H1B Visa Lawyer BlogAdministrative Appeals Office (AAO) Processing Times were released with processing dates as of 4/1/14.
If you filed an appeal, please review the link below to determine the applicable processing time associated with your particular case.
MVP LAW GROUP – Immigration Q&A Forum, Friday, April 25, 2014
MVP Law Group, P.A. makes available the information and materials in this forum for informational purposes only. The information is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice or any contractual obligations. Further, the use of this site, and the sending or receipt of this information, does not create an attorney-client relationship between us. Therefore, your communication with us through this forum will not be considered as privileged or confidential.
Question #1 – H4 Dependent Visa
Right now, I am H-4 Status under my husband’s H-1b. I was wondering if any employer could apply for an H-1B for me. Do I keep my H-4 if I am not approved?
RFEs for Expiring Medical Exams (More than One (1) year old)
The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) has reported that some of their members have received RFEs (Request for Evidence) for adjustment of status (AOS) applicants. The RFE is requesting the applicants to submit a new Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record (Medical Report).
The reason for the RFE is the validity of the civil surgeon’s endorsement on Form I-693. The endorsement is normally only good for one (1) year; however, due to significant backlogs in processing, USCIS in the past has agreed to extend the civil surgeon’s endorsement until the time of adjudication.
AILA contacted USCIS Service Center Operations Directorate (SCOPS) and were informed that the policy will change effective June 1, 2014. USCIS also informed AILA that public notice of the impending change is in progress and MVP Law Group will post it when available!
Revised – Updated Service Center Processing Times
Processing Time reports for all of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) Service Centers were released on 4/21/14 with processing dates as of 2/28/14.
If you filed a petition with one of the Service Centers, please review the links below to determine the applicable processing time associated with your particular case.
USCIS H-1B Premium Processing to Begin April 28
Information Source: USCIS.GOV
On April 28, 2014, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will begin premium processing for H-1B petitions subject to the fiscal year 2015 cap, including H-1B petitions seeking an exemption from the fiscal year cap for individuals who have earned a U.S. master’s degree or higher.
USCIS first announced that we would begin premium processing for H-1B cap cases no later than April 28 in a news release on March 25. USCIS provides premium processing service for certain employment-based petitions and guarantees a 15-calendar-day processing time.
MVP “Immigration Q & A Forum” – This Friday, April 25, 2014
We wanted to find a new way to engage our reader base. Every other Friday, we will post the ten (10) best/most frequently asked questions received during the week from our h1bvisalawyerblog, Facebook, and Twitter readers. We will answer those questions and provide the Q&A on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.
If you have a burning question, are seeking assistance with a difficult immigration related case, wish to discuss your views on Comprehensive Immigration Reform, DREAMers, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, priority dates, the monthly visa bulletin, adjustment applications, etc., please contact us by submitting your question/comment/viewpoint in our comment box provided on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.
Our next “Q & A Forum” will take place this Friday, April 25, 2014. Act now and submit your questions!
BALCA Discusses Factors for “Professional or Trade Organizations”
The Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) recently affirmed the decision of a Certifying Officer (CO) to deny labor certification for the position of “Account Manager.”
After receiving & reviewing an Employer’s Application for Permanent Labor Certification, the CO issued an Audit notification. It required the Employer to present all of its recruitment materials. The Employer responded with the documentation requested.
The CO denied the application based on PERM regulation 20 C.F.R. 656.17 (e) (1) (ii) (E). He stated “the employer failed to provide adequate documentation of the additional recruitment steps for professional occupations.” The Employer placed the ad for the Account Manager position on the website Dice.com, which the Employer argued was a trade or professional organization. The CO maintained that this website did not qualify as a trade or professional organization.
Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Visa Ineligibilities – FY2013 DOS Statistical Table
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has released the Statistical Table, “Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Visa Ineligibilities” for FY2013 as part of the VISA Office 2013 Report. The table lists two statistics for both the Immigrant and Nonimmigrant classifications, “Ineligibility Findings” and “Ineligibility Overcome”. Basically this table lists the most common grounds for refusal under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and if the grounds where overcome. Please review the link to Table XX listed below for the details.
Note: FY2013 data is preliminary and is subject to change. Any changes would not be statistically significant.
Source of Information:
H-2B Cap Count UPDATE – 4/4/14
The H-2B non-agricultural temporary worker program allows U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary non-agricultural jobs.
The H-2B cap limit for the first half of FY 2014 (October 1 – March 31) is 33,000. As of March 14, 2014, the cap for the 1st half of FY 2014 was reached.
The H-2B cap limit for second half of FY 2014 (April 1 – September 30) is 33,000. As of the last count (4/4/14); 15,824 beneficiaries have been approved and 4,502 are pending for a total of 20,326.
Updated Service Center Processing Times
Processing Time reports for all of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) Service Centers were released on 4/3/14 with processing dates as of 2/28/14.
If you filed a petition with one of the Service Centers, please review the links below to determine the applicable processing time associated with your particular case.