The U.S. State Department has just released the October 2014 Visa Bulletin which is the first Visa Bulletin for the FY2015 fiscal year. The major headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is the lack of movement in EB-2 and the expectation of an imminent retrogression in this category. EB-3 advances nicely for everyone except [...]
Effective September 12, 2014, the Department of State is changing the visa processing fees. Some of the fees will increase, while some will decrease. For example, the fees for K nonimmigrant visa applications will increase. On the other hand, most immigrant visa processing fees will decrease (some by a substantial amount). Nonimmigrant Visas The Department [...]
A recent article for Daily Signal entitled, "Deportation Mill?: Salvadoran Mom, Son Get Day in Remote Immigration Court?" provides an inside look at the case of an immigrant family in detention at Artesia, NM, which some call a "deportation mill". CILG's managing attorney Aleksandra Michailov was interviewed for the article and quoted throughout the article [...]
We are thrilled and honored to be chosen for the 2014 Global Mobility and Immigration Awards by Acquisition International and be named the Best for Corporate and Business Immigration in Washington DC. Firms included in the 2014 “Global Mobility and Immigration Awards” list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and [...]
The U.S. State Department has just released the September 2014 Visa Bulletin which is the twelfth and last Visa Bulletin for the FY2014 fiscal year. The major headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is the continued notable forward movement in EB-2 India and EB-3 Philippines and the lack of movement in any of the [...]
This year's busy H-1B cap season included many H-1B employee candidates who hold F-1 status and who are employed in the U.S. pursuant to F-1 optional practical training (OPT) status. Out of these F-1 visa holders, many rely on the OPT cap-gap rule to continue working in the U.S. after the post-April 1st expiration date [...]
The Department of Labor has provided some updates for the third quarter of the Fiscal Year 2014 (April 1, 2014 to June 30, 2014) on their processing of PERM, H-1B LCA and prevailing wage determination cases and we are happy to share them with our clients and readers. DOL Processing Statistics (Third Quarter, 2014 Fiscal [...]
We are getting updates from the U.S. Department of State and from other sources that the global visa processing system used by the Department of State to process U.S. visa applications and passports is experiencing technical problems -- as a result, U.S. Consulates around the world are unable, at least temporarily, to complete visa application [...]
In a policy memorandum dated July 11, 2014, USCIS has provided some guidance and clarifications as to the applicable standards for adjudication of H-1B petitions for nurses. While USCIS continues to maintain the position that most nurses may not qualify for an H-1B due to the fact that a bachelor's degree is not normally requires, [...]
The U.S. State Department has just released the August 2014 Visa Bulletin which is the eleventh Visa Bulletin for the FY2014 fiscal year. The major headline in the upcoming month’s Visa Bulletin is the significant (four month) forward movement in EB-2 India, the significant (two years) forward movement in EB-3 China and the lack of [...]