The State Department has released the September 2016 Visa Bulletin listing the priority dates eligible for “Application Final Action,” i.e. when an I-485 adjustment of status (AOS) application may be approved or an immigrant visa (IV) issued, and the priority dates eligible for “Filing Applications,” i.e. when an AOS or IV application may be filed. As we enter the final month of the 2016 fiscal year, the State Department will advance the “final action dates” for certain categories to ensure that all immigrant visa numbers for the year are used. However, there will be no movement in the “dates for filing” as the department restricts the filing of new applications in an effort to avoid using more than the allotted number of visas. As of September 1, 2016, the “Application Final Action Dates” in the EB-2 and EB-3 categories for nationals of India will advance approximately three months. The “Application Final Action Dates” in the EB-3 category will advance approximately two months for all other countries except China, for which there is no movement in any employment-based category. As expected the “Application Final Action Dates” in EB-1 for nationals of India and China and EB-2 worldwide remain retrogressed, although the department expects those dates to become current again in October when fiscal year 2017 visas may be issued. The “Application Final Action Dates” in several of the family-based categories will advance at least a few weeks. In particular, the dates in the F-1 and F-2B categories will advance for all countries, as will the F-3 dates for nationals of Mexico and the Philippines and the F-4 dates for all countries except China and India. The expected temporary retrogression in the second preference for spouses, children, and unmarried sons and daughters of Permanent Residents (F2A) will not occur, but there will be no forward movement in that category. There again is no change in the employment-based “Dates for Filing,” where the priority dates remain current for all countries in the EB-1 category and in all categories for those not from India, China, or the Philippines. The “Dates for Filing” in the family-based categories will not advance from the dates established in the August 2016 visa bulletin. You can view the visa bulletin in its entirety below. Please contact us with any questions. In a recent meeting with the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), the U.S. State Department (DOS) announced that it will more closely scrutinize and monitor visa applicants and visa holders who have been arrested for driving under the influence (DUI).
Consular officers have long been authorized to refer visa applicants with DUI arrests to panel physicians for further evaluation before issuing a visa, and DOS has indicated that this will happen more frequently. More significantly, DOS also stated that consular officers will revoke the visas of individuals arrested for DUI post-visa issuance. Both DOS and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) consider DUI arrests and similar arrests, such as driving while intoxicated (DWI), to be evidence of a potential physical or mental disorder that could make the applicant inadmissible to the U.S. An applicant with a diagnosed “alcohol use disorder” is inadmissible to the U.S. if there is also current associated harmful behavior or past associated harmful behavior that is likely to recur. The agencies consider operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated to be “associated harmful behavior” for this purpose. Finally, it important to note that this additional scrutiny will apply to arrests for DUI and “related offenses;” this potential ineligibility does not require a conviction. If you have any questions about these changes and their potential impact on your ability to travel to the U.S., please contact us. The State Department has released the August 2016 Visa Bulletin listing the priority dates eligible for “Application Final Action,” i.e. when an I-485 adjustment of status (AOS) application may be approved or an immigrant visa (IV) issued, and the priority dates eligible for “Filing Applications,” i.e. when an AOS or IV application may be filed. As predicted last month, continued heavy demand has caused the State Department to establish cutoff dates in the EB-1 category and in the EB-2 worldwide category for the first time in many years. As of August 1, 2016, the “Application Final Action Dates” in the EB-1 category for nationals of India and China will retrogress to January 1, 2010, while the EB-2 final action date for all countries not listed separately will retrogress to February 1, 2014. There will be very slight forward movement in the employment-based “Application Final Action Dates” in the EB-3 category, except for nationals of China. The State Department expects that the EB-1 India and China and EB-2 worldwide “Application Final Action Dates” will become current again in October when fiscal year 2017 visas may be issued. The news is only slightly better for family-based applicants as some of the “Application Final Action Dates” in the family-based categories will advance at least a few weeks, although again there is no movement in the third preference (F3) for most countries and no movement in the fourth preference (F4) for China, India, or Mexico. In fact, there will be no movement in any of the family-based categories for Mexico. In addition, the second preference for spouses, children, and unmarried sons and daughters of Permanent Residents (F2A) has stagnated and the State Department believes that the F2A and F3 categories will retrogress temporarily for the month of September. There is no change in the employment-based “Dates for Filing,” where the priority dates remain current for all countries EB-1 category and in all categories for those not from India, China, or the Philippines. In the family-based categories, the “Dates for Filing” will advance at least a few weeks for most categories and countries. However, this is of little comfort since USCIS has announced that, as usual, both employment-based and family-based adjustment of status applicants must use the “Application Final Action Dates.” You can view the visa bulletin in its entirety below. Please contact us with any questions. Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court, left shorthanded with only eight Justices following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February, issued a one-sentence decision stating that the Court was split 4-4 in the case of United States v. Texas, challenging the injunction that has prevented the implementation of the expanded DACA and DAPA programs announced by President Obama in November 2014.
This decision leaves the injunction in place, effectively ending any hope that these programs will be implemented at least until after the November elections and, more likely, until after a new president and Congress are sworn into office in January 2017. The original DACA program launched in 2012 remains in effect. To be eligible for the 2012 DACA program, a person must:
If you or someone you know might be eligible for protection under DACA, please contact us. The State Department has released the July 2016 Visa Bulletin listing the priority dates eligible for “Application Final Action,” i.e. when an I-485 adjustment of status (AOS) application may be approved or an immigrant visa (IV) issued, and the priority dates eligible for “Filing Applications,” i.e. when an AOS or IV application may be filed. Following the massive retrogression of the priority dates in June, there is some slight movement in the “Application Final Action Dates” for both the family and employment-based preference categories. Some of the priority dates in the family-based categories will advance from one to eight weeks, although there is no movement in the third preference (F3) for most countries and no movement in the fourth preference (F4) for China, India, Mexico, and the Philippines. In addition, there is no movement in the family-based categories for Mexico with the exception of a two week advance in the first preference (F1). In the employment-based preference categories, there is no advance in the Final Action Dates for China. The EB-2 priority date for India will advance one month to November 1, 2004, and the EB-3 priority date will advance one month to October 22, 2004. The EB-3 priority date for all other countries will advance slightly, although the Philippines will see a jump ahead of over three months. The news remains grim for the “Dates for Filing” as there is no movement at all in July in any category or for any country. As a reminder, the “Dates for Filing Applications” are valid only for consular processing immigrant visa applications. USCIS will make a separate determination whether to allow the filing of AOS applications under the “Dates for Filing” chart or the “Application Final Action Dates” chart in the visa bulletin and will post the applicable chart on its website. For July 2016, USCIS has determined that applicants must use the “Application Final Action Dates.” Looking ahead, in a meeting with the American Immigration Lawyers Association, Charles Oppenheim, Chief of the Visa Control and reporting Division at the Department of State, indicated that more priority date retrogressions are expected before September 2016, including the rare establishment of a cutoff date in the EB-2 “worldwide” category and a cutoff date in the EB-1 category for India and China. You can view the visa bulletin in its entirety below. Please contact us with any questions.
UPDATE: USCIS has announced that applicants must use the Application Final Action Dates chart in the June 2016 Visa Bulletin for both employment- and family-based filings. The State Department has released the June 2016 Visa Bulletin listing the priority dates eligible for “Application Final Action,” i.e. when an I-485 adjustment of status (AOS) application may be approved or an immigrant visa (IV) issued, and the priority dates eligible for “Filing Applications,” i.e. when an AOS or IV application may be filed. The big story is the massive retrogression of the “Application Final Action Dates” in the employment-based preference categories for nationals of India and China. The EB-2 priority date for India will roll back over four years to October 1, 2004, although the EB-3 priority date will advance three weeks to September 22, 2004. The State Department expects both EB-2 and EB-3 for Indian nationals to advance slowly for the last three months of the fiscal year. Meanwhile, the long-expected impact of the increased EB-3 demand for nationals of China due to EB-2 to EB-3 downgrades will finally arrive in June. Both the EB-2 and EB-3 categories for Chinese nationals will roll back to January 1, 2010, a retrogression of more than two-and-a-half years and three-and-a-half years, respectively. The State Department does not expect these categories to advance before the end of the fiscal year. The “Application Final Action Dates” for all other countries will remain stuck at February 15, 2016, with the exception of EB-3 for the Philippines, which will advance nearly three months to November 1, 2008. There will be no advance in the “Dates for Filing” for employment-based cases (aside from the EB-3 “Other Worker” category for Chinese nationals), although this affects only nationals of India, China, and the Philippines since all categories are current for all other countries. The family-based categories are not immune to retrogression. As predicted last month, the “Application Final Action Dates” in the fourth preference (F4) category for brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens will move back to January 1, 2003, for Chinese nationals and to January 1, 2001, for Indian nationals. The State Department does not expect any further advancement in these categories for the rest of the fiscal year. The rest of the “Application Final Action Dates” will hold or advance slightly as the as we approach the end of the fiscal year. The “Dates for Filing” in the family-based categories mostly will remain stagnant in June, but the second preference category for spouses and children of permanent residents (F2A) will advance four months to October 15, 2015, for all countries, and there will be some movement in the second preference category for unmarried sons and daughters of permanent residents (F2B) for nationals of Mexico and the Philippines. As a reminder, the “Dates for Filing Applications” are valid only for consular processing immigrant visa applications. USCIS will make a separate determination whether to allow the filing of AOS applications under the “Dates for Filing” chart in the visa bulletin. If so, USCIS will post the current “Dates for Filing Applications” charts on its website. At the time of this post, USCIS has not made any determination with regard to the June 2016 Visa Bulletin. You can view the visa bulletin in its entirety below. Please contact us with any questions. USCIS has announced that as of May 2, 2016, it has completed all data entry for H-1B cap petitions selected in the “lottery” for consideration in the FY2017 cap. We expect that all receipt notices for selected petitions will be received within the next seven to 10 days. USCIS also will now return all petitions that were not selected, a process that will take several weeks.
Although no new H-1B hires may be made, employers may be able to take advantage of other visa categories, as follows:
Finally, there are various visa categories available for training that might be useful in certain circumstances. As always, please contact us with any questions. The May 2016 Visa Bulletin is now in effect, listing the priority dates eligible for “Application Final Action,” i.e. when an I-485 adjustment of status (AOS) application may be approved or an immigrant visa (IV) issued, and the priority dates eligible for “Filing Applications,” i.e. when an AOS or IV application may be filed. In May, we see the pace of priority date advancement continue to slow as the Department tries to avoid regressing the dates over the balance of the year. The “Application Final Action Dates” will move forward slightly in most of the family-based preference categories, although the F4 category for siblings of U.S. citizens will not advance at all except for nationals of the Philippines. The State Department expects the F4 category priority dates for Indian nationals to retrogress, possible as early as June, and the F-4 priority date for Chinese nationals might also retrogress later in the summer. In addition, the “Dates for Filing” in the family-based categories again will remain stagnant in May, the fourth consecutive month with no movement. In the employment-based preference categories, the pace of advancement is similarly slow in the “Application Final Action Dates.” EB-1 and EB-2 for most countries will remain current, but unlike past months there is little advancement elsewhere, as only EB-2 for Indian nationals and EB-3 for nationals of India and the Philippines advance at all. In addition, the EB-3 cutoff remains ahead of the EB-2 cutoff for nationals of China, but the Department has indicated that the expected increase in EB-3 demand by Chinese nationals likely will finally impact these dates in June. Finally, there is again no advance at all in the “Dates for Filing” for employment-based cases, which continues to affect only nationals of India, China, and the Philippines since all categories are current for all other countries. As a reminder, the “Dates for Filing Applications” are valid only for consular processing immigrant visa applications. USCIS will make a separate determination whether to allow the filing of AOS applications under the “Dates for Filing” chart in the visa bulletin. If so, USCIS will post the current “Dates for Filing Applications” charts on its website. USCIS has determined that the “Final Action Dates” must be used for both family and employment-based filings in May. You can view the visa bulletin in its entirety below. Please contact us with any questions. UPDATE: On April 12, 2016, USCIS announced that they received over 236,000 H-1B petitions for the fiscal year 2017 H-1B cap. They also announced that on April 9, 2016, they completed the "random selection process" or lottery to determine which petitions would be considered for further processing under both the 20,000 master's degree slots and the 65,000 "regular" slots. USCIS will return all submitted petitions not selected for further processing. As described in our original post below, USCIS will continue to accept H-1B petitions that are exempt from the H-1B cap. USCIS has announced that as of April 7, 2016, they have received enough petitions under both the “regular” cap and the “master’s degree” cap to reach the annual H-1B visa limit for fiscal year 2017. USCIS will now run two computer-generated lotteries: the first to determine which petitions are considered for the 20,000 master’s degree slots, and the second to determine which petitions are considered for the 65,000 “regular” slots. All petitions not selected in the master’s degree lottery will also be eligible for the “regular” lottery. The lottery dates have not been announced.
USCIS will reject petitions subject to the cap for H-1B workers seeking an employment start date between October 1, 2016, and September 30, 2017, that are received after April 7, 2016. No new cap subject H-1B petitions may be filed until April 1, 2017, for employment beginning no earlier than October 1, 2017. USCIS will continue to accept petitions for H-1B workers assigned to Department of Defense projects and petitions for Chilean and Singaporean H-1B1 workers. It is important to note that the cap applies only to “new” H-1B petitions, i.e. petitions filed on behalf of workers who have never held H-1B status or who have spent one year or more outside the U.S. since last holding H-1B status. Exempt from the cap are extension petitions for workers currently in H-1B status, petitions for current H-1B holders seeking concurrent employment, petitions requesting a change of H-1B employer, and petitions amending a worker’s current H-1B status due to a material change in the terms and conditions of the employment. In addition, some “new” petitions are exempt from the cap by virtue of the type of petitioner or the type of work being done. These are petitions filed on behalf of a worker who is or will be employed at an institution of higher education or a related or affiliated nonprofit entity, and petitions filed on behalf of a worker who is or will be employed at a nonprofit research organization or a governmental research organization. Petitions for J-1 international medical graduates who have received waivers under the Conrad 30 program are also exempt from the cap. We will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as additional details emerge. Meanwhile, please contact us with any questions. |
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