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Articles Posted in Employment Based Petitions

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The E-2 Visa at a Glance: Advantages & Disadvantages

The E-2 treaty investor visa allows foreign nationals to make an investment in an existing or new business venture in the United States. Advantages There are no numerical limitations on the number of E-2 visas that can be issued, and there is no set minimum level of investment required, however…

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Proposed Rule: Mandatory Registration Requirement for H-1B Petitioners

Today, November 30, 2018, the United States Department of Homeland Security announced a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that seeks to impose a registration requirement for H-1B petitioners seeking to file an H-1B petition on behalf of beneficiaries under the regular cap and advanced degree exemption.  An unpublished version of…

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Exciting News: New Zealand joins list of treaty countries eligible for E-2 Visas

Citizens of New Zealand now qualify for the E-2 Treaty Trader Investor Visa thanks to a United States–New Zealand partnership recently signed into law. The KIWI Act, or Knowledgeable Innovators and Worthy Investors Act, signed into law on August 1st, adds New Zealand to the list of eligible countries participating…

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Reminder for F-1 Students in “Cap-Gap” Status

If you are an F-1 student with an H-1B petition that remains pending with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and your “cap-gap” employment authorization is only valid through September 30, 2018, you may risk accruing unlawful presence if you continue to work on or after October 1,…

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Upcoming Visa Trends and Projections: EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, EB-5

In this post, we would like to keep our readers informed about Visa Bulletin projections for the coming months. Charles Oppenheim, Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division of the U.S. Department of State provides a monthly analysis of each month’s Visa Bulletin including discussion of current trends and…

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BREAKING: Premium Processing Fees to Increase Beginning September 30, 2018

BREAKING: The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will be publishing a final rule in the Federal Register tomorrow August 30, 2018, increasing the premium processing fee charged by the agency by 14.92 percent. According to USCIS the increase in the fee accounts for inflation according to the Consumer…

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USCIS Extends Temporary Suspension of Premium Processing to February 19, 2019

During March of this year, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the temporary suspension of premium processing services for all fiscal year 2019 cap-subject petitions, including petitions requesting an exemption from the general cap. USCIS announced that the suspension would last until September 10, 2018, in order…

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October Visa Bulletin Trends and Visa Projections: EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, EB-5

In this post, we would like to keep our readers informed about Visa Bulletin projections for the month of October. Charles Oppenheim, Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division of the U.S. Department of State provides a monthly analysis of each month’s Visa Bulletin including discussion of current trends…

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This Week in Immigration News: Return of Unselected H-1B Petitions, Delay in Implementation of NTA Policy, and I-751 Petition Transfers

Return of Unselected H-1B Petitions H-1B cap-subject petitions that were not selected in the fiscal year 2019 visa lottery have been returned to unlucky applicants. If you filed a petition between April 2 and April 6 and you did not receive a receipt notice for your application, you will be…

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USCIS Data Signals Dramatic Increase in H-1B Visa Denials, Report Finds

A new report by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) released this month indicates that the number of H-1B denials and Requests for Evidence (RFEs) increased significantly during the fourth quarter of 2017 which began on July 1, 2017, following the implementation of Presidential Executive Order “Buy American, Hire…