USCIS Alerts Yemeni Nationals to Available Immigration Relief Measures

From USCIS:

USCIS is closely monitoring conditions in Yemen.  Due to the current unstable security situation, USCIS seeks to highlight several available immigration relief measures that may assist eligible Yemeni nationals.

Immigration relief measures that may be available upon request include:

• Change or extension of nonimmigrant status for an individual currently in the United States, even if the request is filed after the authorized period of admission has expired;
• Extension of certain grants of parole made by USCIS;
• Expedited adjudication and approval, where possible, of requests for off-campus employment authorization for F-1 students experiencing severe economic hardship;
• Expedited adjudication of employment authorization applications, where appropriate; and
• Consideration for waiver of fees associated with USCIS benefit applications, based on an inability to pay.

To learn more about how USCIS provides assistance to customers affected by unforeseen circumstances in their home country and how to request relief, please visit uscis.gov/humanitarian/special-situations.

Additional information on USCIS and its programs may be found on uscis.gov, by following USCIS on Facebook (/uscis), Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis) and the USCIS blog The Beacon, or by calling the National Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283.

USCIS Will Accept Only the New Version of Form I-129 Beginning May 1, 2015

Beginning Friday, May 1, 2015 USCIS will accept only the new version (edition date: 10/23/14) of Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker. The edition date is printed at the bottom of every page. We will reject previous editions of this form if you submit them on or after May 1.

We issued the new version in January and have continued to accept old versions during the transition period, which ends Thursday, April 30.

Source: http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-will-accept-only-new-version-form-i-129-beginning-may-1

EB-5 Processing Times Unchanged for May, 2015.

For April EB-5 Processing Times, see: 

EB-5 Processing Times INCREASE! - April 2015

May 2015 Visa Bulletin - China EB-5 Oversubscription, Mexico and Philippines See Jumps

The Monthly Visa Bulletin for May 2015 was released and brought good news for some, and bad news for others. China's Employment Based 5 Preference Category saw the implementation of a cut-off date due to heavy applicant demand. Future visa availability for this preference will depend on demand. Potential retrogression is possible.

However, the other Employment Based Categories saw substantial moves forward.

On the other end, many of the Family Preference Category had their regular movements forward. In particular, the F2B Preference Category for Mexico and the F4 Preference Category for Philippines.

Other Immigration Processing Times

Follow these links to access current processing times of the USCIS Service Centers and the Department of Labor, or the Department of State's latest Visa Bulletin with the most recent cut-off dates for visa numbers:  

USCIS Service Center processing times online: https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/processTimesDisplay.do   

Department of Labor processing times and information on backlogs: http://icert.doleta.gov    

Department of State Visa Bulletin: http://travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_1360.html   

Visa application wait times for any post: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/wait/wait_4638.html

JQK Law Speaking at an Immigration Attorney Panel at Southwestern Law School - March 2015

Immigration Attorney Panel at Southwestern Law School on March 19, 2015. From the Right: Ally Bolour, John Khosravi, Fabricio Lopez & John Manley

SEC Cracking Down on EB-5 Immigration Attorneys

(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is expanding a crackdown on a little-known program to dole out visas to wealthy foreigners in exchange for investments that generate jobs.

The SEC is preparing sanctions against as many as two dozen immigration lawyers, people familiar with the matter said, for collecting deal fees from foreign investors trying to access the EB-5 visa program, which grants U.S. residency for $500,000 investments that create 10 jobs.

The lawyers were prohibited from earning transaction fees because they weren’t registered as brokers, according to the people, who asked not to be named because the investigations aren’t public...(Bloomberg.com)

USCIS Reaches H-1B Cap for 2016 Reached - Lottery Initiated

From USCIS:

Release Date: April 07, 2015

WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reached the congressionally mandated H-1B cap for fiscal year (FY) 2016. USCIS has also received more than the limit of 20,000 H-1B petitions filed under the U.S. advanced degree exemption.

 

USCIS will use a computer-generated process, also known as the lottery, to randomly select the petitions needed to meet the caps of 65,000 visas for the general category and 20,000 for the advanced degree exemption.

USCIS will first randomly select petitions for the advanced degree exemption. All unselected advanced degree petitions will become part of the random selection process for the 65,000 general limit. The agency will reject and return filing fees for all unselected cap-subject petitions that are not duplicate filings.

Before running the lottery, USCIS will complete initial intake for all filings received during the filing period, which ended April 7. Due to the high number of petitions, USCIS is not yet able to announce the date it will conduct the random selection process.

USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap. Petitions filed on behalf of current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap, and who still retain their cap number, will also not be counted toward the congressionally mandated FY 2016 H-1B cap. USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions filed to:

• Extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the United States;
• Change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers;
• Allow current H-1B workers to change employers; and
• Allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in a second H-1B position. U.S. businesses use the H-1B program to employ foreign workers in occupations that require highly specialized knowledge in fields such as science, engineering and computer programming.

We encourage H-1B applicants to subscribe to the H-1B Cap Season email updates located on the H-1B Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 Cap Season Web page. For more information on USCIS and its programs, please visit uscis.gov or follow us on Facebook (/uscis), Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis) and the USCIS blog The Beacon.

USCIS Message: Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Renewal

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reminds recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) that their current period of DACA and employment authorization could expire if they wait too long to request renewal.

It is strongly encouraged to submit renewal requests 150 to 120 days before the current period of DACA and employment authorization will expire. Timely filing will help ensure USCIS has sufficient time to consider your request.

On March 27, 2015, USCIS began mailing renewal reminder notices to DACA recipients 180 days prior to the expiration date of their current period of DACA. Previously, these reminder notices were mailed 100 days in advance.

USCIS continues to accept initial and renewal requests for two-year grants of DACA under the guidelines established in 2012. A federal district court order issued on February 16, 2015, enjoining USCIS from implementing the expanded DACA guidelines did not impact USCIS’ ability to continue processing DACA requests under the 2012 guidelines.

You may request renewal of DACA if you met the initial DACA guidelines and you:

•  Did not depart the United States on or after August 15, 2012, without advance parole;
•  Have continuously resided in the United States since you submitted your most recent, approved DACA request, up to the present time; and
•  Have not been convicted of a felony, a significant misdemeanor, or three or more misdemeanors, and do not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.

Visit uscis.gov/daca or uscis.gov/acciondiferida to get updates and all the information you need to make an initial or renewal request for DACA.

As always, we encourage you to beware of immigration scams. Visit uscis.gov/avoidscams or uscis.gov/eviteestafas to learn how to protect yourself and how to find authorized legal services.

Kind Regards,

Public Engagement Division

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

USCIS Message: Be Aware of Immigration Scams (DACA)

From USCIS:

As you may know, a federal district court in Texas issued a temporary injunction on February 16, 2015, which prevents USCIS from implementing expanded guidelines for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Until further notice, the court order prevents U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) from accepting requests under the expanded DACA guidelines, which was originally planned to begin on February 18. The temporary injunction also requires USCIS to suspend plans to accept requests for Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) beginning this May.

Given the court order, USCIS urges customers and stakeholders to beware of scammers who may spread false information and mislead people by charging for unnecessary services. These scams can occur in person or over the telephone or Internet. In some cases they can even be tied to legitimate services.

Protect yourself and your loved ones from an immigration services scam. To learn how to recognize, avoid, and report scams, and how to find authorized legal assistance, go to uscis.gov/avoidscams. You can also find educational resources that you can share in your community.

If you believe you have been the victim of an immigration services scam, please report this scam to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission at ftccomplaintassistant.gov.

Kind Regards,

Public Engagement Division

US Citizenship and Immigration Services

Which Passports are the Best for Traveling the World?

Owning a passport opens up a world of possibility and freedom for travelers - or so you would think.

In some countries around the world, even if you are lucky enough to have access to the government-issued documents, 

you are still restricted and barred from several countries. 

Henley and Partners created a Visa Restrictions Index, which ranks countries globally in accordance to the travel freedom enjoy their inhabitants enjoy - with some surprising results...Read More

Photo by: Baigal Byamba

NVC Redirects Yemen Cases to Egypt, But Problems Persist

The National Visa Center has stated that it has begun transferring Immigrant Visa cases from Yemen to the U.S. Embassy in Cairo Egypt. The U.S. Embassy in Sana'a Yemen has been closed due to the deteriorating security condition in that country.

Unfortunately problems for Yemeni's Green Card Applicants still exists, as Egypt now requires Citizens of Yemen to obtain a Visa for permission to enter Egypt. This issue is exacerbated due to the difficulty in obtaining an Egyptian Visa in Yemen from Egypt's Embassy which is facing the same problems that caused the closing of the U.S. Embassy in Yemen.