Blog
News & EventsiCERT Operational Again After Malfunction
On January 1, 2019, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) iCERT system experienced a malfunction following an unprecedented surge in H-2B temporary labor certification filings on the first day of the program's semi-annual filing period. After being offline for several days,...
Impacts of the Government Shutdown on USCIS
As of today, the United States is still under a partial federal government shutdown due to the fact that an fiscal year budget has not been agreed upon. However, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)'s fee-funded activities are not affected....
USCIS Updates Advance Parole Information on Website
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has updated its website to address international travel and pending Form I-131, Advance Parole, renewal applications. Form I-131, Advance Parole is used to apply for a re-entry permit, refugee travel...
E-Verify Unavailable Due to Government Shutdown
Due to the government shutdown, E-Verify and E-Verify services are currently unavailable. E-Verify is a United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) website that allows businesses to determine the eligibility of their employees, both U.S. or foreign citizens,...
How to Prepare for the FY 2020 H-1B Cap Season
As mentioned in a previous article, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is currently reviewing a proposal to make significant changes to the H-1B cap process for FY 2020. These proposed changes may include a new filing system that requires a...
January 2019 Visa Bulletin Issued
The Department of State (DOS) has issued its January 2019 Visa Bulletin. Most notably, there were steady advancements for all priority dates. EB-1-Worldwide: China: Priority date of December 15, 2016 (Advancement of 105 days) India: ...
The United States is Rejecting More Legal Immigrants Than Ever Before
In a recent New York Times article, David Bier revealed new analysis from the Cato Institute demonstrating that the United States has been rejecting more legal immigrants than ever before. Data from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)...
Federal Shutdown Averted
In light of the imminent expiration of funding for federal operations after midnight on December 7, Congress passed a short-term spending bill that will provide funding through December 21. This spending bill is now awaiting President Trump’s signature for final...
Clarifications on L-1 One-Year Foreign Employment Requirement
On November 15, 2018, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a policy memorandum that provided clarification regarding the one-year foreign employment requirement for the L-1 nonimmigrant classification. The L-1 nonimmigrant...
December 2018 Visa Bulletin Issued
The Department of State (DOS) has issued its December 2018 Visa Bulletin. Most notably, there were steady advancements for all priority dates. EB-1-Worldwide: China: Priority date of September 1, 2016 (Advancement of 92 days) India: ...