As of November 6, 2009, approximately 54,700 H-1B cap-subject petitions had been filed. USCIS has approved sufficient H1-B petitions for aliens with advanced degrees to meet the exemption of 20,000 from the fiscal year 2010 cap. Any H1-B petitions filed on behalf of an alien with an advanced degree will now count toward the general H1-B cap of 65,000.
The Department has sent to the Federal Register an Interim Final Rule (IFR) extending the transition period application filing procedures implemented under the December 2008 H-2A Final Rule. The application filing procedures under the extended transition period apply to all employers with dates of need before June 1, 2010. To read the IFR please click here.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is announcing a 120-day period in which it will temporarily accept H-1B petitions filed without Labor Condition Applications (LCAs) that have been certified by the Department of Labor (DOL).
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the previous version of the Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Representative (Form G-28) will be accepted until further notice.
Effective December 21, 2009, the Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas Reauthorization Act will sunset. The Nursing Relief for Disadvantage Areas Act (NRDAA) established the H-1C Program in 1999 to reduce the shortage of qualified nurses in health professional shortage areas. The Program was reauthorized until December 20, 2009 under the Nursing Relief for Disadvantage Areas Reauthorization Act of 2005 which became effective in December 20, 2006.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) posted an informational video on its Web site that provides an overview of the agency’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program.
ICE released the 2009 ICE Secure Communities Standard Operating Procedures document for Secure Communities, an initiative making the removal of aliens convicted of serious criminal offenses from the US a priority. This document describes processes that enable the routing of response messages to the FBI and State Identification Bureaus to confirm identity and immigration status during incarceration booking.
USCIS memo provides guidance to USCIS Immigration Services Officers (ISOs) on the adjudication of 1-751 petitions filed by a conditional permanent resident (CPR) who is the subject of a final order of removal, is in removal proceedings, has filed untimely, or has filed multiple petitions.