The Impacts of Premium Processing for H-1B Extensions and Portability

On August 28, 2018, the USCIS announced that an April suspension of premium processing for Cap-subject H-1B petitions would continue and would be expanded as of September 11, 2018, to other H-1B petitions, most notably, H-1B extensions and H-1B “change of employer”. The suspension of H-1B premium processing for these types of H-1B petitions is expected to last until… [Read More]

EB Visa Availability Update

Retrogression of visa category priority dates impact EB petition applications According to recent information that the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) gained from the U.S. Department of State, the EB-1 Worldwide category is likely to remain retrogressed through December 2018. When visa categories are retrogressed, applicants can still file I-140 petitions; however once the I-140… [Read More]

Why President Trump Doesn’t Need to Change Laws to Rewrite Immigration Policy

The “zero-tolerance” policy on illegal immigration instituted by Attorney General Jeff Sessions in April and discontinued Wednesday via executive order by President Trump has resulted in the separation of children from their parents and placed a human face on one of the hallmarks of President Trump’s approach to immigration reform – using unyielding interpretation of existing… [Read More]

Not Just Dreamers – Here Are Three Real Immigration Problems Congress Should Address (And How to Fix Them)

House Speaker Paul Ryan on Tuesday announced two votes on immigration legislation in the United States House of Representatives, derailing efforts by bipartisan group of U.S. Representatives to secure the signatures necessary to vote on competing immigration reform bills using a discharge petition. The upcoming votes on two separate immigration bills – one proposed by… [Read More]

Physician Groups Worry H-1B Scrutiny to Impact Patient Care

National physician groups are worried that increased scrutiny on H-1B visa applications will impact patient care at teaching hospitals throughout the United States, according to a letter sent to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Francis Cissna. Prevailing Wage RFEs Due to Lack of Data The letter expresses concern that non-U.S. international medical graduates (IMGs)… [Read More]

Extraordinary Ability, Pizza, and America’s First Lady

The month of March brought news stories that had many people unfamiliar with business immigration asking, “What is extraordinary ability, anyway?” “Extraordinary ability” is a term used for temporary O visas and EB-1  petitions for permanent residence. Broadly, these processes are used to bring the best and brightest to the United States – and sometimes… [Read More]