. Consular Section [...]
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service ("USCIS") has announced that effective February 1, 2013, USCIS will begin collecting an additional USCIS Immigrant Fee of $165.00 from foreign nationals seeking admission as permanent residents to the U.S. The fee will apply to immigrant visa applicants who have received their visa approval from a U.S. Consulate abroad [...]
Almost all non-US nationals who have traveled to the U.S. at least once are familiar with the little white (or green) card inserted into one's passport upon admission into the U.S. (sample) Many people do not fully realize the significance of the Form I-94 -- most importantly, it records the entry date into the U.S. [...]
The Department of Labor (DOL) has proposed substantial revisions to Form 9035 (and its instructions), Labor Condition Application, which is used to support a number of employment-based visas, including H-1B, H-1B1 and E-3. The proposed changes to the form are significant in many respects -- the government now requires all LCA beneficiaries (up to 10 [...]