Each month, the Visa Office subdivides the annual preference and foreign state limitations specified by the INA into monthly allotments based on totals of documentarily qualified immigrant visa applicants reported at consular posts and CIS Offices, grouped by foreign state chargeability, preference category, and priority date.
All USCIS offices worldwide are open. Activities continue despite Government Shutdown.
On the other hand The State Department had this announcement to make
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services are jointly issuing this Investor Alert to warn individual investors about fraudulent investment scams that exploit the Immigrant Investor Program, also known as “EB-5.”
A registered nurse who is coming to the United States to perform labor in covered health care occupations (other than as a physician) and wishes to apply for Immigrant Visa(Permanent Resident Status) is required to have the following:
While E-Verify is unavailable, you will not be able to access your E-Verify account. As a result, you will be unable to:
Physicians seeking a permanent employment opportunity in the United States and employers seeking to sponsor a physician for lawful permanent residency based on permanent employment in the United States must go through a multi-step process.
Foreign nationals and employers must determine whether the foreign national is eligible for lawful permanent residency under one of several, acceptable paths to lawful permanent residency.
Effective immediately, all K visa applicants are required to complete the DS-160 Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application. The DS-160 replaces forms DS-156, DS-156K, and DS-230.
For K visa cases already in process at a U.S. embassy or consulate, the DS-160 is not required when, prior to October 7, 2013, one of the following situations exist:
Effective immediately, all K visa applicants are required to complete the DS-160 Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application. The DS-160 replaces forms DS-156, DS-156K, and DS-230.
For K visa cases already in process at a U.S.
Immigration courts nationwide are continuing to adjudicate detained cases. Court functions that support the detained caseload will continue, but other functions are suspended. For specific information about a particular court, please see below.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announces that Congress passed a bill extending the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program for Iraqi nationals who worked for or on behalf of the U.S. government, which the President signed into law on Oct. 4, 2013.
Review the FAQs below for more information about the online DS-260 form.
You must have:
Immigration courts nationwide are continuing to adjudicate detained cases. Court functions that support the detained caseload will continue, but other functions are suspended. For specific information about a particular court, please see below.
According to the New York Times :
About 12:30, President Obama signed the measure passed by the Senate and the House to reopen the government and extend federal borrowing power. Earlier, the Office of Management and Budget said federal employees should return to work on Thursday.
E-Verify has resumed operations following the federal government shutdown. All E-Verify features and services are now available.
If an H-1B, H-2A, or H-2B petitioner submits evidence establishing that the primary reason for failing to timely file an extension of stay or change of status request was due to the government shutdown, USCIS will consider the government shutdown as an extraordinary circumstance and excuse the late filing, if the petitioner meets all other applicable requirements.
As a result of the unique perishable nature of agricultural commodities in the H-2A program, OFLC will temporarily (for a period not to exceed 30 days) implement the following mailing procedure:
USCIS recently began transferring some casework from the National Benefits Center to the Nebraska, Texas and California Service Centers to balance overall operational workload. The affected casework includes the following form:
Effect on Customers
Please check the attached memo.
With the reopening of the federal government, USCIS has been informed that the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Foreign Labor Certification is once again accepting and processing applications, including Temporary Labor Certifications (TLCs).
USCIS Forms are free and can be downloaded from the site. Don't pay anyone for copies of forms. Below are some of the most searched forms.
One of the ways a foreign national (alien) can become a permanent resident is through a permanent employment opportunity in the United States. There are five employment-based preference categories.
ALLS CHURCH, VA – During the period of October 1-16, 2013, the Executive Office for Immigration Review was operating in a limited capacity due to the lapse in government funding.