Editorial credit: Lyonstock / Shutterstock.com WASHINGTON— U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will celebrate Independence Day this year by welcoming approximately 11,000 new citizens in more than 195 naturalization ceremonies between June 28 and July 5. These ceremonies demonstrate our government’s commitment to welcoming immigrants and promoting the benefits of U.S. citizenship for all who are […]
Editorial credit: Lyonstock / Shutterstock.com U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is extending the grace periods when we will accept previous editions of the following forms: Form I-914, Application for T Nonimmigrant Status; Form I-914, Supplement A, Application for Family Member of T-1 Recipient; Form I-914, Supplement B, Declaration of Law Enforcement Officer for Victim of […]
Editorial credit: Sundry Photography / Shutterstock.com On June 14, 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services updated the USCIS Policy Manual to clarify how prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) can adopt a child through the Hague Adoption Convention process. This policy manual update affirms our commitment to the standards and principles of the Hague Adoption Convention, including […]
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is issuing guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual on family-based immigrant visa petitions (including Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative and, in limited situations, family-based Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant). This includes explaining how we handle correcting approval notice errors and requests for consular processing or adjustment of status, as well as routing procedures for approved petitions. A petitioner submitting Form I-130 must inform USCIS of the beneficiary’s current address and whether the beneficiary wants consular […]
We are starting a new process for most applicants, petitioners, and requestors, and their attorneys and accredited representatives to pay for certain benefit request forms by mail or remotely instead of in person at a field office. Under the new process, applicants may mail either a check or Form G-1450, Authorization for Credit Card Transactions, to the […]
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has received enough petitions to reach the cap for the additional 20,716 H-2B visas made available for returning workers for the first half of fiscal year 2024 with start dates on or before March 31, 2024, under the H-2B supplemental cap temporary final rule (FY 2024 TFR). Jan.9, 2024, was […]
Editorial credit: Michael Vi / Shutterstock.com In February, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will launch online organizational accounts and make Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, available for online filing for H-1B petitioners for fiscal year (FY) 2025. What You Need to Know All legal representative account holders and all organizations with an H-1B registrant account, as well as new users, will […]
Editorial credit: Sundry Photography / Shutterstock.com U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is issuing policy guidance regarding the F and M student nonimmigrant classifications, including the agency’s role in adjudicating applications for employment authorization, change of status, extension of stay, and reinstatement of status for these students and their dependents in the United States. This […]
Editorial credit: Lyonstock / Shutterstock.com U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced a final rule that will increase the filing fee for Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing, to adjust for inflation. The USCIS Stabilization Act established the current premium processing fees and the authority for the Department of Homeland Security to adjust the premium fees on a biennial basis. After leaving these […]
By Leslie Dellon | Nov 3, 2023 The H-1B program may undergo significant changes as early as October 1, 2024. The Department of Homeland Security U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently published a 94-page proposed rule to “modernize” the H-1B program. The H-1B is a temporary (nonimmigrant) visa category for employers to petition for workers in […]