by Kyle Knapp | Aug 8, 2022 | Uncategorized
In the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, USCIS announced that it would accept copies of original signatures for petitions and applications sent to USCIS in paper form. Previously, there was haphazard guidance and practice over when and on what forms USCIS would...
by Kyle Knapp | Jul 3, 2022 | Uncategorized
Sometimes there is confusion about applying for lawful permanent resident status and naturalization. Applying for lawful permanent resident status (to obtain a green card to reside in the United States indefinitely) often involves sponsorship by an employer or a...
by Kyle Knapp | Jun 3, 2022 | Uncategorized
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services hosted a public engagement session on May 18, 2022 to report on backlog reduction efforts. Even before the pandemic processing times were reaching crisis proportions. The pandemic took the agency nearly to the breaking point....
by Kyle Knapp | May 9, 2022 | Uncategorized
USCIS continues its efforts to address the enormous backlogs that the pandemic aggravated. The latest announcement is a temporary rule to increase the automatic extension period for employment authorization documents (EADs) from 180 days to 540 days beyond the current...
by Kyle Knapp | Apr 11, 2022 | Uncategorized
In October 2020 Congress enacted legislation to allow USCIS to expand premium processing to several types of immigration benefit petitions and applications. USCIS finally published a proposed rule in March 2022 to offer the optional, expedited processing for...
by Kyle Knapp | Mar 15, 2022 | Uncategorized
If only USCIS could work as fast as a speeding train. Anyone who ever has submitted an application to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services knows the frustrations of lengthy and inconsistent processing times. For the most common application, the I-765 Application...
by Kyle Knapp | Feb 14, 2022 | Uncategorized
In announcing its new mission statement, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services resumed the tenor of its former one, which described the United States as a “nation of immigrants.” The new mission statement is: “USCIS upholds America’s promise as a nation of welcome...
by Kyle Knapp | Jan 17, 2022 | Uncategorized
USCIS once again this year will conduct the H-1B lottery in March to allocate the 85,000 visas for the next fiscal year, which runs October 1, 2022 to September 30, 2023. Employers submit online entries in early March, and USCIS notifies “winners” in late March....
by Kyle Knapp | Dec 14, 2021 | Uncategorized
The pandemic continues to create challenges for international travel. When President Biden lifted the country-based travel restrictions on October 25, 2021, it appeared that the new vaccination requirement for travel to the United States would be the standard to allow...
by Kyle Knapp | Nov 12, 2021 | Uncategorized
On Wednesday, November 10, 2021, the Department of Homeland Security entered into a settlement agreement over a lawsuit concerning work authorization of H-4 and L-2 spouses. At first glance it sounds like a watershed moment. On closer examination, the settlement...
