As of June 1, 2018, benefit-granting agencies using U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS) Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program, used to verify a benefit applicant's immigration status, can no longer submit paper versions of Form...
Topic: Immigration Updates
USCIS Announces Launch of Online FOIA Request Processing System
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced the launch of its "Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Immigration Records SysTem (FIRST)," which the agency said "will eventually allow users to submit, manage, and receive FOIA requests entirely...
132 Congressional Members Urge DHS to Continue Allowing H-4 Spouses of H-1B Nonimmigrants to Work
On May 16, 2018, one hundred and thirty-two congressional members sent a letter to Kirstjen Nielsen, Secretary of Homeland Security, encouraging the continuance of the current regulation granting work authorization to certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrant...
State Dept. Warns Final Action Dates for July will Retrogress for Mexico E-4 and SR
The June 2018 Department of State's Visa Bulletin indicates that there continues to be high demand in the Mexico employment-based fourth preference (E-4) and special religious (SR) categories, which predicts the Mexico E-4 per-country limit being reached during June....
USCIS Sends Letter to Rep. Paul Mitchell on B-1/B-2 Upcoming Proposed Regulation
On May 30, 2018, L. Francis Cissna, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), sent a letter to Rep. Paul Mitchell (R-Mich.), who hosted a roundtable on May 16, 2018 regarding B-1 visa issues. The letter indicates that USCIS is reviewing existing...
Labor Dept. Using Time Received to Receipt Date for Review of H-2B Temporary Labor Certification Applications
On June 1, 2018, the Department of Labor's Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) released information on how H-2B applications for temporary employment certification filed by employers on or after July 3, 2018, will be assigned to staff for review. Applications...
Lottery in Effect for Increased H-2B Petitions
On May 31, 2018, USCIS started accepting H-2B petitions under a rule increasing the numerical limit on H-2B nonimmigrant visas by up to 15,000 through the end of fiscal year (FY) 2018. USCIS stated that in the first five business days of filing, USCIS received...
Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing on EB-5
The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing entitled “Citizenship for Sale: Oversight of the EB-5 Investor Visa Program,” on June 19, 2018. USCIS Director Cissna is expected to testify at the event. Tune in for a live video of the hearing...
Miller Mayer’s Steve Yale-Loehr Quoted Regarding DACA, Immigration Sanctuaries, Immigration Enforcement, the Diversity Immigrant Program, and Work Permits for H-4 Spouses
Miller Mayer immigration attorney Steve Yale-Loehr was quoted in the following publications: On the cancellation of the work permit program for H-4 spouses: Huffington Post: These Indian Women's Lives Are Frozen by American Immigration Laws Mr. Yale-Loehr noted...
Miller Mayer’s Steve Yale-Loehr Speaks at Cornell on Immigration Law and Policy Changes
Miller Mayer immigration attorney Steve Yale-Loehr and his Cornell colleague, Jaclyn Kelley-Widmer, will give a talk entitled “Immigration Law and Policy: What’s Changed, What Hasn’t, and What Might in the Trump Administration” this Friday, June 8, from 10:30 am until...
