Kristina M. Hernandez2 days ago3 minThe Importance of Timely Filing H-1B Amendment PetitionsBefore an H-1B worker can begin work at a new location that is outside the metropolitan statistical area (MSA) of the existing, approved...
Kristina M. HernandezApr 304 minU.S. Will Restrict Nonimmigrant Travelers from India Beginning May 4, 2021Because of the widespread, person-to-person transmission of COVID-19 in India, President Biden has issued a proclamation suspending the...
Kristina M. HernandezApr 271 minUSCIS Will Give Deference to Previously Approved PetitionsToday USCIS has issued policy guidance restoring the 2004 deference policy which was rescinded in 2017. This deference policy, effective...
Kristina M. HernandezApr 141 minTravel Issues for Permanent Residents in Pandemic TimesBecause of temporary travel restrictions due to COVID, legal permanent residents should be prepared for potential issues that may arise...
Kristina M. HernandezApr 122 minF-1 Students Can Now File OPT Applications Online! Today USCIS announced that F-1 students seeking pre-completion OPT, post-completion OPT, or STEM OPT can now file their I-765 online. To...
Kristina M. HernandezMar 302 minH-1B Lottery Selection Process CompletedUSCIS has notified the public that they have received enough electronic registrations during the initial registration period to reach the...
Kristina M. HernandezMar 272 minH-1B Lottery Selection Results Released!Just 2 days ago I wrote a post on how the H-1B electronic registration officially closed and USCIS would notify registrants with...
Kristina M. HernandezMar 252 minH-1B Electronic Registration for FY 2022 Officially Closed!Today at 12:00 PM eastern time, the H-1B electronic registration for the FY 2022 cap season officially closed. So, what's next? The...
Kristina M. HernandezFeb 241 minUSCIS Now Accepting Premium Processing for E-3 PetitionsUSCIS has announced that beginning today, Petitioners filing an E-3 petition requesting a change of status or an extension will have the...
Kristina M. HernandezFeb 52 minFY 2022 H-1B Cap Registration Period Will Open March 9, 2021USCIS has finally announced more information about this year’s registration period for the FY 2022 H-1B cap season. When to Register: The...
Kristina M. HernandezFeb 42 minDHS Delays Wage-Based Selection Process Today DHS issued a notice which will be published in the Federal Register on February 8th that delays the effective date of the rule...
Kristina M. HernandezJan 112 minUSCIS Provides Update on Delays in Issuing Biometrics Appointment NoticesI’ve been getting a lot of emails and calls from people who have filed H-4 applications many months ago and still have not received their...
Kristina M. HernandezJan 82 minPP 10052 Suspending Entry of Certain Nonimmigrants Extended Through March 31, 2021You may recall that on June 22, 2020, the President issued Presidential Proclamation 10052 which suspended the issuance of certain...
Kristina M. HernandezJan 72 minDHS Moving Forward with Wage-Based Selection Process for This Year’s H-1B Cap SeasonAs I mentioned in an earlier blog post, at the end of October DHS announced submission of a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to the...
Kristina M. HernandezDec 5, 20202 minFederal Court Vacates DHS H-1B Rule and DOL Wage RuleOn December 1, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in Chamber of Commerce, et al. v. DHS, et al....
Kristina M. HernandezOct 29, 20202 minDHS Proposes Wage-Based Selection Process to Replace H-1B Cap Random Selection ProcessYesterday afternoon, DHS announced submission of a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to the Federal Register regarding amending...
Kristina M. HernandezOct 6, 20203 minRegulations Revising H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa Program ReleasedDHS has released its advanced copy of the interim final rule (IFR) which revises the definition of the term “specialty occupation” and...
Kristina M. HernandezOct 1, 20202 minCongress Passes Bill With Major Expansion of Premium Processing Yesterday the Senate passed H.R. 8337 and ultimately signed by the President, which included the Emergency Stopgap USCIS Stabilization...
Kristina M. HernandezSep 30, 20202 minFederal Judge Blocks USCIS Final Rule Increasing FeesOn September 29th, a federal judge for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted a motion for a preliminary...
Kristina M. HernandezSep 22, 20202 minNew I-129 Form Now Available for PreviewDHS announced its final rule back in July regarding the increased fees for many immigration forms, which also informed us that there...
