EAH Immigration Blog

DHS promulgated a proposed rule that would make changes to the USCIS fee schedule by a “weighted average increase of 21 percent,” or about an 18 percent overall fee hike. The rule would also add new fees, change forms, and introduce several new forms. Some of the most common applications...

Now is a good time for foreign nationals who will be departing the United States for travel abroad over the holidays to review their travel documents to ensure that their reentry into the U.S. is as seamless as possible. Depending on an individual’s current status and whether he or she...

USCIS announced that it is implementing the registration process for employers seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions, including those eligible for the advanced-degree exemption, for FY2021. Such employers must first electronically register and pay the associated $10 H-1B registration fee before filing a petition for H-1B visa status for a...

The Social Security Administration (SSA) has resumed issuing no-match letters. No-match letters state that a certain number of wage reports for name and SSN combinations do not match SSA records. Employers should be mindful that SSA no-match letters can potentially lead to issues related to immigration enforcement, including an ICE...

On May 31, 2019, USCIS announced a policy limiting USCIS asylum jurisdiction over applicants previously determined to be “unaccompanied alien children” (UAC). The memo reversed a 2013 policy, often referred to as the “Kim memo,” that specified that USCIS took jurisdiction over asylum applications filed by applicants who had previously...

There have been recent reports that ICE has started to conduct on-site inspections for STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT) employment. According to DHS’s Study in the States website , an on-site visit will address how the salary of STEM OPT employees is determined, whether there is sufficient structure to provide...

Not only has USCIS increased the red tape and bureaucracy for U.S. companies sponsoring foreign workers, but USCIS Acting Director Ken Cuccinelli boasts about it! It’s the latest example of administration officials lauding efforts to make it more difficult for employers to obtain what economists often consider to be a...

On June 7, 2019, the National Assembly of Venezuela published a decree automatically extending the validity of Venezuelan passports for an additional five years from their printed date of expiration. While DOS has recognized this extension of passport validity for visa issuance and other consular purposes, CBP has not made...

Foreign nationals who need assistance at a local USCIS field office or who want to follow up with USCIS on their pending cases, especially when the case is long pending, are advised to use the USCIS Contact Center. The following is advice on how to navigate the system, which is...

Those foreign nationals who have approved employment-based first preference (EB-1) petitions are wondering, why is the category still backlogged when historically the category “re-sets” and becomes current on October 1 with the start of the new U.S. fiscal year? For Indian nationals, the backlog is particularly troublesome because there have...

On October 4, 2019, President Trump issued a Proclamation suspending the entry of immigrants who do not have approved health coverage or the ability to pay for foreseeable medical issues within 30 days of entering the United States. This means that outside of very limited exceptions, any nonresident applying for...

USCIS Formally Proposes H-1B Registration Process: USCIS published a proposed rule that would require petitioners seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions to pay a $10 fee for each electronic registration they submit to USCIS for the H-1B cap selection process. Comments were due October 4, 2019. USCIS has not yet...

On October 11, 2019, DOS issued an interim final rule amending DOS regulations regarding how consular officers will determine whether a nonresident is ineligible for a visa because he or she is likely to become a public charge. Although the DHS final rule on public charge was enjoined from implementation...

On October 11, 2019, the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York enjoined and restrained DHS and USCIS from “enforcing, applying, or treating as effective” the DHS Public Charge Final Rule. The rule was slated to go into effect on October 15, 2019. In addition, the court...

Partner Camila Palmer and Senior Attorney Courtney Butler will join other faculty members and present at the CBA - CLE offices in Denver, Colorado; Friday, October 18, 2019. Program Description: These are challenging and uncertain times in the practice area of immigration law. Build your skills for defending and advancing...

In early August, the Department of Justice (DOJ) petitioned the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) in an effort to strip immigration judges of their right to be represented by a union. In the petition, DOJ claims that the National Association of Immigration Judges (NAIJ) is no longer a valid union...

Officials at the Embassy of Venezuela have confirmed that it will begin issuing “no objection” statement letters for Venezuelans seeking a waiver of the two-year foreign residency requirement that attached to their J-1 visa status. (No-objection letters are the first consular services to be provided by the new government.) Officials...

USCIS published its final regulations governing EB-5 investor visas on July 24; the new rules go into effect on November 21, 2019. The major change created by the new regulations is to increase the minimum investment amounts that foreign investors must invest to obtain an EB-5 green card. Starting on November...

Congress has adjourned for its annual summer recess and will be returning after Labor Day to address a number of immigration bills. The following are worth watching: Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act of 2019 (H.R. 1044) passed the House of Representatives on July 10; its Senate companion bill (S....

Created in 1996, expedited removal is a process by which low-level immigration officers can quickly deport certain noncitizens who are undocumented or have committed fraud or misrepresentation. Since 2004, immigration officials have used expedited removal to deport individuals who arrive at our border, as well as individuals who entered without...