By Marie Puertollano, Esq. We filed an H-1B case on April 1, 2014 for Product Line Manager, a position in the “Market Research Analyst” category of USCIS. The beneficiary has a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering. The petitioner (the employer) is involved in high tech manufacturing. A few weeks later, we…
By Ekaterina Powell, Esq. On July 11, 2014, USCIS released new guidance on adjudication of H-1B petitions for nursing occupations, which superseded the previous USCIS Memorandum of Johnny Williams, INS Office of Field Operations, Guidance on Adjudication of H-1B Petitions filed on Behalf of Nurses, HQISD 70/6.2.8-P (November 27, 2002).…
By Ekaterina Powell, Esq. Since the H-1B season kicked off on April 1, 2014, USCIS has started issuing Requests for Evidence (RFE). This article will address the RFE trends and practice tips. Below are 4 main points USCIS addresses in the RFEs: Specialty Occupation Sufficient Specialty Occupation Work Right to…
On Tuesday May 6, 2014 the Department of Homeland Security announced the publication of two newly proposed rules designed with the purpose of attracting and retaining highly skilled foreign workers. Both initiatives seek to advance the United States economy and improve competitiveness by recruiting the best and brightest professionals the…
By Ekaterina Powell, Esq. In the recent case Caremax Inc. v. Holder (N.D. Cal., 2014), the court granted the government’s motion for summary judgment and ruled that Public Relations Specialist offered to the beneficiary is not an H-1B caliber position. The H-1B employer and the employee filed a declaratory relief…
On April 17th, USCIS announced that premium processing for H-1B petitions, subject to the fiscal cap year of 2015, would begin on April 28, including petitions qualifying for the advanced degree exemption. Additionally, USCIS guarantees a processing time of 15 calendar days for such petitions.
By Yingfei Zhou, Esq. Q: How can I apply for EB-5 visa? A: There are two requirements on foreign investors seeking a green card. First, you must invest sufficient funds in an approved project of your choice. Second, ten new full-time jobs must be created as a direct result of…
On April 07, 2014, in a much awaited public announcement, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that it had already reached the statutory cap of H-1B petitions allotted for the 2015 fiscal year. According to the announcement, on the first five days USCIS began to count H-1B petitions, it was…
Now that the H-1B cases have been filed, we are anxiously waiting to get the news from USCIS on the cap count. Last year, USCIS announced on April 5 that it received approximately 124,000 H-1B petitions during the five day filing period, including petitions filed for the advanced degree exemption.…
Our office receives many inquiries from start-up companies that want to hire employees under H-1B visa. As the H-1B season has begun, we would like to provide our readers with the updates and important considerations for this category of H-1B visas. The following article was prepared by attorney Ekaterina Powell…