Blogs – Usimmigrationadvisior

On March 15, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services issued a policy guidance addressing the analysis of an employer’s ability to pay the proffered wage for certain employment-based immigrant petitions. This guidance, contained in Volume 6 of the Policy Manual, is effective immediately and applies to I-140 petitions filed on or after March 15, 2023. The updated guidance discusses in more detail various types of evidence and explains how USCIS reviews all evidence relevant to the employer’s financial strength and ...
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Whenever a corporate transaction involves a business whose employees include foreign nationals, an immigration due diligence is strongly recommended. Corporate transactions in the form of stock or asset acquisitions, mergers, consolidations, restructuring, etc. could trigger immigration implications. Most work visas for foreign nationals are employer specific, changes in an entity’s structure could jeopardize an employee’s work authorization and inadvertently violate immigration regulations. It’s important to ensure that employees are not rendered out of status and understand requirements and nuances of ...
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To obtain an L1 visa to work in the United States, your employer outside the US must first have a qualifying relationship with a U.S.-based employer based on ownership and control. The qualifying relationship can be parent-subsidiary, affiliate or branch relationship. You must also prove qualifying employment, which means that you have to an executive, manager, or specialized knowledge employee of a multinational company for at least one full year in the past three years. Your employer must also file ...
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Yes, the spouse of an L1 visa holder can work in the United States. An Employment Authorization Document used to be required, but USCIS has updated the guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual to address the documentation that certain E and L nonimmigrant spouses may use as evidence of employment authorization based on their nonimmigrant status. On November 12, 2021, USCIS clarified that L spouses are now considered employment authorized based on their valid L nonimmigrant status. Since the November ...
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The EB-5 visa category is subject to a quota system, which means that only a limited number of EB-5 visas are available each fiscal year. When the number of visa applications exceeds the available visa numbers, the visa category is said to be in retrogression, which means that the processing of certain applications will be delayed until more visas become available in the next fiscal year. As of March 2023, the EB-5 visa category is not currently in retrogression. However, ...
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Deciding between an E-2 visa and an L-1 visa depends on your individual circumstances and business goals. The E-2 visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows foreign investors to live and work in the United States based on their investment in a U.S. business. To qualify, you must make a substantial investment in a U.S. business, and you must own at least 50% of the business. The E-2 visa is typically valid for up to five years and can be ...
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The E-2 visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows foreign investors to live and work in the United States based on their investment in a U.S. business. Here are some of the most common E2 visa questions: What is an E-2 visa?Who is eligible for an E-2 visa?What are the requirements for an E-2 visa?How much money do I need to invest to qualify for an E-2 visa?How long can I stay in the U.S. on an E-2 visa?Can my ...
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For the upcoming H-1B Cap FY 2024 lottery, the electronic registration period opened on March 1 at noon eastern and will close on March 17 the same time. Employers can submit registrations for each prospective H-1B applicant via a myUSCIS online account at a $10 fee for per registration. If selected in the lottery, USCIS will notify the employers and the H-1B cap petitions can be filed within the 90-day period beginning April 1. In the recent past years, the ...
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The US State Department will launch a pilot program this year that will offer L-1 visa and H-1B visa renewal options to those requiring to travel outside the United States, as reported by Bloomberg Law. The stateside renewal option could eventually be expanded to other visa categories. The Deputy Assistant Secretary for visa services in the Bureau of Consular Affairs has reportedly indicated that reinstating the visa renewal option which was discontinued in 2004 will cut down the workload of ...
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By Zeenat Phophalia Most US consulates and embassies across the globe have had major reductions and delays in visa processing owing to tremendous backlogs induced by the pandemic.  The situation in India is no different and perhaps even worse - visa applicants, particularly first-time applicants have been encountering extremely long wait times.  The good news is that the US government has provided some much-needed relief.  In an effort to cut back the very lengthy appointment wait times, the US Mission ...
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By Zeenat Phophalia The United States Citizenship & Immigration Services announced on January 23 that it is extending the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (Green Cards) for 48 months beyond the card’s expiration date.  This applies to those individuals who have a properly filed and pending Form I-751 (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence) or Form I-829 (Petition by Investor to Remove Conditions on Permanent Resident Status). This extension change applied on January 11 for Form I-829 and took effect on ...
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Just before breaking for the holidays, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act. Buried within this gigantic bill was a provision to add Portugal as an E2 country and a clause stipulating that anyone who acquires citizenship through a financial investment must be domiciled in that country for three years before they can apply for an E2 visa.  We recently held a series of webinars on this topic, scroll down to view the recording. Does the change to the law impact me? ...
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The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has published a proposed rule in the federal register that seeks to increase fees for certain immigration benefit requests which includes H-1B visas, L-1 visas and EB-5 visas.  At this stage the fee revision is only a proposal and will go through a period of public consultation through March 6, 2023.  Given the length of the review process, the proposed fee rule will not be applicable for at least several months. USCIS’s ...
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On December 23, 2022, the US Department of State extended the in-person interview waiver for certain non-immigrant visa categories by another year, i.e., through December 31, 2023.  Consular officers will be authorized to continue to waive in-person interviews on a case-by-case basis for certain first-time and/or renewing applicants.  Under this new policy, the following applicants will continue to remain eligible for an interview waiver through December 31, 2023: Individual petition-based H-1, H-3, H-4, L, O, P, and Q applicants who ...
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By Zeenat Phophalia, Immigration Attorney, D&A Effective December 12, 2022, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will grant an automatic extension of the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (green cards) for lawful permanent residents (LPRs) who have applied for naturalization by properly filing Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, on or after this date. Green card holders who file the N-400 may receive a 24-month extension regardless of filing the Form I-90 – application for green card renewal. The Form N-400 ...
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