Every year, U.S. employers seeking highly skilled foreign professionals submit their petitions to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) with the hope of receiving an H-1B number. Since 1990, Congress has limited the number of H-1Bs made available each year. The current annual statutory cap is 65,000 visas, with 20,000 additional visas for foreign professionals who graduate with a Master's degree or Doctorate from a U.S. college or university. However, this cap has been reached quickly in recent years.
The H-1B is a temporary (nonimmigrant) visa category that allows ...
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is planning a nationwide increase of Form I-9 audits this summer, and employers should prepare for the increased possibility of a government audit.
ICE is the federal agency responsible for enforcing the laws established by the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986, which requires employers to verify the identity and work eligibility of all individuals hired after November 1986 using the I-9 Form. According to an ICE recent news release, less than seven months after U.S. ICE Deputy Director Thomas Homan issued a directive that ...
After months of anticipation, it appears the first major H-1B program-related change will be the recession of employment authorization for certain H-4 spouses. The change should have the largest effect on Chinese and Indian nationals who comprise the highest percentage of current H-4 work authorized beneficiaries.
Spouses and children of H-1B visa holders receive H-4 status so they can remain in the United States with their H-1B beneficiary relative. Historically, individuals in H-4 status were not granted work authorization. In 2015, the Obama Administration implemented a ...
With changes in late 2017, many employers are gearing up for H-1B season on April 1, 2018. The H-1B visa allows foreign nationals to work in occupations that require at least a U.S. Bachelor's Degree (or foreign equivalent) in a specific academic field. The H-1B visa is one of the most sought after employment visas because it provides a natural spring board to an employer-sponsored green card.
Immigration regulations limit the number of H-1B visas available each year to 85,000 with 20,000 available slots set aside for individuals holding at least a U.S. Master's Degree. The H-1B visa is ...
While students across the country are heading back to finish the school year, school districts are already preparing to hire teachers for the next academic term. Districts are suffering from a nationwide teaching shortage and are increasingly turning to foreign nationals to fill open positions. A fairly new immigration rule effective January 2017 provides certain school districts with unlimited access to the H-1B visa throughout the year and has drastically reduced some of the challenges of hiring and retaining qualified teachers.
School districts have long utilized the H-1B ...
Qualifying dependent spouses of certain H-1B visa holders (H-4 spouse) have enjoyed the benefits of applying for work authorization since 2015 when the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) implemented a rule supported by the Obama administration permitting them to obtain employment authorization documents.
Since then, USCIS has approved more than 100,000 work authorization applications for H-4 spouses. However, the "Buy American, Hire American" initiative signed under the Trump administration may soon bring an end to the popular benefit, and this ...
E-Verify undergoes an early 'spring cleaning' each year when USCIS disposes of E-Verify records more than 10 years old. E-Verify users who have been using the online employment verification system for 10 years or more should take action as soon as possible. USCIS has announced that employers have until February 28, 2018 to download a Historic Records Report in E-Verify which contains information such as company name and location, initiated date and verification case number, employee name and date of initial resolution, date of additional resolution and final status, and case ...
On October 1, 2017, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services ("USCIS") began phasing-in interviews for all employment-based green card applicants. Interviews have always been mandatory, but historically USCIS has waived the interview requirement for employment-based petitions when the beneficiary applies for a green card while already lawfully admitted in the United States.
The interview mandate is directly related to President Trump's "Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States" Executive Order and applies to all ...
The H-2B visa program allows businesses in the United States to sponsor foreign nationals for a temporary visa to work in nonagricultural jobs. The H-2B program is popular among employers in the hospitality, tourism, and landscaping industries to fill positions that would otherwise remain vacant due to U.S. labor shortages during times when employers are particularly busy. There is a Congressionally mandated limit of 66,000 H-2B visas available each year. Historically, a legal provision known as the "Returning Worker Exemption" allowed foreign nationals counted towards the ...
On September 5, 2017, the Department of Homeland Security ("DHS") issued a memorandum rescinding an Obama-era program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ("DACA"). DACA permits certain undocumented aliens that came to the United States before their sixteenth birthday to remain in the United States and apply for renewable two (2) year periods of work authorization. DACA does not provide beneficiaries with lawful immigration status, but many view the program as the first step on the path to citizenship for "Dreamers." DHS will "wind down" DACA over the next six (6 ...