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This year, the H-1B lottery held two rounds to fill all 85,000 visa slots, regular and advanced degree caps.  That means those selected in round two are knee-deep in RFE season.  The Double RFE, which takes issue with both the occupation and the wage level is common amongst complex RFEs and is based on two […]

RFE rates have been tough on H-1B beneficiaries hired to the position of computer programmer, particularly if they are making level one wages.  This trend began several years ago when USCIS stopped approving H-1B visas outright for jobs that normally but not ALWAYS required a bachelor’s degree as a minimum educational requirement.  This hit programmers […]

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California vacated the DHS Final Rule, “Modification of Registration Requirement for Petitioners Seeking to File Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions” on September 15th, in the case Chamber of Commerce, et al., v. DHS, et al.  This final rule, put forth under the Trump administration on January 8, 2021, […]

Issues regarding education is a perennial problem H-1B beneficiaries face when it comes time to file.  This is because there are many educational pathways that highly skilled workers take to acquire the specialized knowledge and skill sets that their employers hire them for.   If the educational pathway is anything but a US bachelor’s degree or […]

Complex RFEs can cause employment start date delays which throw a wrench in overall company workflow.  In recent years, we have seen as many as three rounds of RFEs before visa approval.  If your registration was selected for the second round of the H-1B lottery, it is essential to get that visa approved the FIRST […]

If you, or if your employee or client meets employment-based green card eligibility requirements, this is the year to file.  In a normal calendar year, there are 140,000 of these green cards available to companies that permanently employ foreign nationals.  This year, starting October 1, 2021, there will be over 290,000 available. Why is this […]

This is the second year the H-1B lottery has been conducted as a two-step process, with an initial electronic registration and subsequent selection and invitation to submit completed petitions.  On March 30th 2021, USCIS conducted the first lottery, selecting 87,500 registrations to fill 85,000 H-1B visa slots.  Applicants in the first round had until June […]

In a normal year, there are 140,000 Employment-Based Green Cards available.  However, 2020 was not a normal year and over 150,000 relatives of US citizens and green card holders were unable to immigrate because US Embassies abroad were closed due to the pandemic.  Ever year, there is a 226,000 family-based green card quota.  If this […]

If your H-1B application for FY2021 was rejected, you may get a second chance to file.  USCIS is now accepting petitions from last year that were rejected because the start date was LATER THAN October 1, 2020.  Why is USCIS doing this?  Last year, under the new two-step application process and the general uncertainties of […]