H1B Visa Lawyer Blog

February 23, 2021

USCIS Reverts to the 2008 Version of the Naturalization Civics Test

The USCIS is returning to the Citizenship Testing and Testing Procedure to the 2008 version! This is the version used before the Trump Administration changed it in the last month leading up to the new Biden Administration taking office! This action by the USCIS is following President Biden’s Executive Order, “Executive Order on Restoring Faith in Our Legal Immigration Systems and Strengthening Integration and Inclusion Efforts for New Americans”!

For complete details, please review USCIS News Release, “USCIS Reverts to the 2008 Version of the Naturalization Civics Test”.

Source of Information:

February 22, 2021

USCIS Reaches FY 2021 H-1B Regular Cap

by Kellie N. Lego

On Tuesday, February 16, 2021, USCIS announced that it had reached enough H-1B petitions to fill the 65,000 H-1B regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa U.S. advanced degree exemption, known as the master’s cap, for fiscal year (FY) 2021.

*We have completed sending non-selection notifications to registrants’ online accounts. The status for registrations properly submitted for the FY 2021 H-1B numerical allocations, but that were not selected, will now show: “Not Selected: Not selected for this fiscal year”. *USCIS

Please review USCIS News Alert, “USCIS Reaches Fiscal Year 2021 H-1B Regular Cap” for more details.

February 19, 2021

MVP “Immigration Q & A Forum” – February 19, 2021

by Kellie N. Lego

MVP Law Group, P.A. makes available the information and materials in this forum for informational purposes only. The information is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice or any contractual obligations. Further, the use of this site, and the sending or receipt of this information, does not create an attorney-client relationship between us. Therefore, your communication with us through this forum will not be considered as privileged or confidential.

Question #1 – Visa Interview

If I do not speak English, when I go to my interview for my visa, will a translator be provided for me or will I need to provide one myself?

February 18, 2021

USCIS Notice of E-Verify Records Disposal

by Kellie N. Lego

USCIS has announced that on Friday, May 14, 2021, they will dispose of all E-Verify records that they have stored that are more than 10 years old! All E-Verify records stored on or before December 31, 2010 will be removed. Employers using E-Verify have until May 14, 2021, to download case information if they would like to retain specific E-Verify case information.

USCIS Notice of E-Verify Records Disposal

Source of Information:

February 16, 2021

Presidential Action: Preserving and Fortifying DACA

by Kellie N. Lego

On Wednesday, January 20, 2021, President Biden issued a Presidential Action in the form of an Executive Memorandum directing Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, consulting with the Attorney General (not confirmed), to take appropriate actions to preserve and fortify the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), consistent with applicable law. The memorandum, entitled, “Preserving and Fortifying Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)” lays out the President’s request to the Executive Branch for action!

Note: Executive Actions carry no legal weight, they are normally a request made by the President to Congress or the Executive Branch for specific actions.

Source of Information:

February 15, 2021

MVP “Immigration Q & A Forum” – This Friday, February 19, 2021

by Kellie N. Lego

We wanted to find a new way to engage our reader base. Every other Friday, we will post the ten (10) best/most frequently asked questions received during the week from our h1bvisalawyerblog, Facebook, and Twitter readers. We will answer those questions and provide the Q&A on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.

If you have a burning question, are seeking assistance with a difficult immigration related case, wish to discuss your views on Comprehensive Immigration Reform, DREAMers, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, priority dates, the monthly visa bulletin, adjustment applications, etc., please contact us by submitting your question/comment/viewpoint in our comment box provided on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.

Our next “Q & A Forum” will take place this Friday, February 19, 2021. Act now and submit your questions!

February 11, 2021

Immigrants in each State (fact sheets): MA, MI and MN (Update 8-6-20)

by Kellie N. Lego

The American Immigration Council (AIC) has released all fifty states and the District of Columbia, for a total of fifty-one updated state-by-state fact sheets highlighting immigration data and facts. These fact sheets highlight the demographic and economic impact of Immigrants in each state.

With national immigration policy being discussed, we thought that it would be a good time to provide some statistics on the Immigrant population in the United States as provided by this AIC research. Once a week we will be posting a blog with information on three states at a time. This week we will highlight; Massachusetts, Michigan and Minnesota!

The AIC has compiled research which shows that Immigrants are an essential part of each of these states’ economy, labor force and tax base. As our economy continues to grow, Immigrants and their children are a growing economic and political force as consumers, taxpayers and entrepreneurs. As United States economic continues to grow, immigrants and their children will continue to play a key role in shaping the economic and political future of each of these states.

February 10, 2021

FY 2022 H-1B Cap Initial Registration Period Opens on March 9

by Kellie N. Lego

On Friday, February 5^th, USCIS announced that the initial registration period for the fiscal year (FY) 2022 H-1B cap will open Tuesday, March 9, 2021 at noon (Eastern) on March 9 and will stay open until Thursday, March 25, 2021 at noon (Eastern). This is the period that prospective petitioners and representatives will be able to fill out information and complete registration for petitioners.

*Prospective H-1B cap-subject petitioners or their representatives are required to use a myUSCIS online account to register each beneficiary electronically for the selection process and pay the associated $10 H-1B registration fee for each registration submitted on behalf of each beneficiary. *USCIS

For complete details, please review USCIS News Alert, “FY 2022 H-1B Cap Initial Registration Period Opens on March 9”.

February 9, 2021

DHS Delays Effective Date of H-1B Selection Final Rule

by Kellie N. Lego

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Delays Effective Date of H-1B Selection Final Rule! The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on January 7^th the H-1B Selection final rule, “USCIS Modifies H-1B Selection Process to Prioritize Wages“. This rule change amends the regulations governing the process by which USCIS selects H-1B registrations for filing the H-1B cap-subject petitions. To give the USCIS more time to review and prepare for the changes, DHS has delayed the effective date of this final rule from March 9, 2021 to December 31, 2021. For the upcoming H-1B cap season, USCIS will apply the current regulations of random selection for this registration period which will take place before effective date of Dec. 31, 2021.

Source of Information:

USCIS (USCIS.gov), 2/4/21, News Alert:

February 8, 2021

AAO Processing Times – FY 2021 1st Quarter

by Kellie N. Lego

The Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) provides an updated ‘processing times’ in table form, with information on FY2021 first quarterly completions; October 2020 to December 2020. These figures indicate the time that it takes from the date the case is received at AAO coming from the Service Center or District Office to completion.

AAO Processing Times were released with processing dates as of 1/12/21. If you filed an appeal, please review the link below to determine the applicable processing time associated with your particular case.

Note: Starting with the January 2017 Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) Processing Times Report, the AAO has changed how it presents processing time data. The AAO will now provide, by form type, the total number of case completions for the fiscal year quarter and the percentage completed within 180 days, cases completed divided by their projected case goal.