We are excited to report that the Diversity Visa (DV) annual lottery registration period is now open for fiscal year (FY) 2025!
Online registration opened yesterday, October 4, 2023, at noon EST and will remain open until Tuesday, November 7, 2023, at noon EST. Registration is free to all registrants (only one registration per person is allowed) and is accessible online at dvprogram.state.gov.
Highlights
It’s official. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed that it will be increasing the validity period of work permits also known as Employment Authorization Documents (EADS) to 5 years, for certain categories of noncitizens who are employment authorized incident to their immigration status and those who must apply for employment authorization including:
Additionally, USCIS has released policy guidance clarifying that the Arrival/Departure Record (Form I-94) may be used as evidence of an alien’s status and employment authorization for certain EAD categories that are employment authorized incident to their immigration status or parole.
These changes can be found in the USCIS Policy Manual, and are also described in USCIS Policy Alert 2023-27 dated September 27, 2023.
What’s changed?
Previously, USCIS policy allowed for a maximum 2-year validity period of Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) for most categories of immigrants indicated above, and a maximum 1-year validity period for noncitizens paroled as refugees and those seeking suspension of deportation or cancellation of removal.
USCIS is now revising its guidelines to increase the maximum EAD validity period for these categories up to 5 years.
The purpose of increasing the validity period is to reduce the frequency in which noncitizens must file Form I-765 Application for Employment Authorization to renew their work permits (EADs).
In this blog post, we summarize the movement of the family-sponsored and employment-based preference categories of the October Visa Bulletin.
This information will be helpful to those applying for an immigrant visa at a U.S. Consulate overseas, and those applying for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the United States.
Overview
What is the Visa Bulletin?
The Department of State releases the visa bulletin on a monthly basis, which summarizes the availability of immigrant visa numbers for that particular month in the employment and family preference categories. The purpose of the visa bulletin is to inform immigrants who are subject to the numerical quota system of when they are eligible to apply for an immigrant visa or adjustment of status application. Applicants can determine their place in line by looking at the priority date on their underlying immigrant petition. Applicants with a priority date that is “current” on the Visa Bulletin can move forward with the immigration process, because that means a visa number is available to them.
What are the preference categories that are subject to the numerical limitations?
The Family Sponsored Preference Categories and their annual limits are as follows:
First: (F1) Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400 plus any numbers not required for fourth preference.
Second: Spouses and Children, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Permanent Residents: 114,200, plus the number (if any) by which the worldwide family preference level exceeds 226,000, plus any unused first preference numbers:
Third: (F3) Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences.
Fourth: (F4) Brothers and Sisters of Adult U.S. Citizens: 65,000, plus any numbers not required by first three preferences.
“If we learn nothing else from this tragedy, we learn that life is short and there is no time for hate.”
Sandy Dahl, wife of Flight 93 United Airlines Captain Jason Dahl
In remembrance of the lives lost on September 11, 2001
In this post, we would like to share with our readers that starting September 13th the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will require affirmative asylum applicants to bring interpreters to asylum interviews, if they are not fluent in the English language, or would like to have their interview conducted in a language other than English.
USCIS has said that affirmative asylum applicants who need an interpreter, but fail to bring one, or who bring an interpreter that is not fluent in English or a language they speak, in such case the immigration official may consider this a failure to appear if the applicant does not establish good cause.
Additionally, USCIS may dismiss the asylum application or refer the asylum application to an immigration judge.
Interpreter Requirements
The following requirements apply to interpreters present at USCIS interviews:
The interpreter must be fluent in English and a language you speak fluently and must be at least 18 years old. The interpreter cannot be:
Want to know what’s going on in the world of immigration? Then you won’t want to miss these brand-new updates from the U.S. Department of State.
Digital Visa Authorization – New Concept
The State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs has revealed that the agency is floating the idea of providing a digital visa authorization (DVA) for immigrant and nonimmigrant U.S. visa applicants applying at U.S. Embassies and Consulates overseas. The digital visa authorization (DVA) would replace the need for printing traditional U.S. visas inside foreign passports.
The agency will conduct an experimental pilot testing the digital visa concept at the U.S. Embassy in Dublin, Ireland, which will issue limited digital visa authorizations for a small number of K-1 (fiancé(e)) visas as they are single-entry (single use) visas. Such K-1 visas will only be issued to those who plan to travel directly to the United States from Dublin.
If the pilot is successful, the agency may extend digital visa authorizations to other visa classes and additional posts in the future.
The U.S. CBP Document Validation program will digitally notify airlines when a traveler has valid travel credentials, including a DVA.
Why is the pilot being tested in Dublin?
According to the State Department, “U.S. Embassy Dublin is an ideal location to conduct [the] initial DVA proof of concept thanks to our historically strong partnership with the Irish government, the ingenuity of the consular section at [the] embassy there, the presence of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) pre-clearance procedures at Dublin Airport, and the participation of airlines flying out of Dublin directly to the United States who are already enrolled in CBP’s Document Validation program.”
More information will be provided as the digital visa authorization program is being developed.
As we celebrate Labor Day, we celebrate the heart and soul of our organization – including the people who are part of our team and our wonderful clients.
Your passion and positivity fuel our success, and we couldn’t be more grateful to have your support! Each one of you brings a unique personal story to the table, and we are happy to be a part of that story. Because of our dynamic team and your continuous support, we’re setting and achieving goals we didn’t think were possible.
So in honor of Labor Day, we would like to say thank you for the energy you bring and your commitment to our mission and values. We hope you make it a memorable one.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced the reopening of an international field office in Havana, Cuba.
The Havana office will assist with U.S. immigration benefits and services, including conducting interviews, processing cases for pending Cuban Family Reunification Parole (CFRP) requests, and Form I-730, Refugee/Asylee Relative Petitions, and other limited appointment-only services such as collecting biometrics for U visa applications.
Services at the Havana Field Office will be available by appointment only. USCIS has updated the USCIS International Immigration Offices page with more information about services and appointments available at the Havana Field Office.
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said that the decision to reopen the Havana Field Office was made to, “reduce unlawful entries, deny resources to ruthless smuggling organizations, and streamline access to lawful, safe, and orderly pathways for those seeking humanitarian relief.”
This move marks a restoration of American relations in Cuba. During the Trump administration, the Havana Field Office was closed, following the suspension of operations in 2017 after the U.S. Department of State ordered all non-essential personnel and families to depart Cuba.
On June 9, 2022, the Biden administration announced it would be resuming operations under the Cuban Family Reunification Parole (CFRP) program, to provide a safe, orderly pathway for certain Cuban beneficiaries of approved family-based immigrant petitions (Form I-130) to wait in the United States for their immigrant visas to become available.
We start the week with great news for Cuban and Haitian nationals.
On August 10, 2023, the Department of Homeland Security announced new publications in the Federal Register introducing changes to the Cuban and Haitian Family Reunification Parole processes.
The FRP program allows eligible Cuban and Haitian nationals to seek parole into the United States for the purpose of reuniting with their family members while they wait for their immigrant visas to become available to apply for adjustment of status to lawful permanent residence.
In this blog post, we summarize the movement of the family-sponsored and employment-based preference categories of the September Visa Bulletin.
This information will be helpful to those applying for an immigrant visa at a U.S. Consulate overseas, and those applying for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the United States.
Overview
What is the Visa Bulletin?
The Department of State releases the visa bulletin on a monthly basis, which summarizes the availability of immigrant visa numbers for that particular month in the employment and family preference categories. The purpose of the visa bulletin is to inform immigrants who are subject to the numerical quota system of when they are eligible to apply for an immigrant visa or adjustment of status application. Applicants can determine their place in line by looking at the priority date on their underlying immigrant petition. Applicants with a priority date that is “current” on the Visa Bulletin can move forward with the immigration process, because that means a visa number is available to them.
What are the preference categories that are subject to the numerical limitations?
The Family Sponsored Preference Categories and their annual limits are as follows:
First: (F1) Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400 plus any numbers not required for fourth preference.
Second: Spouses and Children, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Permanent Residents: 114,200, plus the number (if any) by which the worldwide family preference level exceeds 226,000, plus any unused first preference numbers:
Third: (F3) Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences.
Fourth: (F4) Brothers and Sisters of Adult U.S. Citizens: 65,000, plus any numbers not required by first three preferences.
The Employment-Based Preference Categories and their annual limits are as follows:
First: Priority Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any numbers not required for fourth and fifth preferences.
Second: Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability: 28.6% of the worldwide employment-based preference level, plus any numbers not required by first preference.
Third: Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers: 28.6% of the worldwide level, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences, not more than 10,000 of which to “*Other Workers”.
Fourth: Certain Special Immigrants: 7.1% of the worldwide level.
Fifth: Employment Creation: 7.1% of the worldwide level, of which 32% are reserved as follows: 20% reserved for qualified immigrants who invest in a rural area; 10% reserved for qualified immigrants who invest in a high unemployment area; and 2% reserved for qualified immigrants who invest in infrastructure projects. The remaining 68% are unreserved and are allotted for all other qualified immigrants.
In this blog post, we close out the week with some great news that may be of interest to EB-5 Immigrant Investors.
On Tuesday July 18th the U.S. Citizenship, and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced new changes to the processing of Form I-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Investor, for EB-5 investment to improve processing times and create greater efficiency.
How Will USCIS Process I-526 Petitions?
The USCIS Immigrant Investor Program Office (IPO) manages Form I-526 petition inventory through workflow queues factoring in whether: a visa is available (or will be available soon) and the underlying project has been reviewed.
Workflow queues are generally managed in first-in, first-out (FIFO) order when a visa is available or will be available soon.
Effective July 18, 2023, IPO will update its approach by grouping petitions by new commercial enterprise (NCE) with filing dates on or before November 30, 2019, within the workflow queue of petitions where the project has been reviewed and there is a visa available or soon to be available, to gain greater processing efficiencies.
In practice this means that multiple petitions with the same new commercial enterprise (NCE) will be assigned to the same adjudicator(s) to help process them more quickly. This is because multiple petitions associated with the same NCE will have an overlap in project documents and issues presented.
This approach will help reduce current EB-5 backlogs, that are stretching to a 4 to 5 year waiting period from date of filing.
Visa Lawyer Blog