December 4, 2019
South Korea has revised its E-7 visa policy regarding foreign nationals in the parts, materials, and equipment industries. Applicants will be able to apply online rather than having to apply at an overseas consulate. This will cut down visa processing times from an estimated one ...
December 4, 2019
USCIS released guidance on November 21, 2019, which clarifies when the Service may adjust the status of an alien whose Conditional Permanent Resident (CPR) status has been terminated. This guidance applies to the adjustment of status applications filed with USCIS after November 21, 2019. A ...
November 20, 2019
As previously reported, on July 17, 2019, the Irish High Court ruled that a person applying to become a naturalized Irish citizen must have one year of “unbroken” residence in Ireland immediately before filing the naturalization application. The High Court interpreted the “continuous residence” requirement of the Irish Nationality and ...
November 20, 2019
Starting November 11, 2019, Poland was officially included in the Visa Waiver Program. It is a comprehensive program designed to encourage and strengthen tourism and business exchanges between the United States and designated countries while increasing security. Polish citizens can now travel to the United States ...
November 20, 2019
On November 14, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a proposed rule modifying eligibility for employment authorization based on a pending asylum claim. USCIS’s proposal includes excluding from eligibility for employment authorization: Aliens who entered or attempted to enter the United States unlawfully without good ...
November 6, 2019
The EU Council in Brussels, consisting of 27 EU ambassadors, has agreed to the UK Government’s request to remain in the EU until January 31, 2020. This is the third extension the EU has granted the UK. Under the agreement, EU nationals will continue to have free ...
November 6, 2019
USCIS now offers select applicants the option to file an I-539 extension application online to facilitate processing queue. The eligible applicant must be filing for an extension of an existing status and must file individually (without co-applicants). Individuals may complete the I-539 form online to extend status ...
November 6, 2019
On October 30, 2019 USCIS announced that the Premium Processing fee charged by the service for expedited processing of certain applications for immigration benefits will increase from $1,410.00 to $1,440.00 beginning December 2, 2019. Premium Processing is an optional service that allows petitioners or employees to request the 15-day ...
October 23, 2019
On October 17, 2019, the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union (EU) reached a Brexit deal. The Withdrawal Agreement was officially published on October 21, 2019. The UK Parliament began to debate the Withdrawal Agreement today (October 22nd) and has already voted against the Prime Minister's rapid ...
October 23, 2019
On October 15, CEOs and Deans from the top business schools in the country wrote a letter addressed to the President and members of Congress, asking them to reform the U.S. Immigration system to meet the country’s need for highly skilled employees in the STEM field. The ...
October 9, 2019
On October 7, 2019, New Zealand implemented significant changes to the Talent (Accredited Employer) Work Visa Program. For all new applications received after this date, the minimum salary needed for the Talent (Accredited Employer) Work Visa will increase from NZD $55,000 to NZD $79,560 per year, reflecting ...
September 25, 2019
The UK government has opened up a new type of Post-Study Work Visa to international students in hopes of recruiting and retaining successful global talent into the country. International students who have a valid immigration status and have completed a course of study at an undergraduate level ...
September 25, 2019
In a letter to a U.S. Court of Appeals on September 16, the Department of Homeland Security indicated that the earliest possible publication date for a proposed rule to rescind H-4 employment authorization would be in Spring 2020. Until such a time that a new rule goes ...
September 25, 2019
On September 20, the Trump administration came to an asylum cooperation agreement with El Salvador, designed to deter migrants from seeking asylum in the United States. The agreement states that any migrants that pass through El Salvador seeking asylum must apply for protection in that country first ...
September 11, 2019
The Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business (“The Department”) has begun its annual review of the Skilled Migration Occupation Lists. The Department will meet with interested stakeholders, industries, and groups in Australia to learn about local labor markets and skill shortages. The ‘Traffic Light Bulletin’ ...
September 11, 2019
On September 4, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a proposal to collect social media user identifications in order to “assess an alien’s eligibility to travel to or be admitted to the United States or to receive an immigration-related benefit from DHS.” This change would ...
August 28, 2019
Beginning on November 1, 2019, non-resident foreign nationals wishing to join their Irish partners in Ireland for a period longer than 3 months, must apply for immigration preclearance before traveling to Ireland. Officials have emphasized that in-country applications will not be accepted. Officials have also announced ...
August 28, 2019
On August 19, 2019, the UK Home Office published a fact sheet to dispel some media reports related to the rights of EU citizens residing in the UK after Brexit. The Home Office confirmed that EU citizen residents will not be left in “legal limbo” as ...
August 28, 2019
On August 15, 2019, USCIS announced that it has issued return notices for all H-1B Cap Petitions that were not selected in the FY 2020 lottery. The lottery for successful H-1B Cap Petitions was completed by May 17, 2019, and USCIS has since taken steps to ...
August 28, 2019
Twenty states announced their plans to file a lawsuit against the Trump Administration in response to its plans to amend the rule that limits the amount of time a migrant child may be held in detention centers to 20 days. Amending this rule would allow the ...
August 14, 2019
On August 1, 2019, The Ministry of Public Security implemented new immigration policies aimed to attract highly-skilled foreign talent and outstanding youth to study and work in China. These new policies will facilitate the process for foreigners to apply for permanent residency, long-term visas, and residence permits ...
August 14, 2019
In March 2019, USCIS announced its plan to close all of its overseas offices.However, on August 9, 2019, USCIS updated its plans and announced thatseven of the international offices will remain open. The field offices in Monterrey, Mexico and Seoul, South Korea will be the first ...
August 14, 2019
On August 6, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that USCIS acted arbitrarily, capriciously, and abused its discretion in denying an H-1B work visa to a Data Analyst on the grounds that Data Analysts do not require a bachelor’s degree in ...
July 17, 2019
Under a draft plan reportedly approved by President Vladimir Putin, Russia plans to expand its e-visa program starting on January 1, 2021. The list of countries whose citizens will be eligible to apply for the e-visa will be confirmed by the government separately. The list most likely will include ...
July 17, 2019
On July 15, the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia issued an opinion in the case of Sagarwala vs. Cissna. Usha Sagarwala, beneficiary of an H-1B petition filed by HSK Technologies, Inc., sued the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) after USCIS denied the ...
July 17, 2019
On July 15, the Trump Administration published a new rule, Asylum Eligibility and Procedural Modifications, requiring individuals who pass through a third party country seeking to apply for asylum in the U.S. to apply for asylum in that third party country first. Under the new rules, ...
July 17, 2019
On July 10th, the House of Representatives passed the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act, which intends to eliminate the per-country cap for employment-based green cards. The bill will now be considered by the Senate. If the bill is approved, the first-come, first-served system would give every immigrant ...
July 2, 2019
The Home Office published details on the new immigration and border system it will likely implement at the beginning of 2021. Some of the proposals include eliminating the annual cap of visas issued for skilled workers and the Resident Labor Market Test for high-skilled workers. This new ...
July 2, 2019
On June 17, 2019, USCIS announced that it plans on decreasing processing times for Naturalization and Green Card processing. USCIS plans to distribute Naturalization and Green Card adjudication more evenly among the field offices to address issues caused by the disparate adjudication burden on different field offices ...
July 2, 2019
On June 25, 2019, USCIS announced that it will expand its digital Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Immigration Records System (FIRST) allowing FOIA requesters who have a USCIS online account to submit online requests for their own records. USCIS has indicated that “the FIRST system is the only system ...