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Visa Bulletin For April 2022
This bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers during April for: “Final Action Dates” and “Dates for Filing Applications,” indicating when immigrant visa applicants should be notified to assemble and submit required documentation to the National Visa Center.
For more details please visit this link:
https://immigration.com/visa-bulletin/visa-bulletin-april-2022
Success in responding to an I-129F RFE
We assisted our client in filing an I-129F petition to bring his fiancee to the U.S. in anticipation of their upcoming marriage in the U.S. On Form I-129F the petitioner answered “yes” to the question: “Have you ever been arrested, cited, charged, indicted, convicted, fined, or imprisoned for breaking or violating any law or ordinance in any country, excluding traffic violations (unless a traffic violation was alcohol-or drug-related or involved a fine of $500 or more)?”. We included reference to that issue in the filing.
Nonimmigrant Visas
Immigration Law
USCIS Lockbox Filing Location Updates
USCIS recently updated the lockbox filing location information for the following USCIS form(s). Please see the “Where to File” section of the webpage for your form.
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On Mar. 1, USCIS added Elgin, Illinois, as a filing location for certain applicants filing Form N-400, Application for Naturalization.
Please visit the Lockbox Filing Locations Updates page for more information.
USCIS Expands Credit Card Payment Pilot Program to All Service Centers
Release Date
03/02/2022
As part of the credit card payment pilot program, the USCIS service centers are now accepting credit card payments using Form G-1450, Authorization for Credit Card Transactions, for all forms except Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, for H-1B and H-2A petitions.
March 03, 2022 Free US Immigration Community Conference Call with Rajiv (Every Other Thursday)
Immigration.com
Nonimmigrant Visas
Discussion Topics, Thursday, March 03, 2022:
FAQ: Abandonment; can I leave the USA while a change of status is pending?/Stamping requirements || Relation between F-1 status and I-485 AOS (child covered under Child Status Protection Act (CSPA)) || Relation between F-1 OPT and H-1B lottery change of status and changing employers || Is doing an unpaid U.S. externship/observership with F-2 visa unauthorized employment? || Can parents of U.S. citizens travel to the U.S. on an existing B-2 visa while their GC is pending?
Frequently asked questions answered in The Economic Times NRI Helpdesk by Rajiv - Can I start my own business if I'm an H-1B visa holder?
FAQ's answered in The Economic Times NRI Helpdesk: Can I start my own business if I'm an H-1B visa holder?
Published by: The Economic Times: March 05, 2022
Visa Bulletin For April 2022
Number 64
Volume X
Washington, D.C
A. STATUTORY NUMBERS
This bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers during April for: “Final Action Dates” and “Dates for Filing Applications,” indicating when immigrant visa applicants should be notified to assemble and submit required documentation to the National Visa Center.
Agency
Green Card
Immigration Law
USCIS Urges Eligible Individuals to Consider Applying for Adjustment of Status in the EB-2 Category Based on the April Visa Bulletin Date for Filing for India
Release Date
03/17/2022
In the recently published April Visa Bulletin, the Department of State advanced the Date for Filing (also known as the application date) applications for an immigrant visa or adjustment of status in the employment-based, second preference (EB-2) category for India from Sept. 1, 2013, to Sept. 1, 2014.
PERM Processing Times (as of 2/28/2022)
| Processing Queue | Priority Date |
|---|---|
| Analyst Review | September 2021 |
| Audit Review | June 2021 |
| Reconsideration Request to the CO | September 2021 |
Green Card
Immigration Law
USCIS Updates Guidance on Employment Authorization for E and L Nonimmigrant Spouses
Release Date
03/18/2022
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is updating guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual to address the documentation that certain E and L nonimmigrant spouses may use as evidence of employment authorization based on their nonimmigrant status.
USCIS Guidance on Expedited EADs for Healthcare and Childcare Workers
If you are a healthcare worker or a childcare worker who has a pending Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization renewal application and your Employment Authorization Document (EAD) expires in 30 days or less or has already expired, you can request expedited processing of your EAD renewal application. USCIS had previously announced this flexibility for qualifying healthcare workers assisting public health efforts in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. USCIS is now extending this flexibility to qualifying childcare workers.
March 17, 2022, Free US Immigration Community Conference Call with Rajiv (Every Other Thursday)
Immigration.com
Green Card
FAQs: - From F-1 OPT directly applying for a green card - STEM OPT employment parameters, volunteering, part ownership, etc. - Can two employers file H-1B for the same employee using an existing I-140?
Conversation Between Rajiv S. Khanna And Larry Katzenstein On Tax Law
This is the first in a series of interviews between Rajiv S. Khanna, principle of The Law Offices of Rajiv Khanna, and leading practitioners across the country designed to provide personal and professional insights into various areas of the law.
Please Note: “Reprinted from the April 2016 issue of ALI CLE’s The Practical Lawyer.”
Read more by clicking the pdf attachment.
FY 2023 H-1B Cap Season Updates
Release Date
03/29/2022
H-1B Initial Electronic Registration Selection Process Completed
The New Premium Processing - USCIS Stabilization Act
31 March 2022
| Forms |
Response Time |
Premium Processing Fee |
Expected Implementation Time |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Most Form I-140 EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 petitions |
USCIS Extends Flexibility for Responding to Agency Requests
Release Date
03/30/2022
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is extending certain flexibilities through July 25, 2022, to assist applicants, petitioners, and requestors. USCIS anticipates this may be the final extension of these flexibilities. USCIS will consider a response received within 60 calendar days after the due date set forth in the following requests or notices before taking any action, if the issuance date listed on the request or notice is between March 1, 2020, and July 25, 2022, inclusive:
Rajiv's News Clips - US extends ban on H-1B, L-1 till March - The Times of India
Published by: The Times of India - Date: January 02, 2021
Quotes and Excerpts from Rajiv on the article:
Rajiv S Khanna, managing attorney at Immigration.com, said an extension of the travel ban would be challenged in courts and defeated on the same grounds on which the government suffered a preliminary injunction.
For more details please see the attachment below.
USCIS Ending Two Categorical Parole Programs
Release Date 12/23/2020
Haitian Family Reunification Parole and Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Programs to be Terminated
USCIS Extends Transitional Parole for CNMI Long-Term Resident Status Applicants
USCIS announced that it will automatically extend parole, and employment authorization, if applicable, for parolees who timely applied for Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) long-term resident status.
Rajiv's Article - Trump's visa ban extension: While the president puts politics over Nation, here's what it means for you - The Economic Times
Published by: The Economic Times - Date: January 05, 2021
Synopsis
The current extension states that “while the November overall unemployment rate in the United States of 6.7 percent reflects a marked decline from its April high, there were still 9,834,000 fewer seasonally adjusted nonfarm jobs in November than in February of 2020.” This reasoning is factually and logically untenable.
Rajiv's Article - This year's H-1B lottery: The Trump legacy of chaos must end - The Economic Times
Published by: The Economic Times - Date: January 07, 2021
Synopsis
For this year (FY 2021-22), the USCIS has attempted to change the lottery selection process to favor the highest paid employees first. That change is embodied in a proposed regulation, which can be published as a final rule any time.
For more on this article please see the attachment below.
Rajiv's News Clips - H-1B selections now upon salary levels - The Times of India
Published by: The Times of India - Date: January 08, 2021
Quotes and Excerpts from Rajiv on the article: