It is an exciting and busy time at the Sapochnick Law Firm! Our Firm is gearing up for the long awaited H-1B season to kick off on Monday, April 1, 2019. To help you put your best foot forward, we are sharing the ultimate running checklist for H-1B- cap-subject petitions.…
Articles Posted in Global Immigration
USCIS Publishes New Form I-539 Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status
As a reminder, we would like to inform our readers that USCIS has published a revised Form I-539 Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status. Beginning March 21, 2019, after close of business, USCIS will no longer accept Form I-539 with an edition date of 12/23/16 or earlier. Applicants must send revised…
Start of FY 2020 H-1B Cap Season
The start of the FY 2020 H-1B cap season begins on April 1, 2019. This year, USCIS will offer premium processing services in a two-phased approach to avoid temporary suspension of the service. Change of Status H-1B Cap Petitions Starting April 1, FY 2020 cap-subject H-1B petitioners requesting a change…
Premium Processing Services for H-1B Applicants Requesting a Change of Status
Good news for H-1B FY 2020 applicants requesting a change of status. Premium processing services will be offered for applicants filing an H-1B petition in the April 2019 lottery who are requesting a change of status. Premium processing will be offered in a two-phased approach during the FY 2020 cap…
House Democrats Introduce Dream and Promise Act 2019
Flickr: mollyktadams House Democrats are making a move to help Dreamers achieve permanent residence. A new bill dubbed HR 6, the Dream and Promise Act, seeks to provide undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children, the opportunity to obtain permanent residence. In addition, the bill includes a…
USCIS Resumes Premium Processing for All H-1B Petitions
USCIS has announced that it will resume premium processing services for all H-1B petitions on Tuesday, March 12. Applicants who have received a request for evidence (RFE) for a pending H-1B petition, should include Form I-907 request for premium processing along with the RFE response, if they wish to upgrade…
USCIS Publishes Revised Version of Form I-539 Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status
Beginning March 22nd, USCIS will only accept the revised version of Form I-539 Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status with edition date 02/04/2019. USCIS will reject any Form I-539 with an edition date of 12/23/16, or earlier, that is received by USCIS after March 21st. USCIS will accept the 12/23/16 version…
Immigration Updates: TPS Extensions and Visa Processing for Venezuelans
USCIS Issues Notice Extending TPS Designation for Beneficiaries from Sudan, Nicaragua, Haiti, and El Salvador In compliance with a court ordered preliminary injunction issued in the case Ramos v. Nielsen, USCIS has issued a notice formally announcing the automatic extension of TPS documentation for beneficiaries from Sudan, Nicaragua, Haiti, and…
USCIS Reaches H-2B Visa Cap for Temporary Non-Agricultural Workers
On February 22, 2019, USCIS announced it has received enough petitions to meet the congressionally mandated H-2B cap for temporary nonagricultural workers, for the second half of FY2019. February 19, 2019 was the final receipt date for new cap-subject H-2B worker petitions requesting an employment start date before October 1,…
DHS to Publish Notice of Proposed Rule-making to Remove H-4 Employment Authorization
The Trump administration is making another bold move, this time the target is H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrant workers seeking permanent residence. The Department of Homeland Security has published a notice of proposing rule-making (NRPM) to rescind an Obama era rule extending eligibility for employment authorization to certain H-4…