February 2023 Visa Bulletin – No Notable Movement
The U.S. State Department has just released the February 2023 Visa Bulletin which is the fifth Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is the lack of any notable movement in the cutoff dates with an anticipated cutoff date introduction for the FB-2A category. […]
Is It Better to Work Using H-4 EAD or H-1B?
Since the H-4 EAD rule became effective in May 2015, our office has assisted many eligible H-4 spouses secure work authorization under the H-4 EAD program. We continue to applaud USCIS’s efforts to allow certain H-4 spouses to apply for and obtain work authorization. In many cases, however, the eligible spouse may already have another type of work authorization, including [...]
How to Increase the H-1B Cap Lottery Chances of Success This Year?
With the approaching H-1B cap filing season, one of the most common concerns we are hearing from both prospective H-1B employers and candidates is about the H-1B cap lottery and the fact that the random lottery does not provide a great chance of an H-1B application being selected for review. Our office has handled thousands of H-1B applications and we [...]
Details of the New Public Charge Rule (Effective from December 23, 2022)
Starting December 23, 2022, a new Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility final rule is in effect (see the full USCIS policy alert). The final rule details how USCIS will apply the public charge ground of inadmissibility and is generally consistent with the 1999 guidance which has been used over the past years. The new final rule applies to [...]
Layoffs and Options for Terminated Nonimmigrant Workers and Options and Responsibilities for Their Employers
Layoffs and termination of employment is almost always a difficult process for both the employer and the impacted employee. This is especially true for workers who are foreign nationals whose nonimmigrant status in the U.S. is likely to be impacted by the termination of employment such as H-1B, TN, and others. This article seeks to discuss some common options for [...]
January 2023 Visa Bulletin – Cutoff Date Added to EB-1 India and China
The U.S. State Department has just released the January 2023 Visa Bulletin which is the fourth Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is the addition of a cutoff date for EB-1 India and China, in addition to the cutoff date added to EB-2 ROW during the prior Visa Bulletin. […]