Immigration Attorney, Boston MA Immigration Lawyer, Monique Kornfeld

USCIS Updates Fiscal Year 2011 H-1B Cap as of June 18, 2010

admin — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 14:01:57 +0000

As of June 18, 2010, USCIS has received 22,900 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 bachelor’s degree cap, of which there are 65,000 visas each fiscal year. Also, USCIS has received 9,700 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 US master’s degree cap, of which there are 20,000 visas each fiscal year. If the master’s cap is reached, USCIS has stated that any petitions filed on behalf of aliens with an advanced US degree will be counted toward the general 65,000 H-1B cap. These numbers are still moving very slowly and it appears that we may have another year where the cap will not be reached until the end of this year or even later.

USCIS Publishes Fee Increase Rule in Federal Register in June 2010

admin — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 02:02:40 +0000

USCIS has published notice of its rule to increase immigration filing fees in the June 2010 Federal Register. The increases average 10 percent per petition or application. USCIS states that a comprehensive review of fees regularly occurs every two years and it is to ensure full recovery of costs and maintenance of adequate services. It also states that it has met or surpassed its processing times goals in its 2008/2009 review.

There will be no fee for military naturalization applications. USCIS proposes a new fee of $615 for processing civil surgeon designations. A medical exam performed by a designated civil surgeon must accompany all applications to adjust status (Form I-485) and V status applications (Form I-539). DHS also proposes a fee for regional service center designations under the Immigrant Investor Pilot Program. This program, knows as the EB-5, allows foreign nationals to obtain legal permanent residency if they invest a certain level of capital and create a certain number of jobs in the US. One aspect of this program encourages foreign nationals to invest in distinct economic “regional centers.”

USCIS proposes to increase the following fees for forms that include biometrics, including the following: Form I-485, Application to Adjust Status, from $1,010 to $1,070; the Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residency, from $545 to $590; Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, from $675 to $680.

While USCIS has indeed sped up its processing of many applications, including the family and employment-based Form I-485 and Form I-140, other parts of the immigration system are still woefully slow, including the PERM labor certification application run through the Department of Labor. Also, the prodigious backlog in immigrant visa numbers is causing great stresses for foreign nationals waiting years to obtain legal permanent residency. Immigrant visa numbers need to be increased drastically to take into account the increased demand for such numbers based on the growth of our economy and need for foreign skilled workers. This economic slump is only temporary and soon we will be faced with a dearth of skilled workers again to fuel and sustain a strong economy.

USCIS Updates Fiscal Year 2011 H-1B Cap as of June 11, 2010

admin — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 01:40:40 +0000

USCIS has received 22,200 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 bachelor’s degree cap, of which there are 65,000 visas each fiscal year. Also, USCIS has received 9,400 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 US master’s degree cap, of which there are 20,000 visas each fiscal year. If the master’s cap is reached, USCIS has stated that any petitions filed on behalf of aliens with an advanced US degree will be counted toward the general 65,000 H-1B cap.

These numbers are moving quite slowly and we could have another record year where visa numbers remain available until the end of 2010, like last year’s cap, which was reached in December 2009. For example, since May 21, 2010, the bachelor’s cap numbers have only progressed by a little over 5,000 and the master’s cap have increased by approximately 3,000. However, if the economy does heat up, then these numbers should start moving more quickly.

Employers can continue to file H-1B petitions for a start date before October 1, 2011, so long as H-1B numbers are available. However, the start cannot be more than six months in advance of the date of preparation on the Form ETA 9035 Labor Condition Application (LCA), which is filed with the Department of Labor. The employer must file a certified LCA with USCIS in support of the H-1B petition. Currently, the DOL is taking seven days to certify an LCA, unless it requests evidence verifying the employer’s information. DOL has been denying many LCAs based on its inability to verify the employer’s FEIN. This can delay the certification another two weeks.

USCIS Updates Fiscal Year 2011 H-1B Cap as of May 21, 2010

admin — Thu, 27 May 2010 13:47:28 +0000

As of May 21, 2010, USCIS has received 19,600 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 bachelor’s degree cap, of which there are 65,000 visas each fiscal year. Also, USCIS has received 8,200 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 US master’s degree cap, of which there are 20,000 visas each fiscal year. If the master’s cap is reached, USCIS has stated that any petitions filed on behalf of aliens with an advanced US degree will be counted toward the general 65,000 H-1B cap. These number are moving quite slowly and we could have another record year where visa numbers remain available until the end of 2010, like last year’s cap, which was reached in December 2009. However, if the economy does heat up, then these numbers should start moving more quickly.

USCIS Updates Fiscal Year 2011 H-1B Cap as of April 27, 2010

admin — Fri, 07 May 2010 01:47:20 +0000

As of April 27, 2010, USCIS has received 16,500 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 bachelor’s degree cap, of which there are 65,000 visas each fiscal year. Also, USCIS has received 6,900 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 US master’s degree cap, of which there are 20,000 visas each fiscal year. If the master’s cap is reached, USCIS has stated that any petitions filed on behalf of aliens with an advanced US degree will be counted toward the general 65,000 H-1B cap.

These number are moving quite slowly and we could have another record year where visa numbers remain available until the end of 2010, like last year’s cap, which was reached in December 2009. However, if the economy does heat up, then these numbers should start moving more quickly.

Federal Defense of Marriage Act to be Challenged!

admin — Fri, 07 May 2010 01:42:43 +0000

For the first time, a serious challenge has been leveled against the Federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) through a lawsuit filed in the federal court in Boston, MA. The plaintiffs consist of a group of same-sex married couples who are now demanding equal rights under the federal law. The essence of their argument is that the federal government’s ability to ignore some and recognize other marriage certificates violates the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution as discriminatory. The plaintiffs may have a strong case, since the federal government has never before discriminated against certain types of marriages under the domain of the states, deferring to the conflict of laws and states’ rights.

If DOMA is found unconstitutional, this would mean that a foreign national could now secure legal permanent residency based on marriage to someone of the same gender so long as the marriage was valid where it occurred. This would be no small revolution in US immigration law and would finally bring about fairness, compassion and rationality to same-sex couples.

USCIS Updates Fiscal Year 2011 H-1B Cap as of April 22, 2010

admin — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 16:00:10 +0000

As of April 22, 2010, USCIS has received 16,025 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 bachelor’s degree cap, of which there are 65,000 visas each fiscal year. Also, USCIS has received 6,739 H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2011 US master’s degree cap, of which there are 20,000 visas each fiscal year. If the master’s cap is reached, USCIS has stated that any petitions filed on behalf of aliens with an advanced US degree will be counted toward the general 65,000 H-1B cap.

National Interest Waiver and Outstanding Researcher Petitions Approved

admin — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 01:06:33 +0000

This past month my office has obtained approvals for a National Interest Waiver (an EB-2 immigrant visa classification) and an Outstanding Researcher Petition (an EB-1 immigrant visa classification). What is most amazing about these approvals is how quickly they came - within one month without premium processing! Is the economy that poor that USCIS suddenly has time on its hands to approve cases in record speed? There always is a silver lining.

Vermont Service Center Reports H-1B Petitions Received

admin — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 01:03:05 +0000

As of April 5, 2010, the Vermont Service Center of USCIS has received a total of 9,525 cap-subject H-1B petitions. Of these petitions, 6,971 were subject to the bachelor’s cap and 2,734 were subject to the advanced degree cap. There are a total of 65,000 visas each fiscal year for the bachelor’s cap and an additional 20,000 for the advanced degree cap. If the advanced degree cap is filled, these petitions can be counted toward the general 65,000 H-1B cap.

Employers can continue to file H-1B petitions for a start date on or after October 1, 2010, so long as H-1B numbers are available. However, the start cannot be more than six months in advance of the date of preparation on the Form ETA 9035 Labor Condition Application (LCA), which is filed with the Department of Labor. Also, the employer must file a certified LCA with USCIS in support of the H-1B petition. DOL has been denying many LCAs based on its inability to verify the employer’s FEIN. This can delay the certification another two weeks. USCIS had waived the LCA certification requirement but such policy has expired. However, USCIS should allow the employer to file the H-1B petition as soon as the LCA is filed in light of the looming H-1B cap.

Outstanding Researcher Petition Approved for R&D Engineer

admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 02:17:59 +0000

This month I was successful once more in obtaining an approval on a Form I-140 EB1-B outstanding researcher petition for a private R&D engineering company. The applicant only had a few years of experience post-doc but the quality and originality of her work were outstanding. She had the usual publications, presentations, citations and evidence of judging others’ work, as well as the less usual patents. It was the quality of her recommendation letters that was critical to the petition, as is almost always the case.