U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on December 13, 2023, that it has received enough petitions to reach the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa U.S. advanced degree exemption, known as the master's...
Topic: Immigration Updates
Miller Mayer’s Steve Yale-Loehr Featured on Immigration Reform Podcast
A new podcast by the Bipartisan Policy Center featured discussion of a white paper, Immigration Reform: A Path Forward, co-authored by Miller Mayer immigration attorney Steve Yale-Loehr. Steve and his co-authors discussed their ideas for reforms to border management...
State Dept. Issues Final Rule to Eliminate Informal Evaluations of Immigrant Visa Applicants’ Family Members
Effective January 8, 2024, the Department of State (DOS) is amending its immigrant visa regulations by removing the section allowing a consular officer to conduct an informal evaluation of the family members of an immigrant visa applicant to identify potential grounds...
USCIS Releases Employment-Based Adjustment of Status FAQs
On December 8, 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released frequently asked questions (FAQs) about employment-based (EB) adjustment of status. USCIS noted that the EB annual limit for fiscal year (FY) 2024 will be higher than was typical before...
OFLC Announces Annual Determination of H-2A Labor Supply States for U.S. Worker Recruitment
The Department of Labor's Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) Administrator has determined that current requirements for labor supply states (LSS) will remain in effect, with one modification: OFLC will no longer recognize North Carolina and Texas as...
Miller Mayer’s Steve Yale-Loehr Quoted re Climate Change Migration, Broken U.S. Immigration System
Miller Mayer immigration attorney Steve Yale-Loehr was quoted by the New York Times in They Fled Climate Chaos. Asylum Law Made Decades Ago Might Not Help (available by subscription). He said, "The general public is becoming less accepting of asylum as a remedy...
ICE Launches Online Portal for Noncitizens in Removal Proceedings
On November 30, 2023, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched the ICE Portal, a public-facing website that centralizes communications between noncitizens who have been placed in removal proceedings and the federal government. On the portal, noncitizens...
DOS Proposes Updates to Au Pair Exchange Visitor Program
The Department of State (DOS) has issued a proposed rule to amend the Exchange Visitor Program regulations governing the au pair category to "clarify and modernize" the program. Among other things, the proposed rule would restructure the child care and educational...
Three Important Cases Pending Before U.S. Supreme Court
Three important cases are pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. According to observers, at stake are the legitimacy of the current U.S. immigration court system and the longstanding precedent decision, Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, and its standard...
Global Entry Program Expands to PortMiami Seaport
Starting December 1, 2023, PortMiami will be the first seaport to host a Global Entry Enrollment Center to assist the traveling public with completing new and renewal applications for the "trusted traveler" program. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers...
