super-6698001_1280In the complex landscape of U.S. immigration, the O-1A visa stands out as a great option for individuals with extraordinary abilities in fields such as business, sciences, athletics, or education. This visa offers a pathway for highly talented professionals to work in the United States while showcasing their exceptional expertise.

An O-1A visa petition must be supported by documentation showing receipt of a major internationally recognized award, like a Nobel Prize. However, if the applicant has not received such an award, they may still apply if they meet at least three of the following criteria:

  • Evidence of receipt of nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for excellence in the field.
  • Evidence of membership in associations in the field that require outstanding achievements of their members, as judged by recognized experts in the field.
  • Evidence of authorship of scholarly articles in the field, in professional journals, or other major media.
  • Evidence of published material in professional or major trade publications or major media about applicant’s work.
  • Evidence of participation on a panel, or individually, as the judge of the work of others in the field.
  • Evidence of employment in a critical or essential capacity for organizations and establishments that have a distinguished reputation.
  • Evidence of commanding a high salary or other compensation for services in relation to others in the field.
  • Evidence of original contributions of major significance in the field (scientific, scholarly, or business-related).
  • Or any comparable evidence to support the beneficiary’s eligibility, if the above criteria are not readily applicable to the occupation.

“Sophia’s” O-1A Journey


In our client’s case, “Sophia” was a Marketing Development professional with over 13 years of experience, creating innovative campaigns for well-known businesses throughout the world.

In support of her O-1A visa, “Sophia,” provided ample evidence to meet more than three of the criteria, including evidence of her leading roles as a marketing professional throughout her career, memberships in prestigious organizations, judging positions in her profession, evidence of high compensation as a marketing professional, recognition in the major media, authorship of scholarly articles, and the exhibition of her work.

While “Sophia’s” immigration journey seemed to go smoothly at first, she ran into some challenges which prompted her to seek representation from our law office. In this blog post, you will learn how “Sophia” was able to bounce back and achieve success after experiencing a few hiccups along the way.

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november-5650854_1280-1Today, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs published the November Visa Bulletin.

In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.


USCIS Adjustment of Status


For employment-based and family-sponsored preference categories, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed it will continue to use the Dates for Filing chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of November.


Highlights of the November  2024 Visa Bulletin


At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of November?

Employment-Based Categories


  • All employment-based Final Action Dates and Dates for Filing will remain the same in November when compared to the October Visa Bulletin

Family-Sponsored Categories


Final Action

  • F1 Mexico will advance by 1 year and 10 months to November 22, 2004
  • F2A Mexico will advance by 1.2 months to April 15, 2021
  • F2A All other countries will advance by 1.3 months to January 1, 2022
  • F2B Mexico will advance by 5.5 months to July 1, 2005
  • F3 Mexico will advance by 2 months to October 22, 2000
  • F3 Except for the Philippines All other countries will advance by 2 weeks to April 15, 2010
  • F4 Mexico will advance by 1 week to March 1, 2001
  • F4 India will advance by 1 week to March 8, 2006

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megaphone-6587769_1280In a shocking turn of events, the Biden administration recently announced that it will not be renewing humanitarian parole protections for nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. The CHNV parole program was first launched in October of 2022 to discourage illegal border crossings.

It previously allowed qualifying nationals and their immediate members to apply for advanced travel authorization and granted them a temporary period of parole of up to two years for urgent humanitarian reasons.

Individuals were required to have a U.S. based sponsor and pass security checks as part of the application process. Once paroled into the United States, applicants were eligible to apply for an employment authorization document (EAD) with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Now the humanitarian parole program is no more. The government has said that those who came to the United States using the parole policy, will need to obtain legal status through other means before their parole period terminates to remain in the United States. Those who have no lawful basis to remain in the country beyond the parole period will be required to depart or risk being placed in removal proceedings.

According to government data, approximately 538,000 migrants have used the program to travel to the United States (214,000 Haitians, 117,000 Venezuelans, 111,000 Cubans, and 96,000 Nicaraguans).

The first group of nationals who will begin losing their parole status are Venezuelans who arrived in the U.S. through the CHNV program in October 2022. The parole periods of Cubans, Haitians, and Nicaraguans are set to begin expiring early next year.

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globe-2091853_1280Great news! Online registration for the Diversity Visa Lottery Program for fiscal year 2026 (DV-2026) is now open and will remain open until November 5, 2024.


What you need to know


Deadline for Registration

The State Department is accepting online registrations for the Diversity Visa Lottery program for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 from now until Tuesday, November 5, 2024, at 12:00 noon, Eastern Standard Time (EST).

It is completely free to submit an online registration.

Foreign nationals who want to have a chance of being selected must register for the lottery by this deadline.

Submission of more than one entry for a person will disqualify all entries for that person.

The Fiscal Year 2026 DV lottery program will have up to 55,000 green cards up for grabs that will be selected through a randomized computer-generated process.

Winners for FY 2026 are expected to be announced starting May 3, 2025, through September 30, 2026, on the Website by selecting DV Entrant Status Check.

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Why should I apply?


Foreign nationals selected in the FY 2026 lottery are eligible to file their green card applications starting October 1, 2025.

Please note that all who are selected in the DV 2026 lottery must apply for their immigrant visas during fiscal year 2026 (October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026).

Once all 55,000 diversity visas have been issued, the program will end. That is why it is so important for applicants to apply for an immigrant visa as early as possible.

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money-3883174_1280Recently, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published guidance to help petitioners of Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers submit the correct filing fee payment when submitting their applications with USCIS.

Since USCIS increased its filing fees in April and implemented a new asylum program fee of $600 for employment-based petitioners filing I-140, it has been rejecting a very high number of petitions due to incorrect fees and missing information.

USCIS reminds all petitioners of Form I-140 that they must provide a payment for the $600 asylum program fee, unless they qualify for a reduced fee of $300 (small employers with 25 or fewer full-time employees), or are exempt from the asylum program fee (nonprofit organizations).

Petitioners who do not provide the correct asylum program fee and the appropriate I-140 filing fee may have their cases rejected.

Additionally, petitioners must provide correct responses on Part 1 for questions 5 and 6 of Form I-140 notifying USCIS whether they qualify for a reduced fee. This portion of the form cannot be left blank.

Petitioners who fail to provide the correct payment with the I-140 petition, or who do not provide a response for questions 5 and 6 in Part 1, may have their cases rejected.

USCIS has published the following guidance on how to complete questions 5 and 6 and determine the correct payment. 

Petitioner Type In Part 1 of the I-140 Question 5 In Part 1 of the I-140 Question 6 Asylum Program Fee Filing Fee Total Payment
Non-profit or Small Business 
nonprofit business, institution, or government research organization. Yes  Yes or No $0 $715 $715
A small business or organization employing 25 or fewer full-time employees in the United States No Yes $300 $715 $1,015
Individual Self-Petitioner 
A self-petitioner employing 25 or fewer (or zero) full-time employees in the United States No Yes  $300 $715 $1,015
All Other Petitioners 
All petitioners who do not qualify for a reduced Asylum Program Fee and answer “No” to both questions 5 and 6. No No $600 $715 $1,315

I-140 Filing Fee Guidance


USCIS requests that I-140 petitioners provide separate payments for the $715 filing fee and the Asylum Program Fee, using the same type of payment, either check/money order or Form G-1450 to pay with a credit card. Packages filed with more than one type of payment may be rejected.

Petitioners should also review the FAQ section discussing the new USCIS filing fees in subsection “Employment-Based Forms and Fees” for further guidance.

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heart-2880992_1280We are excited to report that Qatar will soon be joining the Visa Waiver Program, which permits citizens of 41 countries to travel to the United States for business or tourism for stays of up to 90 days without a visa.   

Qatar’s designation was announced on September 24th by the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of State.

Qatar will become the 42nd member of the Visa Waiver Program and the first of the Arab states of the Persian Gulf to become part of the program.


When can Qatari nationals travel to the United States using the Visa Waiver Program?


Qatari nationals can start applying for the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) online application or on the “ESTA Mobile” app no later than December 1, 2024.

The Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) is a fully automated, electronic system for screening passengers before they begin travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program. Eligible citizens or nationals from all Visa Waiver Program countries must obtain approval through ESTA prior to traveling to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program. Visa Waiver Program travelers are encouraged to apply for authorization as soon as they begin to plan a trip to the United States.

ESTA travel authorizations are generally valid for two years upon issuance and permit travelers to remain in the United States for up to 90 days for tourism or business purposes.

Qatari citizens with valid B1/B2 visas may continue to use them for business and tourist travel to the United States.


Can U.S. Citizens also travel to Qatar without a visa?


Yes. The move will also benefit U.S. Citizens, considering that Qatar will update its travel policies starting October 1, 2024, to allow all U.S. citizens to request entry into Qatar for up to 90 days instead of the previous 30-day limit. U.S. travelers must have a passport that is valid for at least three months from arrival and a confirmed hotel booking on arrival.

In his announcement, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas remarked, “The Visa Waiver Program is one of our most successful security initiatives. Qatar’s participation in the program increases information sharing regarding one of the world’s busiest travel and transfer hubs, strengthening the security of the United States. I commend our Qatari partners for meeting the stringent requirements in this agreement entails and look forward to our continued work together on behalf of our respective countries.”

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butler-159811_1280
On September 19th the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has received enough petitions to reach the mandatory numerical cap on new H-2B visas for nonagricultural workers for the first half of fiscal year 2025.

As a result, USCIS will reject any new cap-subject H-2B petitions received after September 18th that request an employment start date before April 1, 2025.

USCIS will continue to accept H-2B petitions that are exempt from the congressionally mandated cap, including:

letter-8052497_1280

We are excited to share new updates for green card holders who are renewing their Permanent Resident Cards (Green Cards).

Starting September 10, 2024, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will automatically be extending the validity of green cards to 36-months for all those who properly file Form I-90 to renew an expired or expiring green card with USCIS. This means that receipt notices issued to green card renewal applicants will now automatically include the 36-month extension.

Previously, USCIS provided a 24-month extension of the validity of a green card on Form I-90 receipt notices. Now the language on Form I-90 receipt notices will extend the validity of a green card for 36 months from the expiration date on the face of the current green card.

USCIS began printing amended receipt notices for individuals with a pending Form I-90 on September 10th.

As evidence of your lawful permanent resident status and your employment authorization, you must present your I-90 receipt notice along with your expired green card.

Why did USCIS issue this extension?


The new 36-month extension is meant to provide relief to applicants who are experiencing longer than normal processing times, so that their employment and travel plans remain uninterrupted while applications remain pending with USCIS.

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ai-generated-8489042_1280New details have emerged relating to a pending lawsuit before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas known as  Texas et. al. vs. DHS et. al., Case No. 6:24-cv-00306 (E.D. Tex.), which is currently blocking the approval of applications filed under the Biden administration’s parole in place program.

Litigation Updates

On August 26th eleven individual intervening parties who stood to benefit from the parole in place program filed a motion to intervene in the Texas lawsuit.

Thereafter, on September 3rd the Texas district court judge denied the motion to intervene. As a result, the intervening parties filed an appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit claiming the lower court’s denial of the motion to intervene was unjustified.

On September 11th  the Fifth Circuit Court ordered the lower court to freeze all proceedings until they have had the opportunity to hear the intervenors appeal.

A hearing date of October 10th has been set and the court has said that no further action can be taken in the lower court until that date.

The appellate court’s order states as follows, “Meaning no criticism of the district court’s recognition of the need for prompt resolution, this panel must have an opportunity to consider the merits briefs, scheduled to be received by September 16, and to hear argument on the appeal of the denial of intervention. Accordingly, we administratively STAY proceedings in the district court pending a decision on the merits or other order of this court. The stay issued by the district court will remain in effect pending further order of this court.”


What does this mean for parole in place applications?


In the meantime, USCIS can continue accepting and processing parole in place applications under the Keeping Families Together program, but it cannot approve cases until further notice.

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learn-6874566_1280Today the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs published the October Visa Bulletin. In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.


USCIS Adjustment of Status


For employment-based preference categories, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed it will use the Dates for Filing chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of October.

For family-sponsored preference categories, USCIS will continue to use the Dates for Filing chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of October.


Highlights of the October 2024 Visa Bulletin


At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of October?

Employment-Based Categories


  • The Final Action date for China EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers will retrogress by five months, to April 1, 2020. The Date for Filing will retrogress by almost 8 months, to November 15, 2020.
  • The Final Action date for EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers Worldwide will advance by almost two years, to November 15, 2022. The Date for Filing will advance by one month, to March 1, 2023.
  • The Final Action date for China EB-5 Unreserved will advance by seven months, to July 15, 2016. The Date for Filing will retrogress by three months, to October 1, 2016.
  • The India EB-5 Unreserved Final Action date will advance by more than one year, to January 1, 2022. The Date for Filing will remain at April 1, 2022.

Family-Sponsored Categories


Final Action

  • F1 Mexico will advance by 7.8 months to January 1, 2003
  • F2A Mexico will advance by 1.1 months to March 8, 2021
  • F2A All other countries will advance by 1 week to November 22, 2021
  • F2B Mexico will advance by 6 months to January 15, 2005
  • F3 Mexico will advance by 5.7 months to August 22, 2000
  • F4 Mexico will advance by 2 weeks to February 22, 2001
  • F4 India will advance by 1.2 months to March 1, 2006

Dates for Filing

  • F1 Mexico will advance by 6 months to October 1, 2005
  • F2B Mexico will advance by 3 months to August 1, 2005
  • F3 Philippines will advance by 6 months to May 8, 2004
  • F3 All other countries will advance by 5.9 months to July 1, 2011
  • F4 Philippines will advance by 4 months to August 1, 2006

Now let’s dive into our analysis of the October 2024 Visa bulletin. 

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