Immigration - General

Employers and employees alike often inquire as to who may pay immigration sponsorship fees for certain nonimmigrant petitions and the permanent residency (green card) process. The answer often depends on a few details, including the specific immigration process, who is requesting the fee, the visa t

On May 24, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced an expansion of the agency’s premium processing service for certain pending Form I-140 petitions in the EB-1C multinational executive and manager and the EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) categories, which have experience

Federal courts could not review the U.S. Attorney General’s decisions denying discretionary relief from removal – even in a case where the alien contends that the decision was based on a factual error, the U.S. Supreme Court has held, 5-4, affirming the opinion of the U.S. Court of Appeals for

The Jumpstart Our Legal Immigration System Act (Jumpstart) , introduced by Zoe Lofgren (D-Calf.) in the House of Representatives, if passed, could revolutionize the green card process. The legislation would recapture thousands of unused family- and employment-based visas and allow beneficiaries to e

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that the agency will undertake three efforts to increase efficiency and reduce burdens within the legal immigration system.

In their search for skilled workers, manufacturers should not overlook countries with which the United States maintains a treaty. Such treaty countries offer an additional avenue to find skilled, non-professional employees.

In November 2021, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced it would recognize nonimmigrant spouses of those holding E and L visas1 as employment authorized incident to their valid status. Qualified E and L spouses are no longer required to file for an Employment Authorization

The United States has joined many European countries that are opening their doors and offering humanitarian assistance to fleeing Ukrainians. Ireland, Great Britain and Canada have all started private sponsorship programs for Ukrainians. That assistance is not necessarily a one-way street. Easing th

On March 16, 2022, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Afghan nationals for eighteen months. Under the designation, TPS will apply to nationals of Afghanistan who have continuously resided in the United States since March 1

For nearly two decades, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has signaled its intention to modernize with the creation of an electronic filing system (officially known as the Electronic Immigration System or ELIS). At its inception in 2005, ELIS was reported to be a $500 million dollar

A series of significant developments in U.S. immigration law has already marked the beginning of 2022 and more can be expected. Please see our Legal Update for what to anticipate as the year progresses.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed it will be decoupling the standard employment authorization document (EAD) and advance parole (AP) “combo card” and sending out separate EAD and AP documents in an effort to expedite EAD processing times.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that it is strongly encouraging applicants for adjustment of status (Form I-485) in the employment-based third preference category, if they are eligible to do so, to transfer the underlying basis of their applications to the first or se

USCIS has changed its mission statement again – this time to adopt a more immigration-friendly stance. In 2018, USCIS, under the Trump Administration, changed its mission statement to align with President Donald Trump’s focus on enforcement, strict scrutiny, and extreme vetting. The statement did no

In December 2021, Congressional Democrats tried to include immigration reforms in the Build Back Better Act (BBBA). Some of the proposals would have helped unauthorized immigrants by providing those eligible with parole and work authorization. The bill also would have reduced green card backlogs and

On February 4, 2022, the House of Representatives passed the American Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength Act (known as the America COMPETES Act of 2022). The bill is aimed at “outcompeting China and the rest of the world in the 21st century.”

As of January 31, 2022, spouses entering the United States in L-2 or E status may be able to obtain work authorization at the border by asking Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to give them a “spousal” designation in their I-94 record. Because USCIS has not issued “official” guidance on

The onset and persistence of the COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated the shortage of healthcare workers in the United States, especially in rural areas. Periodic spikes in infection levels has sped burn-out among healthcare workers. There are many foreign nationals who can and do fill these healt

Individuals hoping to complete their naturalization processes are being kept in limbo while their files sit in limestone caves. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has been the depository for “old” Alien Files (“A-Files”) for the entire United States and its territories for some

For the first time, USCIS has advised people with a pending green card application of its documentary requirements for transfers between employment-based classifications and issued an alert regarding the process. The “exceptionally high number of employment-based [immigrant] visas available this fis