The USCIS released the number of receipted cap-eligible H-1B visa petitions from April 1, 2011 to June 13, 2011.  As of June 13, 2011, approximately 15,200 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted.  Additionally, the USCIS has receipted 10,200 H-1B petitions for foreign workers with advanced degrees (master’s degree or higher).

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The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act is a federal statute that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on July 27, 2006 to protect children from sexual exploitation and violent crime and to prevent child abuse and child pornography.  Section 402 of the Adam Walsh Act amends section 204 of the INA to prohibit U.S. citizens and lawful permanent resident aliens who have been convicted of any “specified offense against a minor” from filing a family-based immigration petition on behalf of any beneficiary, unless the Secretary of Homeland Security determines in his sole and unreviewable discretion that the petitioner poses no risk to the beneficiary.  The “specific offense against a minor” includes the following:

• An offense (unless committed by a parent or guardian) involving kidnapping;

• An offense (unless committed by a parent or guardian) involving false imprisonment;

• Solicitation to engage in sexual conduct;

• Use in a sexual performance;

• Solicitation to practice prostitution;

• Video voyeurism as described in section 1801 of Title 18, United States Code;

• Possession, production, or distribution of child pornography;

• Criminal sexual conduct involving a minor, or the use of the Internet to facilitate or attempt such conduct; or

• Any conduct that by its nature is a sex offense against a minor.

If a person is subject to the act, he or she must demonstrate to the USCIS that there is no risk to the beneficiary.  Also, this Act removes spouses or fiancés of U.S. citizens convicted of those offenses above from eligibility for the “K” non-immigrant status.

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On May 12, 2011, USICE published an expanded list of STEM degree programs that qualify eligible graduates on student visas for an Optional Practical Training (OPT) extension.  By expanding the list of STEM degrees to include such fields as Neuroscience, Medical Informatics, Pharmaceutics, and Drug Design, Mathematics and Computer Science, the Obama administration is helping to address shortages in certain high-tech sectors of talented scientists and technology experts – permitting highly skilled foreign graduates who wish to work in their field of study upon graduation and extend their post-graduate training in the United States.

Under the current OPT program, foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges and universities are able to remain in the United States and receive training through work experience for up to 12 months.  Students who graduate with one of the newly-expanded STEM degrees can remain for an additional 17 months on an OPT-STEM extension.

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The USCIS released the number of receipted cap-eligible H-1B visa petitions from April 1, 2011 to May 20, 2011.  As of May 20, 2011, approximately 12,300 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted.  Additionally, the USCIS has receipted 8,500 H-1B petitions for foreign workers with advanced degrees (master’s degree or higher).

If you have any questions, please fill out the free consultation form below, and we will respond as soon as possible privately. 

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The USCIS released the number of receipted cap-eligible H-1B visa petitions from April 1, 2011 to May 6, 2011.  As of May 6, 2011, approximately 10,200 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted.  Additionally, the USCIS has receipted 7,300 H-1B petitions for foreign workers with advanced degrees (master’s degree or higher).

If you have any questions, please fill out the free consultation form below, and we will respond as soon as possible privately. 

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The USCIS released the number of receipted cap-eligible H-1B visa petitions from April 1, 2011 to April 22, 2011.  As of April 22, 2011, approximately 8,000 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted.  Additionally, the USCIS has receipted 5,900 H-1B petitions for foreign workers with advanced degrees (masters degree or higher).

If you have any questions, please fill out the free consultation form below, and we will respond as soon as possible privately. 

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On April 19, 2011, President Obama hosted a White House Meeting with 70 national leaders—including Mayor Bloomberg, former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, among others—to discuss the challenge of fixing our broken immigration system.

According to the press, the President expressed disappointment over Congress’s failure to produce comprehensive immigration reform (CIR), or even components of CIR like the DREAM Act, and enumerated the many problems resulting from our broken system—families torn apart, shipping talent overseas, wage equity and work eligibility issues, etc. In the same meeting, the President also stated that the “Administration continues to improve our legal immigration system, secure our borders, and enhance our immigration enforcement so that it is more effectively and sensibly focusing on criminals.” Many reports, however, argue that administrative reforms thus far have not been ambitious enough, or as effective as the White House claims.

Moreover, the President seems to be pinning all future immigration relief on Congressional action—stating that “the only way to fix what’s broken about our immigration system is through legislative action in Congress.”

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The USCIS released the number of receipted cap-eligible H-1B visa petitions from April 1, 2011 to April 15, 2011.  As of April 15, 2011, approximately 7,100 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted.  Additionally, the USCIS has receipted 5,100 H-1B petitions for foreign workers with advanced degrees (master degree or higher).

If you have any questions, please fill out the free consultation form below, and we will respond as soon as possible privately. 

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The H-1B filing season has started on April 1, 2011 for fiscal year (FY) 2012. Annually, there is a cap of 65,000 for the H-1B program, so early filing of the H-1B is very critical.  The USCIS released the number of receipted cap eligible petitions from April 1, 2011 to April 7, 2011.  As of April 7, 2011, approximately 5,900 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted.  Additionally, the USCIS has receipted 4,500 H-1B petitions for foreign workers with advanced degrees.

If you have any questions, please fill out the free consultation form below, and we will respond as soon as possible privately. 

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On April 8, 2011, AILA released an update on what would happen to different immigration-related government agencies in case the government shuts down. Please note that if the budgetary issues are not resolved, the government plans to shut down at midnight on April 9. As a consequence, the government claims that all but “essential” government functions are not allowed to work.

USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Service)

The USCIS processes permanent resident, naturalization, and non-immigrant  visa petitions, among others. It is the agency that conducts interviews, reviews applications, and makes decisions on green card and citizenship applications. The USCIS has indicated that in the event of a shutdown, they will continue to operate except for the E-Verify section.

DOS (Department of State)

The DOS deals with most visa and consular processing applications. J-1 waivers and visa petitions for people outside the United States go through them. If a shutdown occurs, only applications related to diplomats and “life or death” situations would continue to function.

CBP (Customs and Border Patrol)

The CBP guards the port of the entries – shipping ports, borders, and airports. They inspect and decide on whether a person gets in the United States, and enforce applicable immigration laws when someone is inadmissible. Inspection and law enforcement personnel are deemed “essential” personnel, but a shutdown will also limit their staff. The ramifications of a shutdown are thus uncertain.

EOIR (Executive Officer for Immigration Review)

The EOIR is the immigration court system. Immigration Courts, judges, clerks, and the Board of Immigration Appeals all fall under this branch. A general warning that “non-essential” personnel would not be allowed to work has been set forth, and that the only aspect of operations that is certain to continue is the detained docket, which is considered an essential function.

DOL (Department of Labor)

The Department of Labor is one of the first agencies involved in employment-based petitions, as they review and make determinations on the Labor Certification process. Personnel would certainly not be available to respond to emails or other inquiries, but it is yet to be determined if the ICERT and PERM functions would shut down.

If you have any questions, please fill out the free consultation form below, and we will respond as soon as possible privately. 

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