Summary The State Department issued guidance expanding the validity of national interest exceptions (NIEs) granted under the regional COVID-19 travel bans. NIEs will now be valid for one full year after approval and allow for multiple entries – a significant…
The EB-5 Regional Center Program will lapse at midnight tonight as Congress will not reach an agreement on reauthorization before that time. Though Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) had attempted to fast-track their EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of…
In its ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic, USCIS is further extending its 60-day deadline extension policy for responses to various agency actions to September 30, 2021. The accommodation will continue to be available to individuals/companies responding to or filing the following: Requests for…
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will continue to implement the ban on “non-essential” travel across U.S. land borders and ferry travel with Canada and Mexico through July 21, 2021, according to a set of notifications to be published in Wednesday’s Federal Register. The restrictions were…
According to the State Department’s July Visa Bulletin, final action cutoff dates for issuance of an immigrant visa will be as follows: EB-1: All countries, including China and India, will remain current.EB-2: China will advance by seven months, to December 1, 2017,…
During the FY 2022 H-1B cap registration period, employers submitted 308,613 registrations for selection in the cap lottery, 12% more than in the FY 2021 filing season. However, despite the increase in registrations, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) selected…
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has issued a set of policy revisions aimed at reducing burdens on those eligible for U.S. immigration benefits. The changes follow a February 2, 2021 executive order in which President Biden instructed federal agencies to conduct a review of immigration…
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is extending until August 31, 2021 its relaxed enforcement of the normal requirement to physically inspect the original documents presented by new hires during the I-9 process and thus allow eligible employers to continue to implement remote I-9…
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has announced that he will designate Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and related benefits because of ongoing political, security, and economic conditions that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligible Haitian nationals and those who…
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas has designated Burma (Myanmar) for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months, from May 25, 2021 through November 25, 2022. According to a Federal Register notice that will be published tomorrow, the designation will permit eligible Burmese nationals and…