As we celebrate this great country on the 4th of July, may we remember our blessings of living in a free country where we are all created equal. Warm wishes to you and yours on this Fourth of July!
In observance of the Independence Day holiday our offices will be closed Monday July 3rd and Tuesday July 4th. We will return to our normal business hours on Wednesday July 5th. We look forward to serving you.
Readers of the July Visa Bulletin may have been surprised to learn that the final action date for the employment-based third preference category for nationals of India retrogressed by more than 3 years and 5 months from June 15, 2012 (in the June Visa Bulletin) to January 1, 2009 (in the July Visa Bulletin).
What is the Employment-Based Third Preference Category also known as EB-3?
The employment-based third preference category (or EB-3) is reserved for three types of subcategories of immigrants: skilled workers, professionals, or other workers. No matter the subcategory, immigrants must have an approved labor certification from the Department of Labor and a permanent full-time job offer from a U.S. employer.
What are the subcategories?
Certain types of nonimmigrants will be expected to shell out more money for the nonimmigrant visa process.
The State Department has announced that starting June 17, 2023, nonimmigrant visa (NIV) application processing fees for visitor visas for business or tourism (B1/B2s and BCCs), and other non-petition based nonimmigrant visas such as student and exchange visitor visas (F, M, and J visas), will increase from $160 to $185.
Additionally, processing fees for certain petition-based nonimmigrant visas for temporary workers (H, L, O, P, Q, and R categories) will increase from $190 to $205.
Fees for a treaty trader, treaty investor, and treaty applicants in a specialty occupation (nonimmigrant E category) visa will also increase from $205 to $315.
What if I pay my nonimmigrant visa fee prior to June 17, 2023?
In this case you are in luck. Nonimmigrant visa fees paid prior to June 17, 2023, will remain valid through the expiration date on your nonimmigrant visa fee payment receipt.
Why the increase?
The Department of State has said that nonimmigrant visa fees are set based on the actual cost of providing nonimmigrant visa services and are determined after conducting a study of the cost of these services.
The agency uses Activity-Based Costing (ABC) methodology to calculate, annually, the cost of providing consular services, including visa services.
The Department of State raised eyebrows earlier this month when it released information that it will be reducing the waiting period for 221(G) “administrative processing,” in an effort to process visas more efficiently.
While this is welcome news, in practice it may not mean much. Consulates and Embassies have been notoriously secretive when it comes to 221(G) administrative processing and do not reveal the reason for a visa applicant being placed in administrative processing in the first place, nor the type of security checks that are being conducted.
What is 221(G) Administrative Processing?
First, let’s explain what administrative processing is. When an applicant visits a U.S. Consulate or Embassy overseas for their visa interview, there are only two possible outcomes that can occur at the conclusion of their interview. The Consular Officer may choose to either issue or “refuse” the visa. A refusal is not the same as a denial. It simply means that the visa applicant has not established his or her eligibility for the visa they are seeking for the time being, and the Consulate needs additional time or requires further information either from the visa applicant or another source to determine the applicant’s eligibility for the visa.
In most cases, visa applicants who have been “refused” will require further administrative processing.
How will I know if I have been placed in 221(G) administrative processing?
Visa applicants placed in administrative processing are often given what is called a “Notice of 221(G) Refusal” at the conclusion of their interview, which states that the visa application has been “refused” under section 221(G) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The Notice should indicate whether additional administrative processing is required for your case, and whether any further action is required on your part, such as providing additional documentation or further information to process your visa.
However, in some cases visa applicants are not given such a Notice and will later discover that they have been placed in 221(G) administrative processing upon checking their visa status on the Consular Electronic Application Center (CEAC) visa status check webpage.
In this blog post we share with you the latest trends and projections of the June Visa Bulletin, and updates on visa availability for family-sponsored and employment-based preference categories.
To help you prepare for your upcoming immigrant visa or green card filing, we share what you can expect to see in the upcoming month’s visa bulletin.
Here are some of the highlights from the June 2023 Visa Bulletin:
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.
To be eligible to file an employment-based adjustment of status application in June 2023, foreign nationals must have priority dates that are earlier than the Final Action Dates chart of the Department of State’s May Visa Bulletin.
Family-sponsored applicants currently residing in the United States, may file for adjustment of status once their priority dates become current, following the Dates for Filing chart according to the adjustment of status filing guidance published by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
CBP No Longer Requires Proof of COVID-19 Vaccination for Air Passengers from Any Country starting today May 12, 2023
The United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) now joins the State Department and Department of Homeland Security in announcing the end of the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for international travelers starting today Friday, May 12, 2023.
Noncitizen nonimmigrant air passengers will no longer need to show proof of being fully vaccinated with an accepted COVID-19 vaccine to board a flight to the United States.
Welcome back to Visalawyerblog! In this blog post we share with you some breaking news regarding the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for non-immigrant international travelers.
On May 4, 2023, the State Department announced that the Biden administration will end the COVID-19 vaccine requirements for international air travelers at the end of the day on May 11, 2023, which marks the end of the federal COVID-19 public health emergency.
After this date, beginning May 12, noncitizen nonimmigrant air passengers will no longer need to show proof of being fully vaccinated with an accepted COVID-19 vaccine to board a flight to the United States.
Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security has released its own statement announcing that the COVID-19 vaccine requirement will also end for non-U.S. citizen travelers seeking entry through land parts of entry and ferries as indicated below:
Beginning May 12, 2023, DHS will no longer require non-U.S. travelers entering the United States via land ports of entry and ferry terminals to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and provide related proof of vaccination upon request. DHS intends to rescind these Title 19 travel restrictions in alignment with the end of the Public Health Emergency and the termination of the Presidential Proclamation on air travel.
This Friday afternoon, we share with you some interesting new insights revealed by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services regarding the recent H-1B electronic registration period for fiscal year 2024.
USCIS has disclosed that this H-1B season, it received 758,994 eligible registrations for FY 2024, breaking its previous record of 474,421 eligible registrations just the previous year.
This represents a 60% increase in eligible registrations, with 284,573 more registrants in comparison to last year’s H-1B season.
In terms of actual selections, USCIS selected a total of 110,791 registrations to meet the annual H-1B numerical cap of 85,000 visas this H-1B season. When crunching the numbers, registrants had about a 14.6% chance of being selected, when compared to last year when the chance of selection sat at 26.9%.
This H-1B season, USCIS saw a dramatic increase in the number of registrations submitted, in comparison to prior years. Across the board, there was also an increase in the number of registrations submitted on behalf of beneficiaries with multiple registrations, and the number of registrations submitted on behalf of unique beneficiaries with only one registration. USCIS saw upward trends in the FY 2022 and FY 2023 H-1B registration periods as well.
From looking at the chart below for H-1B fiscal years 2021-2014, one can see that the competition has become greater and greater for H-1B visas year by year, however FY 2024 stands out in particular as the most competitive H-1B season overall.
This chart shows registration and selection numbers for fiscal years 2021-2024 (as of April 24, 2023).
Specifically, the selection rate this H-1B season was significantly lower than all previous H-1B seasons. According to USCIS, there were fewer registrations selected this season, because of higher demand for Chile/Singapore H-1B visa (cap-exempt), and projections showing a higher rate of filings from employers whose registrations were selected in the cap lottery.
We have good news for applicants filing Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status, requesting an extension of stay in or change of status to H-4, L-2, or E nonimmigrant status.
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that it has extended the temporary suspension of the biometrics submission requirement for this group of applicants.
Previously, USCIS had suspended the biometrics requirement until May 17, 2023. With today’s announcement, the suspension of biometrics will continue through September 30, 2023, for H-4, L-2, and E nonimmigrants.
USCIS will allow adjudications for these specific categories to proceed based on biographic information and related background checks, without the normal requirement of capturing fingerprints and a photograph. However, the agency will retain its discretion to require biometrics for any applicant on a case-by-case basis. Therefore, certain applicants may still be scheduled to attend a biometrics appointment at a local application support center (ASC).
USCIS reminds Form I-539 applicants meeting the biometrics suspension criteria, that they do not need to submit the $85 biometric services fee for Form I-539 during the suspension period.
Good news for U.S. employers of H-2B visa workers!
Starting April 13, 2023, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), will begin accepting petitions for H-2B temporary non-agricultural workers for the late second half of fiscal year (FY) 2023, for employment start dates from May 15, 2023, to September 30, 2023 under the H-2B supplemental cap temporary final rule.
Up to 10,000 additional visas will be up for grabs for returning workers who were previously issued H-2B visas or who held H-2B visa status in fiscal years 2020, 2021, or 2022, irrespective of their country of nationality. Pursuant to the final rule, such visas will only be available to U.S. businesses that are suffering irreparable harm or will suffer impending irreparable harm without the ability to employ all H-2B workers requested in their petition, as attested by the employer on the new attestation form.
Why the surplus of visas?
The Department of Homeland Security and Department of Labor issued the temporary final rule to increase the numerical cap on H-2B nonimmigrant visas by up to 64,716 additional visas for fiscal year 2023. Of these 64,716 additional visas, 44,716 are available only for returning workers (workers who received an H-2B visa or were otherwise granted H-2B status in one of the last three fiscal years).
The remaining 20,000 visas have been set aside for nationals of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras (collectively called Northern Central American countries) and Haiti, who are exempt from the returning worker requirement.
As of April 10, 2023, USCIS has received petitions requesting 11,537 workers under the 20,000 visas set aside for nationals of Haiti, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. USCIS is continuing to accept H-2B petitions under this allocation.
Visa Lawyer Blog