USCIS published a notice in the Federal Register with proposed changes to Form I-129 which is used for H-1B, L-1, TN, among other visa type filings. Please see the DRAFT proposed Form I-129 (and draft instructions). The proposed changes are significant and are likely to impact most, if not all, employers who file Form I-129. [...]
In November of last year and in February of this year, we wrote about a temporary change USCIS made with respect to H-1B petitions filed without certified Labor Condition Applications (LCAs). The reason for this temporary change in policy was to accommodate LCAs which have been delayed past the 7-day LCA processing window. Pursuant to [...]
During a recent AILA conference, the Vermont Service Center (VSC) Director Dan Renaud told the audience that the performance review structure for adjudicating officers has recently changed. Pursuant to the new performance review structure, officers get credit for issuance of Requests for Evidence (RFES), in addition to issuing approvals and denials, under the previous performance [...]
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) is set to begin accepting H-1B visa applications pursuant to its Fiscal Year 2011 (FY2011) quota. The first day on which USCIS will accept new, cap-subject H-1B petitions, is April 1, 2010. About the H-1B Program and the Annual Cap The H-1B visa category was created in 1990 [...]
Earlier today USCIS held a collaboration session on "Determining Employer-Employee Relationships for Adjudication of H-1B Petitions." We had the opportunity to attend the session, to listen and to engage in a discussion regarding the January 8, 2010, USCIS Memorandum by Donald Neufeld on the Employer-Employee Relationship. The Session Generated Great Interest The session proved to [...]
Effective January 1, 2010, the Department of Labor (DOL) centralized all prevailing wage determinations needed in connection with certain programs - PERM, H-1B, H-2B and E-3. All prevailing wage requests now must be submitted to DOL for processing and not to the state workforce agencies, as it was done before. Because DOL was not ready [...]
The American Immigration Lawyers' Association (AILA) has provided some guidance and information from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the Newark, New Jersey airport. Background Starting in December of 2009, our office has been receiving alerts from current and prospective clients about a number of incidents where holders of valid H-1B stamps were questioned and, [...]
We wrote in late October and early November of 2009 about the USCIS Ombudsman's recommendation that USCIS (1) accept H-1B filings without a certified LCA but with a proof of filed and pending LCA and (2) to excuse late H-1B filings where the delay in filing was caused by pending LCA or employer's Federal Employed [...]
The Neufeld Memorandum of January 8, 2010, has generated a substantial amount of discussion with its newly-proposed standard for "employer-employee" relationship applied to third-party H-1B employee placements, which are very common for consulting companies. Our office has handled many consultations and inquiries relating to the Neufeld Memorandum and what it means for the thousands of [...]
Our office received many inquiries by both H-1B sponsor companies and employees about what kind of fee payment arrangement is permissible under the H-1B regulations. Background of H-1B Filing Fees There are several H-1B filing fees, which are applied differently depending on the employer (private employer v. university or non-profit research entity) and on the [...]