Earlier this afternoon the Department of State (DOS) shared the Federal Register notice with details of the highly-anticipated stateside visa renewal pilot program which will begin on January 29, 2024 and will end on April 1, 2024. We [...]
USCIS has announced that they have reached the H-1B cap limit for fiscal year 2024 (FY 2024). This means that they will not be conducting additional lottery rounds of selection after the initial two rounds. This also means [...]
The U.S. State Department has released the January 2024 Visa Bulletin which is the fourth Visa Bulletin for the new fiscal year. The headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is the significant (although not full) recovery among [...]
For applicants with pending I-485 applications, understanding the rules and requirements of international travel is essential in order to avoid denial due to abandonment. This article discusses the rules and requirements that must be [...]
What is the Visa Bulletin? Published monthly by the U.S. Department of State (DOS), the Visa Bulletin provides information on visa availability and cutoff dates which determine which immigrant visa (green card) applicants are eligible to complete the final stages of the green card application process and which green card applications can be approved. The [...]
A U.S. visa stamp refusal under “administrative processing” means that the U.S. Consulate is unable to approve and issue the visa stamp immediately and needs additional time for review of the application or other [...]
The U.S. State Department has released the December 2023 Visa Bulletin which is the third Visa Bulletin for the new fiscal year. The headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is lack of pretty much any movement in almost all employment [...]
Navigating the H-1B work visa program can be a daunting task for both employers and foreign professionals. USCIS's adjudication standards change from time to time based on political and other factors making the H-1B program subject to varying degrees of scrutiny. This scrutiny is most often exercised during the Request for Evidence (RFE) process [...]
One of the common RFE issues raised by USCIS in connection with H-1B petitions is the suitability of the beneficiary’s educational (and experience) qualifications. There are two aspects to this RFE issue — whether the degree itself is a US-equivalent [...]
USCIS has released a proposed rule which seeks to change the H-1B visa program regulations. The changes are generally positive and seek to allow greater flexibility for petitioners and to strengthen the H-1B cap lottery program. Also, the proposed [...]
