Release Date: April 7, 2017
WASHINGTON - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has reached the congressionally mandated 65,000 visa H-1B cap for fiscal year 2018. USCIS has also received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to meet the 20,000 visa U.S. advanced degree exemption, also known as the master’s cap.
The agency will reject and return filing fees for all unselected cap-subject petitions that are not duplicate filings.
USCIS recently updated the following form(s):
Update to Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion04/10/2017 02:57 PM EDT
New edition dated 04/10/17. Starting 06/09/17, USCIS will only accept the 04/10/17 edition. Until then, you can use the 12/23/16 edition.
Update to Form I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiancé(e)04/10/2017 02:57 PM EDT
Number 5
Volume X
Washington, D.C
A. STATUTORY NUMBERS
This bulletin summarizes the availability of immigrant numbers during May 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.
USCIS has extended the grace period for previous editions of Form I-918, Petition for U Nonimmigrant Status. The revised form was published to USCIS website on March 13, 2017 (edition date: 02/07/17). Starting October 2, 2017, USCIS will only accept the 02/07/17 edition. Until then, you can also use the 01/15/13, 11/23/10 and 08/31/07 editions. You can find the edition date at the bottom of the page on the form and instructions.
If you used Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, that you downloaded between Nov. 14 and Nov. 17, 2016, review them to ensure your employees’ Social Security numbers appear correctly in Section 1. There was a glitch when the revised Form I-9 was first published on Nov. 14, 2016. Numbers entered in the Social Security number field were transposed when employees completed and printed Section 1 using a computer. For example, the number 123-45-6789 entered in the Social Security number field would appear as 123-34-6789 once the form printed.
USCIS announced on April 7, 2017, that it has received enough H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap of 65,000 visas for fiscal year (FY) 2018. USCIS has also received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to meet the U.S. advanced degree exemption, also known as the master’s cap.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced a redesign to the Permanent Resident Card (also known as a Green Card) and the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) as part of the Next Generation Secure Identification Document Project. USCIS will begin issuing the new cards on May 1, 2017.
USCIS Reminds Beneficiaries of Temporary Protected Status for Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone of May 21 Termination.
USCIS is reminding the public that the designations of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone terminate effective May 21, 2017.
PERM Processing Times (as of 3/31/2017)
Discussion Topics, Thursday, 20 April 2017:
FAQ: Trump’s executive order - effect on H-1B visas, I-485 approved while outside the USA - travel on AP or GC, H-1B 60 days grace period explained, Joining an employer after green card approval, H-1B title "Programmers" and USCIS site visits, Getting unemployment payments on H-1B, Travel while H-4 EAD is pending.
Other: Traveling during extension pending and H-1B visa stamping with 2 months left, CSPA issues, H-1B amendment for working from home, Green card through CP issues I-864, etc. H-1B and I-140 revoked, Reentry permit, Changing employers and H-1B visa stamping, H-1B visa stamping issues, Entry-exit process, etc.
USCIS has changed the direct filing addresses for where to file certain forms for beneficiaries who will be working or training in Florida, Georgia, or North Carolina. The changes are as follows:
On December 12, 2016, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced that it no longer recognizes the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) as an accrediting agency. This determination immediately affects two immigration-related programs:
If USCIS determines that there are more immigrant visas available for a fiscal year than there are known applicants for such visas, USCIS will state on this page that you may use the Dates for Filing Visa Applications chart. Otherwise, USCIS will indicate on this page that you must use the Application Final Action Dates chart to determine when you may file your adjustment of status application.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a fraud alert on April 19, 2017, to warn the public about a scam using the DHS OIG hotline telephone number. Scammers have identified themselves as “U.S. Immigration” employees and have altered their caller ID to seem like the call is coming from the DHS OIG hotline (1-800-323-8603). They then demand that the individual provide or verify personally identifiable information, often by telling individuals that they are victims of identity theft.
USCIS recently updated the following form(s):
New edition dated 03/21/17. You can also use previous editions.
For more information, please visit Forms Updates page.
The policy memorandum “The Role and Use of Interpreters in Domestic Field Office Interviews” became USCIS policy on Jan. 17, 2017. However, to give USCIS customers time to become familiar with and adjust to the new policy requirements, USCIS will not implement the policy until May 1, 2017.
VISA AVAILABILITY IN THE EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCES
During the past six weeks, the level of Employment-based First and Second preference demand for adjustment of status cases filed with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has increased dramatically. Continued heavy demand for numbers will require corrective action to hold number use within these annual limits.
USCIS generally process cases in the order they receive them. The link below provides you an estimate of how much time the office handling your case currently takes to process your type of application, petition, or request.
