May 2024 Visa Bulletin – Employment-based Dates Unchanged
The U.S. State Department has released the May 2024 Visa Bulletin which is the eighth Visa Bulletin for the new fiscal year. The headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is the lack of any meaningful movement across any of the employment-based categories. […]
USCIS Extends EAD Auto-Extension to 540 Days: What You Need to Know
USCIS has just released a new new temporary final rule (link to rule) effective as of April 8, 2024 pursuant to which the EAD auto-extension period is increased (again) from up to 180 days to up to 540 days from the expiration date stated on their EADs. This increase will be available to eligible renewal applicants with pending Forms I-765 [...]
Green Card Holder and “I-327 Advised” Passport Notation – What To Do?
Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs) who travel frequently outside of the U.S. and spend extended periods of time at a time (during a single trip or through pattern of shorter but frequent trips abroad) are often questioned at the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) U.S. port of entry about their residence and intention to remain a U.S. permanent resident. What happens [...]
April 2024 Visa Bulletin – (Finally) Notable Forward Movement in Employment-based Categories
The U.S. State Department has released the April 2024 Visa Bulletin which is the seventh Visa Bulletin for the new fiscal year. The headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is positive forward movement: notable forward movement in employment Final Action dates which should encourage I-485 approvals; in addition to using the Final Action dates for determining I-485 filings. [...]
April 1, 2024 H-1B Filing Fee Increase Explanation and Breakdown
Many of our clients and readers are aware that the Department of Homeland Security is significantly increasing the USCIS filing fees starting April 1, 2024. We published a detailed alert for all of the fees (see details); however, for the benefit of our H-1B employer clients and readers, we also provide a detailed explanation and breakdown of the H-1B [...]
March 2024 Visa Bulletin – Retrogression in I-485 Filing Eligibility
The U.S. State Department has released the March 2024 Visa Bulletin which is the sixth Visa Bulletin for the new fiscal year. The headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is the anemic forward movement across most employment-based categories together with the fact that by using the Final Action Dates for March 2024, there is an effect a retrogression with [...]