*Update: On September 29, 2020, a federal judge blocked the filing fees from increasing at this time. USCIS is raising its fees by an average of 20%, but some fees will increase by much more than that. If you have an immigration case that can be filed before that date, you should do so. Below […]
USCIS Raising Filing Fees Effective October 2, 2020 Read More »
Policy Change
On June 22, 2020, President Trump issued a proclamation that suspends issuance of H-1B, H-2B, J and L visas until at least December 31, 2020. The suspension could be extended depending on the circumstances at that time. This proclamation also extends the proclamation from April 22, 2020, that bans certain immigrants from coming into the
President Trump Issues Proclamation Suspending Entry of H-1B, H-2B, L, and J Visas Read More »
Employment, H-1B, Policy ChangeDuring these uncertain times, many people are facing economic hardship due to layoffs or furloughs. A question I have been getting lately is if a person can apply for unemployment benefits if a person does not have any legal status; if a person is not a green card holder but holds a valid work permit;
Getting Unemployment Benefits if You Are An Immigrant Read More »
EmploymentAs the USCIS field offices begin to resume services again, they will be reducing the number of appointments and interviews to make sure they are following the proper social distancing guidelines, to allow time for cleaning, and to reduce the number of people in the waiting area. Appointment notices will also have the information that
Most USCIS Field Offices to Resume Services on June 4, 2020 Read More »
News
*UPDATE* On December 31, 2020, a proclamation was issued that extends this ban until March 31, 2021. On April 22, 2020, The president’s proclamation was signed that will temporarily not allow certain people to come to the U.S. for at least 60 days, but it can be extended if needed. This applies to people who
The term “social distance” is a term we are seeing everywhere now. Most of us have never experienced what we are experiencing now in the world and understandably many are scared, anxious, and nervous. I cannot think of one industry that has not been affected by this. Below is a summary of how our U.S.
Changes to the U.S. Immigration System During COVID-19 Pandemic Read More »
News
The U.S. Department of State publishes a visa bulletin every month that shows where they are in the process of issuing green cards. This bulletin allows people to see how long it could be before a visa becomes available for them to be able to apply for their green cards. Below is the March 2020
March 2020 Visa Bulletin Read More »
Visa Bulletin, Visas
The coronavirus has been a top news story for the past several weeks, and it has had an impact on many things such as travel, people buying supplies in anticipation of having to be quarantined that would keep them from work and school, shortage of masks, the impact on the economy, and many more things.
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) and the Impact on U.S. Immigration Read More »
News
On January 27, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it would allow the public charge rule that was supposed to go into effect on October 11, 2019, but was stopped, to now go into effect. USCIS recently issued a news alert stating that it would start implementing this rule on February 24, 2020. Any
Important Information on the Public Charge Rule Effective 2/24/2020 Read More »
Green Card, Policy ChangeOn December 6, 2019, USCIS announced that they will be implementing the H-1B registration system that requires employers to register who want to file cap-subject petitions for the fiscal year 2021. The filing period for H-1B petitions will begin on April 1, 2020, for FY 2021. It is anticipated that USCIS will use its myUSCIS
