When Immigration Matters

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on January 30, 2024, that: 

It is H-1B Cap Season again for Fiscal Year 2025. Like in prior years, there will be a two-step process – the registration step and then, if the registration is selected in the H-1B cap lottery, the petition step. 

Religious visas, particularly the R-1 visa, serve a vital role in enabling religious workers from around the globe to engage in ministerial activities within the United States. These visas are designed for those involved in duties like teaching, preaching, or supervising religious activities.

Every year, the U.S. puts a cap on the number of visa applications that will be reviewed and accepted. Due to the popularity of certain visa categories, applicants experience nerve-wracking delays, and their future life in the U.S. is unclear. The backlog for EB-2 and EB-3 visas stands as a significant challenge for aspirants looking to cement their future on American soil. The U.S. economy has many job opportunities, attracting a skilled workforce worldwide. Conversely, an aging workforce necessitates replenishment by foreign talent. These factors create a high demand for EB-2 and EB-3 visas, as they can provide permanent residency to professionals and skilled and unskilled workers.

The path to establishing roots and building a career in the United States often feels labyrinthine, more so when you're transplanting your entire existence from foreign shores. If you're a U.S. resident poised to welcome your fiancé(e) from abroad or a non-U.S. native engaged to an American, the K-1 Fiancé Visa could be your bridge to a reunion. With clear information, you can make informed decisions about your immigration journey, delve into eligibility stipulations, and chart the application trajectory.

For months, U.S. visa services were temporarily suspended worldwide due to the pandemic. As restrictions ease, many U.S. embassies and consulates have resumed processing immigrant and nonimmigrant visa applications, but if you’re an Indian citizen seeking to travel to the United States, you may be facing longer delays than normal.

In August of 2022, new rules were put into place for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. These changes seek to codify many of the current guidelines that were in place for the program in the past, but will also make some major reforms that could potentially have a big impact on the DREAMers who make use of the program.

H1B visas are nonimmigrant visas that give noncitizens the ability to work in a specific job for up to three years. Employees and employers must understand that a leave of absence could negatively impact an H1B visa. Whenever the worker or employer initially petitions for the visa, specific terms and conditions must be met to maintain your status. For instance, if you apply for a full-time position, you must continue to work full-time. This is commonly referred to as “maintenance of status.” Leaves of absence can disrupt this. 

The goal of the EB-5 visa program is to stimulate the United States economy by incentivizing capital investments from foreign investors. To do so, the program offers a path to permanent residence for investors and their families if they place a substantive amount of investment in U.S.-based enterprises and creates at least ten permanent full-time positions for U.S. workers. New policy updates have changed how foreign investors should apply to the program, which we will cover in detail today.

On May 4, 2022, United States Citizenship and Immigration (USCIS) announced a temporary final rule that increases the automatic employment extension on Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) from 180 days up to 540 days in certain visa categories. The primary objective for the additional 360-day  extension is to prevent gaps in work authorization due to the USCIS’ significant processing delays for work permit renewal applications.