Today, August 28th, 2018, USCIS announced that it is extending and expanding its previously announced temporary suspension of premium processing for cap-subject H-1B petitions. Beginning September 11, 2018, USCIS is extending the premium processing suspension through February 19, 2019, and expanding it to all H-1B Petitions except those that meet the following criteria:
Monday, July 30, 2018, USCIS announced that it is delaying implementation of its June 28th Notice to Appear memo until it has finagled and implemented operational guidance.
SPS previously wrote on this memo, and its serious impact on business immigration matters. Once USCIS finalizes operational guidance, it will announce the new implementation of […]
In a policy memorandum dated June 28th, 2018, USCIS announced a dramatic change in practice on how it will proceed with denied employment based cases. USCIS announced that it will now issue a Notice to Appear (“NTA”) in employment-based immigration cases where there is evidence of fraud, criminal activity, or where an applicant is denied […]
In direct contradiction to prior statements, Tuesday, March 20th, 2018, USCIS announced that it is suspending the premium processing service on all H-1B cap cases until September 10, 2018. USCIS confirmed that it will continue to honor its existing criteria to request an expedite on a case. USCIS also confirmed that non-cap cases may […]
The Washington Post announced Friday, March 16, 2018, that USCIS is in the process of establishing a new internal oversight division to oversee the way adjudicators handle their cases. The Washington Post obtained this information from staffers and internal documents.
USCIS’ Organization of Professional Responsibility will have three divisions, including an Investigations Division to “manage the […]
By midnight, January 20th, 2018, the U.S. Congress failed to pass a budget which effectively shut down the federal government. While certain “essential” government positions remain unaffected, such as the U.S. military, the impact on the U.S. immigration system for employers and employees is significant. What follows is a brief breakdown of the impact on […]
The media reported late January 8th that the Trump Administration, admidst strong pressure from the business and technology sectors, decided to back away from its proposal to remove the ability of Foreign Nationals to extend H-1B status past the six year limit. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) confirmed that it is still conducting […]
On Monday, December 18th, USCIS issued new guidance relating to the TN category for Economists which greatly reduce its applicability to qualifying Economist roles.
Foreign nationals working in financial analyst, market research analyst, or marketing specialist […]
The U.S. Department of State (“DOS”) has made several revisions to the Foreign Affairs Manual (“FAM”) directly reflecting the “Buy American and Hire American” Executive Order (“EO”) 13788 that was signed by President Trump in April 2017. The FAM is the authoritative source containing policies and procedures to guide DOS consular officers to effectively carry out […]
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it is delaying the effective date of a regulation finalized under the Obama administration that would provide new avenues for foreign national entrepreneurs to come to the United States to start and grow new businesses. The rule was to become effective on July 17, 2017, […]