Beginning May 3, 2016, applicants for the DV-2017 lottery may enter their confirmation information into the DV Entrant Status Check to see if they have been selected for the green card lottery. DV-2017 applicants should keep their confirmation number until…
Blog Archives
Immigration updates from the government.
FY 2017 H-1B Cap Timeline — Have You Been Selected?
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced yesterday that it has completed its data entry of cap-subject H-1B petitions for fiscal year 2017. This means that many lucky applicants have received or will receive their H-1B receipt notice soon.…
STEM OPT: New Rule
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is amending its F-1 nonimmigrant student visa regulations on optional practical training (OPT) for certain students with degrees in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) from U.S. institutions of higher education. Specifically, the final…
Posted in Updates
The (Annual) H-1B Silly Season
By Tien-Li Loke Walsh The H-1B season starts on April 1, 2016 when the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) begins accepting H-1B visa petitions for FY 2017-2018 (i.e. an October 1, 2016 start-date). For the last 3 years, USCIS reached…
Update On Visa Waiver Changes
Travelers planning to visit the United States are already facing surprises based on the new restrictions of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) that were implemented as part of the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act. Based on…
Posted in Updates
“240-Day Rule” Expansion, H-1B & L-1 Filing Fees, Visa Waiver Changes & More
E-3, H-1B1 and CW-1 Nonimmigrants are Now Eligible for “240-Day” Rule On January 13, 2016, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has amended its regulations to provide relief for nonimmigrants in H-1B1 (specialty occupations from Chile,…
Posted in Updates
USCIS Backtracks and Modifies Revised Visa Bulletin Procedures
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that beginning with the Visa Bulletin for November 2015, USCIS will make a determination each month on whether there are more immigrant visas available for the fiscal year than there are…
Posted in Updates
Court Denies Relief Sought In Visa Bulletin Lawsuit
On October 6, 2015, a Federal Court in Washington denied the emergency motion for Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) filed on September 28, 2015 in a class action lawsuit. The lawsuit came after the U.S. Department of State (DOS) published a…
Posted in Updates
All Embassies and Consulates Will Be Closed on October 9, 2015
On Friday, October 9, 2015, consular operations at all embassies and consulates will be closed to the public due to a planned consular systems upgrade. Application Service Centers (ASCs) connected to certain posts may also be affected by the systems…
Posted in Updates
Lawsuit Seeks to Reinstate the Original Visa Bulletin for October 2015
On September 28, 2015, a class action lawsuit was filed against the U.S. Department of State (DOS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) over last minute changes to the Visa Bulletin for October 2015. In Mehta v. DOS, plaintiffs…
Posted in Updates
