Immigration - General

April 1, 2024, will mark the beginning of new changes to USCIS form editions, filing fees, and direct filing addresses for many common immigration applications and petitions. Of particular note are the upcoming changes to the filing requirements for the Form I-129 and Form I-140. With the H-1B lotte

President Joe Biden announced Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for up to 18 months for Palestinians currently residing in the United States. The president took this action due to the terrorist attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the military response, and the humanitarian conditions in the Palestini

Executive Summary: Recent reports from the U.S. Department of State (DOS) make clear that American companies need foreign talent more than ever before, and FordHarrison is here to advise on how to navigate this evolving landscape.

Employers use the form I-9 to verify the identity and legal authorization to work of all paid employees in the United States. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to properly and timely complete the I-9, and significant liability can result from getting it wrong. We address some common form I-9 comp

Many USCIS filing fees are being adjusted upward beginning on April 1, 2024. That date, of course, is particularly significant. It is the earliest date that Cap H-1Bs can be filed. The H-1B filing fee, for example, will rise from $460 to $780. The ACWIA Fee (to fund the training

On January 31, 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final rule in the Federal Register to adjust immigration benefit request fees, effective April 1, 2024. The agency has stated that the “[t]he final rule will allow USCIS to recover a greater share of its operating cos

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has recently announced a streamlined process for foreign workers to request deferred action. Deferred action is a type of prosecutorial discretion to defer removal action (deportation) for a noncitizen for a certain time period. The new process will apply wh

On January 30, 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced an increase to its filing fees across the board. The last such increase was in 2016. This change will be effective April 1, 2024. In some cases, increases are minor, but several are substantive.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS has issued new guidance to define the extent of an employer’s financial obligation in employment-based green card applications where the sponsored employee has changed employers while the I-140 Immigrant Petition is still pending adjudication.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has updated its policy manual to clarify the circumstances under which the agency, in its discretion, may forgive a failure to timely file a nonimmigrant extension of stay or change of status request where the failure is the result of extraordinary c

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently updated guidance in its policy manual regarding international students within F and M student classifications . This new guidance consolidates and provides greater clarity on existing policy for international students.

The increasing need for talented workers in the United States has more and more employers considering eliminating bachelor’s degree requirements from job descriptions.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published its new immigration-related fines/penalties, effective January 15, 2024. Immigration-related violations before the DOL involve these visas: H-1B, H-2A, and H-2B. These increases are pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 2015.

Premium processing will become more expensive starting on February 26, 2024. According to USCIS , it is raising the fees to adjust for inflation. The newly generated income, estimated to be approximately $185 million, will be used to respond to adjudication demands and reduce processing times throug

Looking back at 2023, many of the employment-based immigration changes proposed and implemented by various U.S. government agencies focused on increasing efficiency and alleviating strain on our immigration system. There was increased focus on creating consistency in adjudications of benefits, new p

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced the expansion of the online myProgress tool to Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, and Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status.

The current administration and multiple members of Congress seek to grant protections to H-2B non-agricultural temporary workers who are employed in the United States to fill temporary labor shortages in the U.S. market. Multiple bills have been introduced in both the Senate and House of Representat

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has ended its temporary 540-day automatic extension period for filing certain employment authorization documents (EAD).

On October 30, 2023, President Biden issued a landmark executive order (EO) on artificial intelligence (AI) aimed at transforming the landscape of technology, labor, and immigration in the United States. This sweeping directive establishes new standards for AI safety and security, with a goal of pro