On March 2, the State Department rescinded its previous policy on categories eligible for national interest exceptions (NIE) from the regional COVID-19 travel bans in effect for the European Schengen Area, the United Kingdom, and Ireland (Presidential Proclamation 10143), replacing it with…
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is extending certain flexibilities to F-1 students seeking Optional Practical Training (OPT) who file Form I-765 work authorization applications between October 1, 2020 and May 1, 2021, inclusive. The accommodations come in response to significant delays…
President Biden has revoked a Trump-era presidential proclamation that suspended the entry of certain immigrants until March 31. The revocation takes effect immediately and consulates are permitted to resume processing affected immigrant visa applications. However, due to reduced consular operations worldwide and…
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced that premium processing service is now available for Australian E-3 nonimmigrant extensions and changes of status. Beginning today, sponsoring employers are able to request premium processing concurrently with their E-3 extension and status change…
Employers can set up new accounts in USCIS’s online H-1B cap registration system beginning at noon ET March 2.If your organization wishes to sponsor foreign workers for H-1B cap employment in FY 2022, it must have a registration account. Existing…
According to the State Department’s March Visa Bulletin, final action cutoff dates for issuance of an immigrant visa will be as follows: EB-1: All countries except for China and India will remain current in March. China and India will advance by seven…
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will continue to implement the Trump Administration’s ban on “non-essential” travel across U.S. land borders and ferry travel with Canada and Mexico through March 21, 2021, according to a set of notifications to be published in the Federal Register. The…
Today, President Biden’s comprehensive immigration reform proposal, the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, was formally introduced in Congress. The bill features a path to permanent residence and citizenship for qualifying undocumented foreign nationals and those holding Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals…
USCIS has published an announcement on its website that the H-1B registration process will commence at on March 9, 2021, at 12:00 pm (ET). The registration process timeline is as follows: March 9: H-1B registration process opens at Noon, Eastern Time;March 25: H-1B registration process…
Today, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that it is enforcing the requirement that travelers wear face masks at all air, land and sea ports of entry in the United States. This announcement is in compliance with President Biden’s Executive…