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Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B

26 05, 2015

Certain H-4 Visa Holders Are Now Eligible to Obtain Employment Authorization

By |2015-05-26T08:06:17-05:00May 26th, 2015|Categories: DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., General, Green Cards, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Immigration and PERM / Labor Certification, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation|

Published May 26, 2015   Certain qualified spouses of H-1B visa holders, who themselves hold H-4 status, may now be able to apply for an Employment Authorization Document pursuant to an Executive Order announced last year, and put into effect this week. To start, we will define a couple important terms: Employment Authorization Document (EAD), is a general work permit issued by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services with a validity ranging from 1 to 2 years typically, and which authorizes the holder to work as much, or as little, as they like, and for any employer, or […]

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16 04, 2015

Retrogression Hits Hard for Professionals and Skilled Workers (EB-3) from the Philippines Seeking Immigrant Visas

By |2015-04-16T11:43:15-05:00April 16th, 2015|Categories: DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, General, Green Cards, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Immigration and PERM / Labor Certification, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B, United States Embassies Abroad|

Published April 16, 2015 According to the most recent visa bulletin released by the U.S. Department of State, effective May 1, 2015, the cut-off date setting forth the availability of Employment Based Immigrant Visas in the EB 3rd Preference – FOR THE PHILIPPINES – retrogressed to July 1, 2007 – a huge setback from the current October 1, 2014 cut-off date. The Employment Based 3rd Preference is the most common immigrant visa category for foreign workers, including Registered Nurses.   It is not known how long this retrogression will last, but employers and immigrant visa applicants impacted, such as those with now […]

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13 04, 2015

April 2015 H-1B Filing Season Sees Record Demand

By |2015-04-13T11:50:31-05:00April 13th, 2015|Categories: Customs and Border Patrol / Travel to and from the U.S., DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, Foreign Exchange Student Visas to the U.S., General, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Immigration and PERM / Labor Certification, Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation, United States Embassies Abroad|

Published April 13, 2015   For the past few years, come April 1, tens of thousands of employers and prospective employees vie for one of 85,000 H-1B work visas made available for highly skilled or professional workers for the ensuing fiscal year, starting October 1.   It used to be a 1 in 2 chance an H-1B petition will be picked for consideration, given that each year the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services (DHS/CIS) receives around 170,000 or so petitions, and with only 85,000 visas to distribute.     Not surprisingly, given our relatively robust economy, and the global perspective that […]

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5 03, 2015

Update: The Truth About U.S. Immigration and Registered Nurses

By |2015-03-05T12:35:48-06:00March 5th, 2015|Categories: Customs and Border Patrol / Travel to and from the U.S., DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, General, Green Cards, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Immigrant Visas for Spouse / Fiancee / Child Visas, Immigration and PERM / Labor Certification, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation, Uncategorized, United States Embassies Abroad|

Published March 5, 2015   As of this writing the landscape for foreign national registered nurses (excluding nurses from China and India) to enter the U.S. to live and work can best be described as “improved” and “not too bad”.   From start to finish, I would estimate the process at approximately 8 to 14 months, although it could take a little shorter or longer. This is in contrast to the state of affairs over the past 5+ years, where foreign national registered nurses and their petitioning facilities faced a many year waits between petition approval and visa issuance.  And to be […]

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25 02, 2015

Apri1 1, 2015 – The First Day to File H-1B Petitions for Coming 2016 Fiscal Year

By |2015-02-25T11:34:22-06:00February 25th, 2015|Categories: Employment-Based Immigration Law, Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B|

Published:  February 25, 2015 Whether you are a prospective H-1B visa employer or employee, those thinking of taking advantage of the new batch of H-1B visas for the coming fiscal year are advised to get their plan in order immediately.  That’s because fiscal year 2016 starts on October 1, 2015 for U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services and other federal government agencies.  Starting on April 1, 2015, interested employers and foreign workers can initiate the process by filing for one of 85,000 H-1B visas that will become available, with 65,000 visas in the general supply and 20,000 designated for […]

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21 01, 2015

Federal Court in California: Health Services Manager Should Get an H-1B Work Visa

By |2015-01-21T15:38:39-06:00January 21st, 2015|Categories: DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, Foreign Exchange Student Visas to the U.S., General, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B|

Published:  January 21, 2015 No doubt about it.  In the past decade, getting an H-1B work visa filing approved has gotten harder.  These days employers and prospective employees have to rush to get their petitions and supporting documentation together each year in time for the magical April 1 filing date, and then only to have a 50% chance of even being considered given that demand for the annual allotment of visas exceeds supply by a 2 to 1 margin.  Then, if the parties are lucky enough to have their filing picked for review, everything about the petition is met with thorough […]

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10 07, 2014

Healthcare Workers Seeking Green Cards: Make Sure Your Visa Screen Certifications and Licenses are Current!

By |2014-07-10T12:06:46-05:00July 10th, 2014|Categories: Customs and Border Patrol / Travel to and from the U.S., DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, General, Green Cards, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation, United States Embassies Abroad|

Published:  July 10, 2014 In recent months, the line allowing foreign nationals seeking residence in the U.S., by way of a job offer as a professional healthcare worker, has moved forward considerably.  So whether they are in the U.S. or abroad, the intending immigrant should pay careful attention to the expiration date on their Visa Screen Certification and U.S. license (if applicable to their profession), since the final approval of their I-485 application for permanent residence (if in the U.S.) or application for immigrant visa (if applying at a U.S. consular post abroad) will depend on the submission of current documentation. […]

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13 05, 2014

Employment Authorization for Qualified Dependents of H-1B Visa Holders

By |2014-05-13T08:42:13-05:00May 13th, 2014|Categories: DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Immigration and PERM / Labor Certification, Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation|

Published:  May 13, 2014 In the past week, the Obama Administration announced its plan to implement a program allowing qualified spouses of H-1B visa holders to obtain an Employment Authorization Document.  The plan has yet to be put into action, and it’s expected that Department of Homeland Security will start accepting and processing applications from eligible applicants a short time after the “comment period” expires in the coming 60 days. For now the provision is a “proposed rule,” where anyone in the public is free to chime in and comment on the proposal.  Once the comment period expires, the comments will be […]

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25 03, 2014

UPDATE: H-1B Work Visas for Fiscal Year 2015

By |2014-03-25T10:31:54-05:00March 25th, 2014|Categories: Employment-Based Immigration Law, Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B|

Published:  March 25, 2014 On April 1, 2014, U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) will begin to accept H-1B petitions with start dates of October 1, 2014, the first day of the U.S. government’s Fiscal Year 2015. As has been the case in years past, the start of the fiscal year brings a new supply of 85,000.00 highly sought-after work visas, with 65,000 allotted for all petitions, and another 20,000 designated especially for workers with a U.S. master’s degree or higher. Like in recent years, CIS expects requests for H-1B visas to far outnumber the annual supply, and […]

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24 09, 2013

Colorado Man Found Guilty of Trafficking in Filipino Nurses

By |2013-09-24T07:39:16-05:00September 24th, 2013|Categories: Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

Published:  September 24, 2013 This past July, Kizzy Kalu, a naturalized U.S. citizen and resident of Colorado, was convicted by a federal jury of orchestrating and carrying out a scheme to use the H-1B work visa process to petition dozens of registered nurses for positions in the U.S. that did not exist, and for exploiting and blackmailing them with threats of deportation after their arrival.  After a 4 week trial, a federal jury issued a guilty verdict against Kalu on 89 counts of mail fraud, visa fraud, human trafficking and money laundering.  Kalu’s sentencing hearing commenced this week, and is scheduled to be completed in December.  Kalu has remained in […]

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