TN Status: Employment Option for Canadian and Mexican Citizens
Thanks to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), qualifying Canadian and Mexican nationals can work in the United States in a wide-range of positions under the NAFTA professionals (TN)...
View ArticleEvaluating Stakeholder Satisfaction with USCIS
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on February 10, 2014 that it has contracted with a professional research firm to solicit feedback from "customers" and evaluate how...
View ArticleICE Confirms Unpaid F-1 Internships Count as OPT Employment
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a public notice on February 6, 2014 reconfirming that unpaid internships are a permissible form of employment for foreign nationals in F-1...
View ArticleFour Lessons on the Instructions Denials Carry
This clarification is in response to an area of confusion for many foreign nationals regarding specific instructions contained in certain denial decisions issued in response immigration filings. The...
View ArticleFY15 H1B Cap Filing Season Approaching
The Murthy Law Firm reminds readers that the H1B cap-filing season for fiscal year (FY) 2015 is drawing near. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will begin accepting cap-subject H1B...
View ArticleUSCIS Improves e-Request System
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) online system known as e-Request was recently updated and expanded. The e-Request system allows individuals and petitioning employers to submit...
View ArticleDOL Provides Info on Cases More Likely to Trigger Audits
A portion of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) audit plan for PERM labor certification (LC) cases was recently released. The plan describes tiers of cases that are more likely to be subjected to...
View ArticleCBP Preclearance Post Added at Abu Dhabi International Airport
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has begun operating a new preclearance facility at Abu Dhabi International Airport, making it the 16th such facility to be established around the world. The...
View ArticleDOL PERM FAQs on Notification and Consideration of Laid-Off U.S. Workers
To provide clarity on an important issue regarding recruitment in PERM labor certification (LC) cases, the frequently asked questions section of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)'s Office of Foreign...
View ArticleApril 2014 Visa Bulletin
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has issued the April 2014 Visa Bulletin. As expected, there was little in the way of movement in this month's visa bulletin. Family-Based, Second Preference "A"...
View ArticleU.S. Supreme Court Lets Stand Ruling Finding Local Immigration Laws...
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear appeals filed by towns in Texas and Pennsylvania, regarding their attempts to locally enforce certain U.S. immigration laws. This means that the earlier...
View ArticleH1B Cap Timeline Expectations for FY15
Many inquiries regarding the projected timeline for fiscal year (FY) 2015 H1B cap case milestones continue to reach the Murthy Law Firm. While most applicants are aware that they can begin filing H1B...
View ArticleGAO Finds Need for Greater Oversight of F-1/M-1 Students on OPT
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued an extensive report in February 2014 regarding the oversight of the optional practical training (OPT) program for F-1 and M-1 foreign students. In...
View ArticleImproved FOIA System for Immigration-Related Requests
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) system for filing and tracking Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests has recently been improved. A FOIA request is a powerful tool used to obtain...
View ArticleIncrease in L1B Denials, Particularly for Indian Nationals
The National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) recently released a study that documents and analyzes the dramatic increase in the percentage of L1B petitions denied by the U.S. Citizenship and...
View ArticleStudents Should Not Travel During Cap-Gap Period
The term "cap gap" refers to the period of time between April 1st and October 1st each year when many F-1 students experience a gap from the end of their optional practical training (OPT) employment...
View ArticleUSCIS Issues H1B Cap Advisory, Expects Need for H1B Lottery
A week before the April 1, 2014 commencement of the fiscal year 2015 (FY15) cap season, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a notice regarding related filing procedures and...
View ArticleUSCIS to Reopen Denied I-601A Provisional Waivers
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced its intent to voluntarily reopen certain denied I-601A waivers. This applies, as of March 18, 2014, to I-601A waiver cases that were...
View ArticleSelective Service and Eligibility for U.S. Citizenship
Under U.S. law, most men are required to register for military Selective Service, more commonly referred to as the "draft." This requirement often comes as a surprise to foreign nationals when they...
View ArticleUSCIS Policy Manual on Fraud / Misrepresentation
Portions of two more volumes of the new online policy manual of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) have recently been released. The additions deal with fraud and willful...
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