Immigration News  |
| Changes in immigration that impact your life. |
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| USCIS to Issue Revised Approval Notices for Certain Forms I-129 and I-539 |
| February 3, 2010 |
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| USCIS is alerting customers of certain Notices of Approval (Forms I-797) issued between Jan. 20 and Jan. 27, 2010, with incorrect or missing information. The form types impacted are Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker (Form I-129) and Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status (Form I-539). USCIS has started mailing new approval notices with corrected information to affected I-129 petitioners and I-539 applicants. Petitioners and applicants who received incomplete or incorrect approval notices should not attempt to use them. |
| USCIS to Reissue Advance Parole Documents |
| January 27, 2010 |
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| USCIS announced that it will reissue Advance Parole documents (Form I-512) in response to documents that were mailed to applicants with an incorrect issue date of January 5, 1990. All affected documents have been identified and USCIS will automatically reissue documents to individuals who have received a document with the incorrect issue date. |
| Frequently Asked Questions for Form DS-160, the Nonimmigrant Visa Electronic Application |
| January 24, 2010 |
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| All U.S. consulates and embassies will soon require nonimmigrant visa applicants to use Form DS-160, the Department of State’s fully electronic nonimmigrant visa application, instead of Form DS-156, the paper-based application. Considering this, the Department of State (DOS) has released frequently asked questions about using the DS-160 online application. |
| Nationals of 39 Countries Can Participate in H-2A and H-2B Visa Programs |
| January 20, 2010 |
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| The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that the DHS Secretary, in consultation with Department of State (DOS) Secretary has identified 39 countries whose nationals are eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B programs for the coming year. Renewed every year, this notice will allow U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to approve petitions for H-2A and H-2B nonimmigrant status for nationals of countries listed therein. |
| DHS Secretary Napolitano Streamlines Citizenship Application Process for Members of the Military |
| January 20, 2010 |
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| Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano announced the publication of a rule formalizing DHS' longstanding policy to expedite and streamline the citizenship process for men and women bravely serving in America's armed forces. The rule amends DHS regulations to conform to the National Defense Authorization Act of 2004, reducing the time requirements for naturalization through military service from three years to one year for applicants who served during peacetime, and extending benefits to members of the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve of the U.S. Armed Forces. |
| Q&A: USCIS Issues Guidance Memorandum on Establishing the "Employee-Employer Relationship" in H-1B Petitions |
| January 16, 2010 |
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| USCIS Associate Director of Service Center Operations, Mr. Donald Neufeld issued a memorandum to adjudication officers clarifying the requirements to establish an employer-employee relationship to qualify for the H-1B ‘specialty occupation’ classification. The memorandum addresses scenarios involving independent contractors, self-employed beneficiaries, and beneficiaries placed at third-party worksites. USCIS has released few questions and answers, in addition to clarify the requirements for a valid employer-employee relationship. |
| USCIS Memorandum on Establishing the Employee-Employer Relationship in H-1B Petitions |
| January 14, 2010 |
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| USCIS Associate Director of Service Center Operations, Mr. Donald Neufeld issued a memorandum to adjudication officers clarifying the requirements to establish an employer-employee relationship to qualify for the H-1B ‘specialty occupation’ classification. The memorandum addresses scenarios involving independent contractors, self-employed beneficiaries, and beneficiaries placed at third-party worksites. |
| DOS Releases February 2010 Visa Bulletin |
| January 11, 2010 |
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| The Department of State (DOS) has recently released the Visa Bulletin for February 2010. The February 2010 Visa Bulletin shows three-week advancement in priority date cut-offs for EB-2 for China. In the third employment-based preference category (EB-3) for professionals and skilled workers, cut-off dates will advance approximately seven weeks for China and worldwide, except India and Mexico whereas all other categories will remain unchanged from the January 2010 bulletin. |
| DOL Releases FAQs on Filing and Processing of Prevailing Wage Determination |
| January 4, 2010 |
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| The Department of Labor (DOL), on January 4, 2010 released Frequently Asked Questions on the filing and processing of Prevailing Wage Determination (PWD) requests. The National Prevailing Wage and Helpdesk Center (NPWHC) will process Prevailing Wage Determination (PWD) requests for H1B, H1B1, H2B, E3 and the permanent labor certification program (PERM). |
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