The Department of Homeland Security has substantially increased the I-907 premium processing service filing fee from $1,440 to $2,500 starting October 19, 2020. Under the optional premium processing service USCIS is required to provide a response within 15 calendar [...]
In a coordinated effort, both DHS/USCIS and DOL have just released two new rules which seek to introduce substantial changes to the H-1B program. DOL seeks to increase the prevailing wage levels by a substantial margin with immediate effective date of October 8, 2020. DHS/USCIS seeks to change the definition of specialty occupation and employer-employee [...]
On Friday, August 14, 2020, USCIS completed the second round of the H-1B cap selection lottery and notified the selected applicants. The August 2020 selection round was due to the fact that a (significant) number of [...]
Our office does not normally react to or otherwise speculate on or encourage rumors - as there have been many as far as immigration is concerned over the past years and especially over the recent months. But we feel compelled to share what we hearing from Washington with respect to some possible upcoming restrictions on [...]
USCIS has announced that H-1B cap petitions will experience a significant delay in the case intake and the issuance of receipt notices as a result of the Coronavirus/Covid-19 outbreak. USCIS have announced that they will not begin processing any filed H-1B cap petitions until at least May 1 although they will continue to accept filings. [...]
UPDATE: A new revised Final Rule is in effect starting December 23, 2022. Please review this updated content. In light of the Coronavirus/Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting millions of workers (at least temporarily) losing their job, our office has been flooded with calls and emails about whether claiming unemployment insurance will give rise to inadmissibility [...]
USCIS has just announced that effective April 1, 2020, they are temporarily suspending premium processing for H-1B cap petitions which are selected under the H-1B lottery. Please note that this suspension applies only to H-1B cap petitions filed under the annual H-1B cap season and it is expected that the premium processing service will be reinstated for all cap [...]
The new H-1B work visa “cap” season is set to begin with substantial changes to the process, the timelines and the chances for success. Over the past year or so, [...]
Spring and early summer are generally busy period for recent foreign college graduates as far as employment immigration is concerned. On one hand, foreign college graduates are either applying for their initial term OPT, their 24-month STEM extensions (if they qualify) or their H-1B work visas under the H-1B cap. Our office fields many questions [...]
The Department of Homeland Security has announced that they are increasing the I-907 premium processing service filing fee by $30 from $1,410 to $1,440. The new premium processing filing fee increase will become effective for all requests mailed, postmarked [...]
