Visa Lawyer Blog

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Visa Bulletin Department of State released the Visa Bulletin for March 2007, which reflects retrogression in the family-based third preference category for Mexico and the Philippines. Also, little forward movement is expected in the employment-based third preference category in the near future.

Definitions

Visa numbers: The U.S. government makes only a certain number of immigrant visas (green cards) available each year and these are allocated among the various immigrant visa categories and countries from which applicants seek to emigrate.

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USCIS proposed fee increases averaging 66% and in return is promising 20% processing time improvements by the end of 2009. It seems very unreasonable to me as many of our clients will find it more difficult to apply for benefits. I understand that fees go up, but 66%, this is not a good sign!
According to USCIS, fee increases will hit the following application types: (1) Application to Replace a Permanent Resident Card (I-90) – current fee is $190; proposed fee is $290; (2) Petition for Alien Fiancé (I-129F) – current fee is $170; proposed fee is $455; (3) Application to Register Permanent Status or Adjust Status (I-485) – current fee is $325; proposed fee is $9051; and (4) Application for Naturalization (N-400) – current fee is $330; proposed fee is $595.

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The J-1 visa is an exchange-visitor visa for persons coming to the U.S. as a student, scholar, trainee, teacher, professor, research assistant, or medical graduate to participate in a training, research or study program approved by the Department of State.

Given that there are no limits on the number of J visas issued annually AND the fact that, unlike an H1-B visa, applicant is not subject to any visa limits, the J visa is generally a great option for both applicants and sponsors. However, before applying for a J visa there are important considerations of which potential applicants and sponsors should be aware.

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As most of our readers of you are aware, there is an annual cap on the number of new H-1Bs that USCIS can approve. The cap opens up each year on October 1, the start of the government’s fiscal year. However, because H-1B petitions can be filed 6 months in advance of the employment start date, H-1B petitions for those subject to the cap can be filed as early as April 1, 2007.

Every year, since the cap was reduced to 65,000 H-1Bs per year, the cap has been filling up sooner and sooner. Last year, the cap was reached on May 26, creating a window of less than 2 months during which any new H-1B petitions could be filed for that year. There are 20,000 extra visas for applicants with Masters degrees from US Universities.

For those of you looking for work and a US sponsor, now is the time to update your resume and start networking.

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