- Update to Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, Instructions for Form I-485 Supplement C and Instructions for Form I-485 Supplement E. New editions dated 10/05/15. You may also file using these previous editions: 06/20/13; 01/18/11, 11/23/10, 11/08/10; 7/15/10; 12/03/09.
- Update to Form I-485 Supplement A, Adjustment of Status Under Section 245(i). New edition dated 10/05/15. You may also file using these previous editions: 06/20/13; 01/18/11; 11/23/10; 12/16/08; and 05/27/08.
Showing posts with label USCIS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label USCIS. Show all posts
Friday, November 6, 2015
USCIS Updates I-485 Forms
USCIS Update to Form I-140
Update to Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker. New edition is dated 10/15/15. You may also file using the previous edition: 03/05/13.
Saturday, October 17, 2015
USCIS Update Visa Bulletin Instructions
From USCIS:
Beginning with the November 2015 Department of State (DOS) Visa Bulletin, if USCIS determines that there are more immigrant visas available for a fiscal year than there are known applicants for such visas, we will state on www.uscis.gov/visabulletininfo that applicants may use the Dates for Filing Visa Applications chart. Unless otherwise stated on our website, the Application Final Action Date chart will be used to determine when individuals may file their adjustment of status applications.
We anticipate making this determination each month and posting the relevant chart on our website within one week of DOS’ publication of the Visa Bulletin.
About the Visa Bulletin
DOS publishes current immigrant visa availability information in a monthly Visa Bulletin. The Visa Bulletin indicates when statutorily limited visas are available to prospective immigrants based on their individual priority date.
- The priority date is generally the date when the applicant’s relative or employer properly filed the immigrant visa petition on the applicant’s behalf with USCIS. If a labor certification is required to be filed with the applicant’s immigrant visa petition, then the priority date is when the labor certification application was accepted for processing by Department of Labor.
- Availability of an immigrant visa means eligible applicants are able to take one of the final steps in the process of becoming U.S. permanent residents.
Learn more about adjustment of status and the Visa Bulletin on our website.
EB-5 & Other USCIS Timelines For October 2015
EB-5 and other USCIS Timelines for September 2015
The Form I-526 processing time has not changed, but Form I-829 (petition by entrepreneur to remove conditions(has increased again by a month) as did Regional Center Form I-924.
For more information about the EB-5 program, please contact the JQK Law Firm at (310) 582-5904.
- 13.8 months (.4 months increase)
- 15.5 months (.8 increase)
- 12.3 (.1 decrease)
For more USCIS Processing times, please visit these links:
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Cluster of L-1 Petitions Approved by AAO in August-September 2015
Recent Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) decisions in recent months have shown a noticeable shift in decisions regarding L-1B Specialized Knowledge Intracompany Transfers. This occurs during the same period that USCIS issued its Aug. 17, 2015 L-1B Memorandum (Link).
However, it must be noted that the facts of each case are different, and this cluster of approvals may have been coincidental. Moreover, it may not be financially prudent to file to the AAO, in particular because of the delayed time it takes for them to make a decision for many cases.
Please contact the JQK Law Firm for more information
Recently approved appeals:
3) (Refers to an L-1A case, but then discusses Specialized Knowledge) http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/err/D7%20-%20Intracompany%20Transferees%20(L-1A%20and%20L-1B)/Decisions_Issued_in_2015/AUG282015_01D7101.pdf
Monday, October 5, 2015
Additional Fees for L-1 & L-1B Petitions Expires
Public Law 111-230 H-1B, L-1 Additional Fees Expire
H-1B and L-1 petitions filed on or after Oct. 1, 2015, should not include the additional fee that was previously required by Section 402 of Public Law 111-230, as amended by Public Law 111-347, for certain H-1B and L-1 petitions. The additional fee required by Public Law 111-230, as amended, expired on Sept. 30, 2015.
All other H-1B and L-1 fees, including the Base fee, Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee, and American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (ACWIA) Fee when applicable, are still required. Petitions with incorrect fees may be rejected. Petitioners are reminded that USCIS prefers separate checks for each filing fee.
Public Law 111-230, enacted on Aug. 13, 2010, required an additional fee of $2,000 for certain H-1B petitions and $2,250 for certain L-1A and L-1B petitions postmarked on or after Aug. 14, 2010. Public Law 111-347, enacted on Jan. 2, 2011, extended the fees through Sept. 30, 2015. For more information, visit the H-1B Visa or L-1 Visa pages or call the National Customer Service Center at (800) 375-5283.
From: USCIS
Friday, September 18, 2015
EB-5 and other USCIS Timelines for September 2015
The Form I-526 processing time has not changed, but Form I-829 (petition by entrepreneur to remove conditions(has increased again by a month) as did Regional Center Form I-924.
For more information about the EB-5 program, please contact the JQK Law Firm at (310) 582-5904.
- 13.4 months (no change)
- 14.7 months (1.1 increase)
- 12.4 (.9 increase)
For more USCIS Processing times, please visit these links:
Thursday, September 17, 2015
Visa Bulletin Update To Accept I-485 Before Priority Date
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Department of State (DOS) announced that beginning with the visa bulletin effective October 1, 2015, USCIS will accept for filing I-485 applications to adjust status to Permanent Resident according to a separate filing date chart.
This new filing date chart will be published in DOS’s Visa Bulletin alongside the usual chart outlining which Priority Dates are current and therefore eligible for adjudication that month. This change applies to both Family Based (“FB”) and Employment Based (“EB”) immigrant visa cases. The adjudication of all I-485 applications will still be subject to the same per country and per category quotas, and therefore backlogs for those oversubscribed countries and categories. However, this new policy will allow many FB and EB principals and their qualified dependents who have approved immigrant petitions, but have been waiting for their Priority Dates to become current, to file their I-485s with attendant applications for employment authorization and travel authorization.
Monday, August 31, 2015
USCIS Simplifies the Immigrant Fee Payment Process
USCIS has simplified the process for paying the USCIS Immigrant Fee online in our electronic immigration system. The revised payment process reduces the amount of information an immigrant must provide to USCIS. Additionally, in response to customer feedback, anyone can now pay the USCIS Immigrant Fee for an immigrant. For example, a family member, friend, employer, attorney, or accredited representative can pay the fee as long as they have the immigrant’s Alien Registration Number (A-Number) and DOS Case ID.
The USCIS Immigrant Fee is required for individuals immigrating to the United States as lawful permanent residents. USCIS uses this fee to process, produce, and deliver Permanent Resident Cards (Green Cards).
If you have any questions about online filing, including how to pay the USCIS Immigrant Fee, please contact us using our online help form.
For more information on USCIS and its programs, please visit www.uscis.gov or follow us on Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis), and the USCIS blog The Beacon.
Tuesday, August 25, 2015
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) Extended for Haitian Citizens
The extension goes until July 22, 2017
To learn more info, please go to: http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/temporary-protected-status-deferred-enforced-departure/tps-designated-country-haiti
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Tuesday, August 18, 2015
Monday, August 10, 2015
USCIS Issues Asylum Wait Times
To see the USCIS Affirmative Asylum Scheduling Bulletin, please go to:
http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/refugees-asylum/asylum/affirmative-asylum-scheduling-bulletin
http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/refugees-asylum/asylum/affirmative-asylum-scheduling-bulletin
Thursday, August 6, 2015
DHS Launches eFOIA App
Unfortunately the reviews haven't been that good...but you can find more information here:
http://www.dhs.gov/blog/2015/07/07/dhs-launches-efoia-app
Friday, July 31, 2015
Some DACA Recipients Must Return Work Permits
Who Is Affected and Why
You must return your 3-year Employment Authorization Document (EAD) if:
- You are a DACA recipient who received a 3-year EAD after Feb. 16, 2015; and
- USCIS has sent you one or more letters and/or notices to inform you of the action you must take. In addition, USCIS may have contacted you already or may contact you by telephone, text message, email, and/or in-person at your home.
If you received a 3-year DACA work permit after Feb. 16, 2015, you can use our online tool to verify whether you must return your EAD.
For more information, please visit USCIS
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
U.S. Judge Orders Release of Detained Immigrant Children
A
federal judge in California has ruled that the Obama administration’s detention
of children and their mothers who were caught crossing the border illegally is
a serious violation of a longstanding court settlement, and that the families
should be released as quickly as possible.
In a decision late
Friday roundly rejecting the administration’s arguments for holding the
families, Judge Dolly M. Gee of Federal District Court for the Central District
of California found that two detention centers in Texas that the administration
opened last summer fail to meet minimum legal requirements of the 1997
settlement for facilities housing children.
To read more, go to LATimes.com
Photo by
Monday, July 27, 2015
EB-5 and other USCIS Timelines for July 2015
The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Processing Times have had changed slightly for July 2015. The initial Immigrant Investor Form I-526 Petition and Package processing times was decreased by half a month, but the Form I-829 and Form I-924 processing times have increases.
For more information about the EB-5 program, please contact the JQK Law Firm at (310) 582-5904.
- 13.4 months (no change)
- 13.6 months (Increase of .5 months)
- 11.5 (Decrease of .7 month)
For more USCIS Processing times, please visit these links:
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Changes to Mexico E Visa processing
Increases in Applications for Visas at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, Mexico have caused that Embassy to stop processing E-1 and E-1 Treaty Trader and Investor Visas.
From now on, the E-1 Visas will be handled by the Consulate in Monterrey and Tijuana, and E-2 Visas will be processed in in the Consulate in Ciudad Juarez. For more information about applying for this type of Visa in Mexico, go to this site.
Friday, July 10, 2015
August 2015 Visa Bulletin Release - China Times Hit Hard
This months Visa Bulletin saw a steady move forward in the Family-Based Preference Categories, except the various categories for Mexico.
 |
| U.S. State Department Family Based Visa Bulletin, August 2015 |
However, the Employment Based Categories had some interesting movements. Many categories saw multi-month moves forward, with the EB-3 preference category for "All Chargeability Areas" being almost Current. However, the Chinese EB-3 Category retrogressed by more than 7 years and the 5th Preference (EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa) stayed the same and did not have any movement.
Finally, the EB-3 Category for the Philippines went from being "U" (Unavailable) to showing a date of June 1, 2004.
 |
| U.S. State Department Employment Based Visa Bulletin, August 2015 |
Monday, June 29, 2015
TPS Registration Period Extended for Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has extended the deadline for initial registration from
May 20, 2015, to Aug. 18, 2015, for eligible nationals of Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone (and
people without nationality who last habitually resided in one of those three countries).
For more information, please visit USCIS
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