Archive for the ‘USCIS’ Category
EB-2 CATEGORY WILL ADVANCE 1 YEAR ON FEBRUARY 1, 2012!
The EB-2 (employment-based second preference) green card category for advanced degreed professionals will advance 1 year on the February 2012 Department of State Visa Bulletin for individuals from mainland China and India.
Congress allots a certain number of immigrant visas each year for various categories and countries. Foreign nationals in the EB-2 category from India and China typically wait several years for a green card “number” to become available to them as there is a backlog with these applications. The wait is based on an applicant’s “priority date” which he/she obtains when the first step of the green card process is filed. Until that date is current on the Visa Bulletin (published monthly), the individual cannot submit (and the officers cannot adjudicate) the final paperwork for a green card.
In the January 2012 Visa Bulletin, the applications being reviewed for Chinese and Indian nationals in the EB-2 category have priority dates of January 1, 2009 and earlier. In the February 2012 Visa Bulletin, the priority date will jump to January 1, 2010 and earlier, cutting off a full year of waiting. This is great news for individuals with priority dates between January 1, 2009 and January 1, 2010 as they can now submit their final paperwork for a green card.
Please don’t hesitate to contact our San Francisco Immigration Law Office if you need assistance with a green card application or have any questions about the above.
Tags: advanced degree professional, EB-2, green card, I-485, lawful permanent resident, priority date, visa bulletin
Posted in Alerts, Immigrant Visas, USCIS | Read More »
ALERT: H-1B CAP FILING PERIOD OPENS APRIL 1, 2012!
The filing period for the next H-1B cap season opens April 1, 2012 for an October 1, 2012 start date. Petitions are accepted up to 6 months in advance of October 1, 2012.
The H-1B visa is a temporary work visa for a degreed professional (or someone with equivalent experience) seeking employment in a position complex enough to need his/her specific degree.
Each year, there are 65,000 slots available to holder’s of U.S. or foreign Bachelor’s degrees or foreign Master’s or higher degrees (or equivalent experience). There are an additional 20,000 slots set aside for individuals with U.S. Master’s or higher degrees.
Please don’t hesitate to contact our San Francisco Immigration Law Office if you or your employer need assistance with an H-1B petition.
Tags: H-1B, h-1b cap, H-1B quota, H1b, USCIS, work visa
Posted in Alerts, H-1B, Nonimmigrant Visas, USCIS | Read More »
2011 U.S. CITIZENSHIP STATS
In 2011, the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) held more than 6000 naturalization ceremonies for over 692,000 green card holders who became new citizens. 10,000 of those sworn in were members of the U.S. Armed Forces.
If you are interested in becoming a U.S. citizen or have any questions about the process, please don’t hesitate to contact our San Francisco Immigration Law Office.
Tags: N-400, naturalization, U.S. citizenship
Posted in naturalization, USCIS | Read More »
USCIS Announces New Citizenship Resource Center
The USCIS has launched its new Citizenship Resource Center at http://www.uscis.gov/citizenship. It is a web portal that provides extensive U.S. citizenship information for applicants, teachers and organizations, including information about the application process, citizen rights and responsibilities, classroom tools, and grant programs, among other items.
Please don’t hesitate to contact our San Francisco Immigration Law Office if you need assistance with a citizenship application or have questions about the new Citizenship Resource Center.
Tags: citizenship, N-400, naturalization
Posted in Alerts, naturalization, USCIS | Read More »
Update: H-1B Count 05/26/2011
As of May 26, 2011, the USCIS has received 13,100 H-1B regular cap petitions (of 65,000) and 9000 U.S. advanced degree petitions (of 20,000). An H-1B work visa is a temporary status for a professional holding a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree (or the equivalent in experience) in a specific specialty and working in a position that requires such degree (or experience). Please see prior posts for more details.
As you can see, there are plenty of H-1B numbers left. Please don’t hesitate to contact our San Francisco Immigration Law Office if you need assistance with an H-1B petition.
Tags: cap, H-1B, H-1B visa, quota, specialty occupation, USCIS
Posted in Alerts, H-1B, USCIS | Read More »
H-1B’s Crawling Forward
As of 04/29/2011, the USCIS has receipted 9,200 H-1B regular cap petitions and 6,600 U.S. Master’s cap petitions. Please see prior posts for information about the H-1B program and eligibility requirements. Otherwise, don’t hesitate to contact our San Francisco Immigration Law Office if you need assistance with an H-1B petition.
Posted in Alerts, H-1B, Nonimmigrant Visas, USCIS | Read More »
Priority Dates Advance for EB-2 Applicants
Due to a decline in green card filings in the employment-based first preference category (EB-1), 12,000 unused visa numbers will be reallocated to the employment-based second preference category (EB-2).
Each year, the Department of State (DOS) allocates a certain number of immigrant visa (green card) slots for the various employment-based categories. This allocation is based on the type of case and country of nationality of the applicant. Each month, the DOS publishes a visa bulletin showing which type of green card case and country is currently being reviewed by the USCIS. This review is based on the date of the applicant’s green card application filing (known as the “priority date”). If the priority date is current on the bulletin for the category and country, the USCIS may render a decision about the pending green card application.
The EB-2 category will see advancement of priority dates on the visa bulletin in the coming months. India is the country most affected by this news due to the fact that the EB-2 category for India is extremely backlogged. With an additional 12,000 slots available, Indian applicants who are currently waiting to hear about their green card applications may finally receive a decision.
Tags: backlog, Department of State, EB-1, EB-2, priority date, quota, visa bulletin
Posted in Alerts, Immigrant Visas, USCIS | Read More »
USCIS Proposes H-1B Employer Registration Process
The USCIS has proposed a rule that would require employers seeking to file H-1B cap petitions to first register electronically with the USCIS during a designated registration period. H-1B cap petitions are those subject to the 85,000 annual quota (most commonly new petitions where an individual has never held H-1B status before). This proposed rule does not apply to employers filing for someone already holding H-1B status and changing employers or seeking an extension.
If the USCIS anticipates that 85,000 petitions will not be received by the first day of the filing period (i.e. April 1), the USCIS would then notify registered employers that they are eligible to file H-1B petitions on behalf of the beneficiaries named in the registration. USCIS would continue to accept and select registrations until the H-1B cap is reached.
If the USCIS anticipates that the cap would be reached within the first day, the USCIS would close registration before April 1 and randomly select a sufficient number of timely filed registrations to meet the cap. Employers who were not selected may be placed on a waitlist by the USCIS. If the employer is not chosen in the lottery or placed on a waitlist, it would receive notification that it cannot file cap petitions for that fiscal year.
Please stay tuned for updates on whether this rule is implemented.
Tags: h-1b cap, H-1B employer registration
Posted in H-1B, USCIS | Read More »
Federal Judge Shuts Down Immigration Scam
A Federal Judge in a U.S. District Court in Nevada has shut-down an immigration scam at the request of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The scam had consumers paying fees ranging from $200 to $2500 that purportedly covered USCIS application processing costs.
The defendants set up websites that mimicked official government sites and then used fake sites to steer consumers to its deceptive operations. Telemarketers would provide legal advice when individuals called and filing fees were taken from individuals without ever being sent to the USCIS as part of an immigration application.
The defendants named in the case are Immigration Center; Immigration Forms and Publications, Inc; Charles Doucette, individually and doing business as Telestaffing; Immigration Forms and Services and Immigration Form Processing; Deborah Stilson aka Deborah Malmstrom; Alfred Boyce; Thomas Strawbridge; Robin Meredith; Thomas Lawrence; and Elizabeth Meredith.
The FTC charged the defendants with violating federal law by misrepresenting:
• that they were authorized to provide immigration and naturalization services;
• that they were affiliated with the U.S. government; and
• that the fees paid by consumers would cover all the costs associated with submitting immigration documents to the USCIS.
Tags: FTC, Immigration Center, Immigration Forms and Publications, immigration scam
Posted in Politics/Current Events, USCIS | Read More »
