On January 23, 2016 a Federal District Court Judge for the District of Columbia granted the federal government an extension for the STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT) program to resume, giving the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) more time to issue a new replacement rule. The STEM OPT program had been in…
What is the H-1B Visa? The H-1B visa is a work visa that is awarded on a lottery basis. The H-1B visa program allows American companies and/or qualifying organizations to employ foreign workers to fill specialty occupations temporarily. The foreign worker must posses a combination of education, specialized training, and/or…
As previously reported, the STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT) rule that had been in place since 2008, was invalidated following a court order requesting the Department of Homeland Security to issue a new replacement rule. The court gave the DHS until February 12, 2016 to come up with a replacement…
By Yingfei Zhou, Esq. Last week, attorneys Yingfei Zhou, Esq. and Marie Puertollano, Esq. from our office attended the 28th AILA California Chapter Conference on Immigration Law held in San Diego, California. Together, they brought our audiences the latest updates on various issues discussed at the government open forums. USCIS…
On August 12, 2015, U.S. District Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle vacated the Department of Homeland Security’s 17-month STEM OPT Extension program that has been in existence since 2008. But because an immediate vacatur of the STEM OPT program would cause “substantial hardship” to thousands of F-1 students and create a…
President Obama’s executive action announced on November 20, 2014 fell short in many ways than one for many people residing in the United States—both legally and illegally. Though a marginalized few have been allowed to come out of the shadows, some of the world’s best and brightest have been…
By Ekaterina Powell, Esq. Our office has received a few inquiries on the subject of volunteer work while on OPT and consequences of unemployment, and we have decided to address these issues in further detail for our readers. Conditions of Employment while on OPT The main conditions of employment while…
Guidance following the Courts Decisions on Same Se Marriage continue to be released. The latest is regarding Student Visas. The Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs has advised consulates that their officials may issue derivative visas based on same – sex marriage if the marriage is “recognized in the…
Great commnets by Mr. Brent Renison, Member of the AILA Media-Advocacy Committee, he calls on the Obama Administration to grant OPT extensions to recent graduates with job offers who did not win the H-1B lottery. The feeling is that International students come to the US spend good money on education,…
My office received a few concerned calls from family members of Aristotle University Students. The University is in a center of a heated media investigation into the legitimacy of this Institution to provide education and issue student visas. Questions have been raised by students for some time about this school.…