Business Immigration Articles

Business Immigration Articles

The H-1B Program – Trends and New Developments 3423 2743 Kathleen Grzegorek

The H-1B Program – Trends and New Developments

A key component of the “Buy American, Hire American” Executive Order signed by President Trump two years ago was to create more transparency in employment based visa programs, particularly the H-1B nonimmigrant visa category. To this end, USCIS created a public website, known as the  H-1B Employer Data Hub, to provide information to the public…

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EB-1 Backlog Continues for Fiscal Year 2019 849 565 Candice Garrett

EB-1 Backlog Continues for Fiscal Year 2019

The EB-1 visa backlog remains unprecedented in scope. Note, this category includes EB-1A, Extraordinary Ability; EB-1B, Outstanding Professors and Researchers; and, EB-1C, Intracompany Transferees serving in a managerial or executive capacity. The backlogs are particularly acute for those born in India and China. During a recent meeting with the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), Charles…

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Litigating H-1B denials in the “Buy American and Hire American” era 3423 2743 Amy Lenhert

Litigating H-1B denials in the “Buy American and Hire American” era

In April 2017, President Trump issued an immigration-related executive order that has garnered significantly less attention than the “Travel Ban” order directed at restricting immigration from majority Muslim countries.  However, the “Buy American and Hire American” executive order (also called “BAHA”) has notably impacted the legal immigration system.  The stated objective of the BAHA order…

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H-1B News: USCIS Implements Electronic Registration and Changes Lottery Order 3423 2743 Andrew Grzegorek

H-1B News: USCIS Implements Electronic Registration and Changes Lottery Order

Effective April 1, 2019, U.S. Citizenship and Naturalization Service (USCIS) published a Final Rule changing the manner in which the H-1B lottery is administered.  Notably, the Final Rule introduces an electronic H-1B registration process and reverses the order in which advanced degree exemption petitions are selected. Change in H-1B Lottery Administration Currently, U.S. employers must…

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SGG Client Earns National Recognition – And a Green Card 849 565 Susan Pilcher

SGG Client Earns National Recognition – And a Green Card

SGG was privileged in 2018 to have assisted Salvadoran poet Javier Zamora with securing permanent U.S. residence after having migrated to this country illegally, alone, at the age of 9.   Mr. Zamora’s poetry has earned sustained national acclaim for its moving exploration of his experiences escaping the violent aftermath of El Salvador’s civil war, reuniting…

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USCIS Issues Revised Guidance on Unlawful Presence for Students and Exchange Visitors 1000 559 Kathleen Grzegorek

USCIS Issues Revised Guidance on Unlawful Presence for Students and Exchange Visitors

On August 9, 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final policy memorandum revising the rules for calculating unlawful presence for those in student F (student), J (exchange visitor), and M (vocational student) nonimmigrant status and their dependents while in the United States. Most non-immigrant visa holders are admitted until a certain date,…

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H-1B cap electronic pre-registration on Fall 2018 Regulatory Agenda Released by the Department of Homeland Security 2000 1994 Kathleen Grzegorek

H-1B cap electronic pre-registration on Fall 2018 Regulatory Agenda Released by the Department of Homeland Security

The Department of Homeland Security has released its Fall 2018 Regulatory Agenda. One notable agenda item involves the pre-registration of H-1B petitions filed subject to the H-1B cap.  A pre-registration system would require an H-1B Petitioner to register its intent to submit a petition for an individual beneficiary in advance of the April 1 filing…

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