Federal Court Decision Limits Impact of Maryland Theft Conviction on...
The Fourth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals recently ruled in Levya Martinez v. Sessions, that a theft conviction under Maryland law is not a “crime involving moral turpitude” (CIMT). A conviction of a...
View ArticleTrump Administration Signals Impending End of H-4 EAD Program
On August 20, 2018, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) provided a status update to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, confirming that the agency is working to...
View ArticleTrump Administration Ordered to Reinstate DACA
A federal judge for the United States District Court for the District of Columbia ordered the Trump Administration to fully restore the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The judge...
View ArticleMurthyAudio: Analyzing Latest Regulations and Policies, Part 1
The Trump Administration continues to push for changes to those in nonimmigrant status and the U.S. employment-based immigration system. Though legislative wins have been tough to come by, the...
View ArticleMemo of Understanding Between DOJ and DOL
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to share information and, ostensibly, to protect U.S. workers. This MOU...
View ArticleNewsFlash! Temporary Suspension of Premium Processing for Most H1B Cases,...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced this afternoon that, effective September 11, 2018, petitioners will temporarily be unable to request premium processing for most types of...
View ArticleUSCIS Expands Digital Delivery of FOIA Requests
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) recently announced the second phase of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Immigration Records SysTem (FIRST). This system is designed to bring...
View ArticleTemporary Relief for Immigrants Impacted by California Wildfires
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has issued a news alert advising stakeholders impacted by special circumstances (e.g., natural catastrophes and other extreme situations),...
View ArticleUnion Representing Immigration Judges Files Grievance Against EOIR and DOJ
On August 8, 2018, the National Association of Immigration Judges (NAIJ) filed a grievance against the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), alleging...
View ArticleTravel After Change-of-Status Approval with Future Start Date
In 2004, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) confirmed the continued validity of an approved change-of-status petition with a future start date, when a person travels abroad after...
View ArticleUSCIS Provides Guidance on RFE/NOID Memo, Policy Goes into Effect 11.Sep.2018
On September 6, 2018, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) held a public stakeholder teleconference to provide some additional guidance on how the July 13, 2018 Issuance of Certain...
View ArticleUSCIS Increase in Denials and RFEs for H1Bs and L-1s
A report released by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) has provided an analysis of the sharp increase in denials and requests for evidence (RFE) for H1B and L-1 petitions due to new...
View ArticleOctober 2018 Visa Bulletin: Recovery from August’s Retrogression
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has released the October 2018 Visa Bulletin. This is the first visa bulletin for fiscal year 2019 (FY19), and reflects recovery from the retrogression that occurred...
View ArticleHurricane Florence Forces USCIS to Temporarily Close Offices in Carolinas and...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is temporarily closing certain offices in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. This move was made because of the dangerous weather...
View ArticleNewsFlash! Use “Dates for Filing Chart” in Oct 2018 Visa Bulletin for All...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated its adjustment-of-status filing charts webpage today, indicating that the more favorable dates for filing (DF) chart is to be used for all...
View ArticleIncrease in Premium Processing Fee
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is increasing the fee charged by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for premium processing. Effective October 1, 2018, the fee for...
View ArticleUSCIS Data Shows General Increase in Processing Times
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released a table of the national average processing times by fiscal year for various types of forms, through the first half of FY18. The U.S....
View ArticleMurthyAudio: L-1 Strategies for RFEs/Denials
Getting an L-1 petition approved has never been more challenging. Yet, there are steps that companies can take to improve their chances with these filings. In this teleconference, recorded September 5,...
View ArticleOctober 2018 Visa Bulletin Check-In: Unwelcome News for EB1 India and China
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division, Charles Oppenheim, provides visa bulletin explanations and predictions most months. This month, Mr. Oppenheim...
View ArticleNewsFlash! Trump Administration to Expand Definition of “Public Charge”
The Trump Administration announced over the weekend that it aims to substantially expand the number of foreign nationals who may be inadmissible to the United States for risk of becoming a “public...
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