USCIS Implements Employment Authorization for Individuals Covered by Deferred Enforced Departure for Hong Kong Residents
Release Date
Eligible Hong Kong Residents May Apply for EADs and Travel Authorization
Release Date
Eligible Hong Kong Residents May Apply for EADs and Travel Authorization
Release Date
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is issuing updated and comprehensive guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual on adjudicating applications for T nonimmigrant status (or T visas) submitted by victims of human trafficking, including clarifying how applicants establish eligibility.
As part of the credit card payment pilot program, the Vermont Service Center is now accepting credit card payments using Form G-1450, Authorization for Credit Card Transactions, for petitioners filing Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, for O and P nonimmigrants.
My parents have been here on visitor's visas since the beginning of August. If they are here for the entire six months, can they come back again within six months of leaving the U.S.?
The CBP (Customs and Border Protection) may find this pattern an unacceptable use of the visitor's visa. Generalizing for the sake of making a point, if in any twelve months your parents have spent more than six months in the United States, the CBP can hold that it appears your parents are living in the United States and visiting their home country instead of the other way around. More...
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, this is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
Q: 1.Can I run my second W2 on my own company? Keeping my primary W2 with the same employer who filed the GC?
2.If I start a business on GC-EAD, if they call for a GC interview what type of question do they ask related to business?
3.If I-485 is denied, can we come back to H-1B again and do we have to refile I-485 again?
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, this is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
Was just wondering if there could be any issues with my prospective PERM application if I am living and working remotely in Minneapolis (consistent with my H-1Blocation) and my employer in Dallas files the PERM application using Dallas as the work location. I am open to eventually relocating to Dallas, so just wondering if this could cause any delays or RFEs for the PERM. Do you think it would be a better option to file an H-1B amendment with Dallas as the work location, and then go through with the PERM or it doesn't matter?
It is not a problem as long as these two scenarios are followed. First of all you could be working in location X and the PERM is filed for location Y as long as you have the intention to join the location Y you can file even though you are currently working at location X.
The interesting thing is once the I-485 is filed and the I-140 is approved after 180 days of the I-485 you can choose to be wherever you want to be because you are allowed to port your green card. The only requirement is when you start the PERM. File the I-140 and the I- 485. Your intention throughout was to work at location Y but after 180 days if the intention changes it is absolutely no problem.
The second scenario which is very common is when you have consulting jobs and you could be moving from a month to a year with no predictability where you are going to be, it is normally recommended and legally allowed to file the PERM application as though your job is located in the corporate headquarters or principal place of business. More...
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, this is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
Q: 1. If the Priority date is current in EB-3 then my I-140 and I-485 can be filed EB3 (Lower it) but you said that after EB-3 will come then I should file I-140 in EB-2. Not sure about the whole concept, if possible can you elaborate in more detail?
2. Can I-140 be filed in EB-2 and EB-3 together? Or I-140 can be filed in EB-3 first once it gets approval in EB-3 and then need to file in EB-2 or vice versa.
3. My company attorney told me that once I downgrade to EB3 then I can't upgrade to EB2.
A: 1. You can always downgrade if you start your case in a higher category, but if you file your case in the lower category it's not possible to upgrade without refiling.
2. The answer is yes, although I like to do it separately for several reasons, most of all to avoid confusion, but now the government is well aware of these downgrades and I think you could file both of them together as two separate filings.
3. They must be saying something different as that is not true. If your PERM was filed as an EB-2 and I-140 was approved as an EB-3 you can always go back to EB-2 by filing another I-140 under EB-2. More...
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, this is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
The attached document explains the criteria.
1. Is it advisable or compulsory to get the prevailing wage determination from the states or Online Wage Library is enough at the time of taking LCA? Because most of the time we are taking the LCAs for the job titles like: Software Engineer, Programmer Analyst and System Analyst for which the wage determination available in the online wage library.
Ans. OES wages can be used as long as the correct job category and job level are used. Applying for prevailing wages from the govt. is time consuming, but does have the benefit of being almost beyond question in case of an audit.
1. I am contemplating switching from H-1B status (in Year 4) to an L2 status (wife holds L1B status) and then applying for EAD. After I receive the EAD (receipt of application sufficient for starting work?), (1) am I allowed to hold on to my current H-1B status or does it automatically lapse upon conversion to L2?
2. Can I hold a CAP-EXEMPT H-1B with an academic institution/ think-tank etc CONCURRENTLY with the L2, (3) work as an independent contractor (1099)?
3. Does EAD allow one to be do multiple things as a free-lance professional?
1. Ans. It lapses upon change of status from the date the status is changed.
2. Ans. You cannot have H-1 and L-2 status at the same time. But on the L-2 EAD you can do both jobs.
3. Ans. Yes.
1. Are we OK in keeping an H1B worker without work as long as we pay him during the project break too - at the LCA wage level.
Ans. You must pay your H-1 workers the legal wage. This is the higher of the prevailing wage or the actual wage. Actual wage is defined as that which you pay other similar employees in the same geographical location. So, as long as you pay the legal wage, there is no problem.
When filing for H-1, it often becomes an issue as to what is acceptable evidence that a foreign employee has completed their degree requirements.
USCIS has stated:
I have attained Canadian Citizenship but a born Indian citizen, when I am applying for 485 which priority dates do I need to consider, General or India. I do not have Indian passport.
Still, India. Your chargeability follows the place of birth, not your citizenship.
I am sharing with you a response to a frequently asked question about adopting a child from India. Our inquirer also wanted to know if she could adopt her niece. Here is the info:
The following pointers have emerged from recent cases and comments from USCIS:
1. Make sure you document the citation records (to show how many hits the journal gets), impact factor and circulation figures of the journals in which your publications appear.
2. (This we already knew) Recommendations from people who know you personally carry less weight than from those who know you by reputation.
3. Emphasize/document the "international" nature of your accomplishments.
What does the stimulus Bill (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) say about H-1 hiring and about green cards?
There is a lot of confusion out there as is obvious from a gazillion emails I have received. So, I braved the lion’s den and tried to figure out this thing. Here is how I see it.
1. If an employer receives TARP funding they can hire NEW H-1B workers only if they comply with certain requirements. Note that existing H-1 workers are not affected. Note also that there is no effect on existing or future green card applications of such employers.
The category of Engineers includes several different types of engineers.
On April 1, 2014, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) began accepting applications for a competitive grant funding opportunity to promote immigrant civic integration and prepare permanent residents for citizenship. USCIS will offer up to $10 million in competitive funding for citizenship preparation programs in communities across the country.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for fiscal year (FY) 2015. USCIS has also received more than the limit of 20,000 H-1B petitions filed under the U. S. advanced degree exemption.
Before running a random selection process, USCIS will complete initial intake for all filings received during the filing period which ended today. Due to the high number of petitions, USCIS is not yet able to announce the date on which it will conduct the random selection process.
We are very thankful for Rajiv Khanna and team for handling my tough H1B renewal case. This was my 4th Extension that was denied before we approached Mr. Khanna to take over the case. Ms. Kalpana Panuganti was very thorough with case details and responded to any of our queries promptly. We were updated on our case in a very transparent manner and Kalpana always responded to emails/calls immediately while working on RFE response. Their insight and attention to detail in regards to our case was commendable. We would highly recommend Law Office of Rajiv S. Khanna PC for any immigration related matter.