OUTSIDE THE BOX THINKING, DELIVERING CUTTING EDGE SOLUTIONS!

To celebrate the 245th Independence Day, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) held 170 naturalization ceremonies between June 30 and July 7 across America. These combined ceremonies totaled over 5,400 new citizens to our country!

Acting USCIS Director Tracy Renaud stated. “We are committed to promoting policies and procedures that ensure we operate fairly and efficiently and continue to encourage and embrace the full participation of the newest Americans in our democracy.”

Please view this USCIS News Release for more details: USCIS to Celebrate Independence Day with Naturalization Ceremonies Across the Country

The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) would like to help the Untied States to reopen after the COVID pandemic and to reestablish our country as a welcoming nation! They have proposed a ten-point plan to reopen America to the World. The AILA believes this plan will help to eliminate pandemic-related consular backlogs.

Here are the ten-points of the AILA proposal:

  1. Reopen America

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, July 9, 2021. Act now and submit your questions!

You can now check USCIS processing times online at the USCIS web site. All you need to enter is your form number, and the office processing your case. USCIS has made processing times easier to understand and provide a more realistic date range.

Check Case Processing Times

The processing time range is how long it is taking for USCIS to process your type of case from the date they received it. USCIS processes cases in the order they receive them, and they normally update this information monthly. The estimated time range displayed is based on data captured over the last two months.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is now moving away from the Trump administration’s effort to decertify the union that represents immigration judges! This has been a two-year battle, with the Trump Administration stating that the immigration judges were management and should not have union representation. Amiena Khan, the president of the National Association of Immigration Judges (NAIJ) says she is “optimistic”! The NAIJ represents over 500 immigration judges.

Please view this NPR news article for more details: Biden’s Justice Department Backs Away From Fight With Immigration Judges Union

Source of Information:

On Wednesday, June 23rd, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced they will allow resubmit of fiscal year (FY) 2021 H-1B cap-subject petitions that were rejected or administratively closed because of a requested start date after Oct. 1, 2020.

*If your FY 2021 petition was rejected or administratively closed solely because your petition was based on a registration submitted during the initial registration period, but you requested a start date after Oct. 1, 2020, you may re-submit that previously filed petition, with all applicable fees, at the address below. Such petitions must be resubmitted before Oct. 1, 2021. If properly resubmitted, we will consider the petition to have been filed on the original receipt date. *USCIS

Please view this USCIS News Alert for more details: USCIS Will Allow Resubmission of Certain FY 2021 H-1B Petitions Rejected or Closed Due to Start Date

USCIS announced on Thursday, June 24th, that they were extending the flexibilities that they originally announced on March 30, 2020. These flexibilities are for responding to certain requests from the USCIS, some are listed below:

  • Requests for Evidence;
  • Continuations to Request Evidence (N-14);

The Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) recently overturned the decision of a Certifying Officer (CO) to deny labor certification for the position of “Software Engineer.”

After obtaining & examining an Employer’s Application for Permanent Labor Certification, the CO issued an Audit notification ordering the Employer to submit its Prevailing Wage Determination (PWD) and other requested documentation. The Employer replied to the Audit by providing the PWD as well as the other documents.

The CO denied the labor certification stating the prevailing wage on the ETA form 9089 did not match the one listed on the PWD. He cited a violation of PERM Regulations 656.10(c) (1), 656.40 AND 656.41. In addition, the Employer’s Notice of Filing did not contain the job requirements or duties as listed on the ETA Form 9089. The Employer requested a reconsideration of the denial stating the prevailing wage inconsistency was an unintentional harmless error. The Employer also believed all of its audit response materials were compliant with PERM regulations.

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- Family Based Immigration

I have read conflicting information on the internet; can you please clarify for me who is responsible for scheduling the Green Card Interview, my spouse, or the Consulate itself?

USCIS has launched a web-based “H-2B Employer Data Hub”! This web page allows you to select different H-2B Visa data points, such as cap fiscal year (back to FY 2015), and many others to search areas related to H-2B. They stated that the data hub is part of their efforts to increase transparency to the public and users.

Please view this USCIS News Alert for more details: USCIS Launches H-2B Employer Data Hub

USCIS Webpage: H-2B Employer Data Hub

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