NewsFlash! October Visa Bulletin: EB2 India Cutoff Unchanged
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) released the October 2014 Visa Bulletin this morning. In the employment-based, second preference (EB2) category for India stays put at May 1, 2009, while EB2 China...
View ArticleMechanism for Port of Entry Complaints / Compliments
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has several options for travelers to provide feedback, compliments, and/or complaints about the agency's employees. If a problem arises with a CBP officer,...
View ArticleOctober 2014 Visa Bulletin: EB2 India Holds at 01.May.2009
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has issued the October 2014 Visa Bulletin. This is the first visa bulletin of fiscal year 2015 (FY15). The contents of the October Visa Bulletin largely align with...
View ArticleNewsFlash! EB2 India Unavailable Until October 1, 2014
The Murthy Law Firm has received confirmation from Charles Oppenheim, Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division for the U.S. Department of State (DOS), that the employment-based, second...
View ArticleUSCIS Guidance on Customer Service
The manual outlining policies and procedures used by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in serving the public was updated in August 2014. The USCIS Policy Manual is intended to...
View ArticleEADs Delays: Filing and Follow-Up Suggestions
The U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) confirmed in an August 27, 2014 teleconference with the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) that there are ongoing delays in...
View ArticleAnalysis, Predictions, and Trends: Oct 2014 Visa Bulletin Update
The U.S. Department of State (DOS), through Charles Oppenhiem, Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division, provides key insights into the contents of the visa bulletin in monthly conversations...
View ArticleWhat if H1B Change of Status is Not Wanted After its Approval?
Changing status to H1B often involves a lengthy and somewhat unpredictable process. Because of the annual cap and uncertainties of lottery selection, many foreign nationals consider alternative...
View ArticleDOS Changes Visa Application Fees
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced major changes to immigrant and nonimmigrant visa fees charged to applicants for visa "stamps" at U.S. embassies and consulates. The new fee structure took...
View ArticleNOIDs for “Virtually Identical” Cap-Subject H1B Petitions
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) generally prohibits a company from filing multiple cap-subject H1B petitions for a single beneficiary in the same cap year. Related companies also...
View ArticleObtaining a Waiver for a Nonimmigrant
Foreign nationals may be deemed ineligible for admission (i.e. "inadmissible") to the United States for a variety of reasons. Common grounds of inadmissibility include: medical grounds, criminal...
View ArticleProcessing Time Improvements for Certain I-130 / I-485 Filings
For some time, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has been taking steps to reduce the processing times for "stand alone" I-130 petitions filed on behalf of immediate relatives - that...
View ArticleCBP Designates 14 POEs for Optimized Processing of First-Time Canadian TN & L...
In September 2014, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) designated fourteen ports of entry (POEs) for optimized processing of first-time Canadian applicants for admission in the TN or L-1...
View ArticleFY 2016 Diversity Lottery Registration
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has issued instructions for entry in the fiscal year 2016 (FY16) diversity visa (DV) lottery. The DV lottery, often called the "green card" lottery, grants 50,000...
View ArticleMany USCIS Stamps Now Using Secure Blue Ink
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) often issues a variety of inked stamps in the passports of foreign nationals. These stamps are simple in appearance, but the government has long...
View ArticleVisa Bulletin Predictions for Coming Months
On October 1, 2014, the Chief of the Immigrant Visa Control and Reporting Division, U.S. Department of State (DOS), Charles Oppenheim, provided explanations and predictions related to employment-based...
View ArticleNewsFlash! EB2 India Retrogresses to ’05 in Nov 2014 Visa Bulletin
Today, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) issued the November 2014 Visa Bulletin. Unfortunately, as expected, the employment-based, second preference (EB2) category for people born in India...
View ArticleCBP Issues Integrity and Personal Accountability Strategy
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which is responsible for guarding this nation's borders, has issued an integrity and personal accountability document to address the integrity standards of...
View ArticleNov 2014 Visa Bulletin: EB2 India Retrogression to 15.Feb.05
As previously reported on MurthyDotCom, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) has released the November 2014 Visa Bulletin. This latest visa bulletin brings unwelcome, yet expected news of severe...
View ArticleUSCIS Incorrectly Issued Duplicate Biometrics Notices
As previously noted on MurthyDotCom, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced having mistakenly scheduled some applicants for more than one biometric appointment. On October 3,...
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