Blog
USCIS Completes the H-1B Lottery for FY2018!
USCIS announced that on April 11, 2017 it used a computer-generated random selection process (lottery) to select enough petitions to meet the 65,000 general-category cap and the 20,000 cap under the advanced degree exemption for FY2018. USCIS will reject and return...
Trump Signs Two Executive Actions on Immigration: What Comes Next?
Yesterday President Trump issued the first in a series of Executive Orders on border security and immigration enforcement. Among other items, the President announced that he would order DHS to construct a southern border wall, increase the size of the enforcement...
USCIS Reaches FY2017 H-1B Cap
Today USCIS announced that it has reached the FY2017 H-1B cap. They will use a computer-generated process, also known as the lottery, to randomly select the petitions needed to meet the general category (65,000 H-1B visas) and advanced degree exemption (20,000...
H-1B Season Is Upon Us!
Those U.S. employers interested in on-boarding foreign national workers in the H-1B specialty occupation category starting October 1, 2016, may file their H-1B petitions 6 months prior to the October 1st start date, on April 1, 2016. There is an annual quota of...
B-1 Visitor For Business: Are You Engaging in Business Activity On a Visa Waiver?
Are you a foreign national coming to the U.S. to engage in commercial transactions that do not involve gainful employment? Are you planning to temporarily stay in the U.S. for purposes of negotiating contracts, consulting with clients or business associates? Then,...
Court Upholds Block on President Obama’s Immigration Reform
Last night U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in a 2-1 decision, halted President Obama’s executive orders on immigration, upsetting the administration’s efforts to shield millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation and delivering a major setback to a core...
Department of State Releases Information For DV-2017 “Green Card Lottery”
Earlier this week U.S. Department of State (DOS) provided information on the 2017 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV-2017), otherwise known as the “green card lottery.” Please note that entries must be submitted electronically between October 1, 2015, and November...
USCIS and DOS Announce Changes to Permanent Residence Application Process
USCIS announced yesterday that, in conjunction with the Department of State (DOS), it is revising the procedures for determining when an application for adjustment of status may be filed, in effect implementing part of President Obama's November 2014 Executive Actions...
New Business Venture or Start-Up in the U.S.? E-2 Treaty Investor Visa Could be The Answer
The E visa category is based upon a treaty of friendship, commerce and navigation, or a Bilateral Investment Treaty. Individual companies or citizens of a qualifying country may qualify for an E-2 Treaty Investor visa. This visa category is truly designed for a...
New York Times: From an “Undocumented” Boyhood to a Doctorate
The New York Times shares the story of Dan-el Padilla Peralta, who hopes to further the discussion on immigration policy through his novel Undocumented: A Dominican Boy's Odyssey From a Homeless Shelter to the Ivy League. In the novel, he recounts his experience from...