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DHS PROPOSES NEW H-1B REGULATIONS IN AN EFFORT TO MODERNIZE THE PROGRAM AND DETER FRAUD

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On October 20, 2023, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the H-1B Specialty Occupation Program. With these proposed rules, DHS hopes to modernize the program “by streamlining eligibility requirements, improving program efficiency, providing greater benefits and flexibilities for employers and workers, and strengthening integrity measures.” The 94-page NPRM revises much of the H-1B program from start to finish, including the registration process...
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Trump issues entry ban for certain non-immigrant visas, extends immigrant visa ban

Trump issues entry ban for certain non-immigrant visas, extends immigrant visa ban
Yesterday, June 22, 2020, President Trump issued a new Presidential Proclamation, “Suspending Entry of Aliens Who Present a Risk to the U.S. Labor Market Following the Coronavirus Outbreak.” The proclamation bans the issuance of H-1B, H-2B, H-4, J-1, J-2, L-1 and L-2 non-immigrant visas and extends the bar on the issuance of certain categories of immigrant visas through December 31, 2020. The proclamation takes effect on June 24, 2020 at 12:01...
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Labor Certification During COVID-19: Layoffs & Labor Market Considerations

Labor Certification During COVID-19: Layoffs & Labor Market Considerations
An employer seeking to offer a foreign worker a job opportunity on a permanent basis may sponsor that foreign worker for employment-based permanent residency. Most often, this requires Labor Certification through the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The Labor Certification process, also referred to as PERM, requires that employers “test the labor market” to see if there are any qualified and available U.S. workers for its job opportunity, prior to petitioning...
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Department of Labor Response to COVID-19 Crisis: PERM Labor Certifications

Department of Labor Response to COVID-19 Crisis: PERM Labor Certifications
The U.S. Department of Labor has announced several important policy changes in light of the COVID-19 pandemic which affect employers seeking to file Labor Certification Applications on behalf of foreign workers. On March 20, 2020, DOL announced that, in light of COVID-19, it would permit employers additional time to respond to requests from DOL regarding prevailing wage requests and Labor Certification applications. For deadlines that fall between March 13, 2020 through...
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Layoffs, Terminations, & Other Employment Changes for H-1B Workers in Light of COVID-19

Layoffs, Terminations, & Other Employment Changes for H-1B Workers in Light of COVID-19
With the declaration of a State of Emergency in Colorado due to the global pandemic from COVID-19, many Colorado employers are facing difficult decisions about how to manage their workforce in an uncertain and quickly-changing environment. Employers who employ H-1B workers should understand what their additional obligations are, if any, when considering layoffs, terminations, and other employment changes in light of COVID-19. The information contained in this article is for general...
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Increasing uncertainty and unpredictability in H-1B adjudications

Increasing uncertainty and unpredictability in H-1B adjudications
Last week, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) received 201,011 H-1B petitions subject to the annual cap for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020. The Agency confirmed that on April 10, 2019, it completed its computer-generated selection process to select sufficient H-1B petitions to meet both the regular cap of 65,000 petitions and the advanced degree (master’s) cap of 20,000 petitions. In light of these numbers, employers have just over a 40%...
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USCIS Proposes a Pre-Registration Period for the Cap-Subject H-1B Visa Program

USCIS Proposes a Pre-Registration Period for the Cap-Subject H-1B Visa Program
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has proposed a new rule making changes to the annual selection process for H-1B visas. H-1B visas are currently limited to 65,000 per fiscal year, with an additional 20,000 “Master’s cap” H-1B visas available to workers with a Master’s degree from a U.S. university. Each year for the past several years, the demand for H-1B visas has far outpaced this statutory limitation. The result...
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DHS Intends to Publish Proposed Rule Rescinding H-4 Work Authorization by End of Year

DHS Intends to Publish Proposed Rule Rescinding H-4 Work Authorization by End of Year
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has advised that it is on track to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) by the end of the year that would rescind the rule permitting employment authorization for certain H-4 spouses. This timeline was announced in a court filing last month by DHS in the ongoing litigation around the H-4 employment authorization regulations. H-4 non-immigrants are the spouses and children of non-immigrants in...
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USCIS Resumes Premium Processing of H-1B Petitions for Cap-Exempt Employers

USCIS Resumes Premium Processing of H-1B Petitions for Cap-Exempt Employers
On July 24, 2017, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS)  announced that it would resume Premium Processing of H-1B petitions for employers who are exempt from the annual H-1B Cap. This comes as very welcome news to employers who are struggling to fill critical specialty occupation positions within their organizations in a timely fashion. The H-1B visa program allows U.S. workers to sponsor qualified professional foreign nationals for employment in...
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H-1B Cap Lottery Selection is Complete for FY 2018 Petitions

H-1B Cap Lottery Selection is Complete for FY 2018 Petitions
On May 3, 2017, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced that it has completed the lottery for all cap-subject H-1B petitions submitted for the Fiscal Year 2018 Cap. The annual limit for H-1B visas is 65,000 for foreign nationals holding a Bachelor’s Degree and an additional 20,000 for those holding a U.S. Master’s Degree. Between April 3, 2017 and April 7, 2017, USCIS received more than 199,000 H-1B...
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199,000 H-1B Petitions Received for FY 2018; Trump Announces Executive Order to Review H-1B Program

199,000 H-1B Petitions Received for FY 2018; Trump Announces Executive Order to Review H-1B Program
On April 7, 2017, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced that it received sufficient H-1B petitions to meet the regular and advanced degree caps for Fiscal Year (FY) 2018. Yesterday, USCIS announced that it received more than 199,000 cap-subject H-1B petitions for FY 2018 and that on April 11, 2017, it conducted a computer-generated lottery of these 199,000 petitions to select 20,000 petitions under the Advanced Degree Cap (U.S....
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New DHS Employment Regulations Could Be a Boon for Non-Profit School Districts Seeking Exemption from Annual H-1B Cap

New DHS Employment Regulations Could Be a Boon for Non-Profit School Districts Seeking Exemption from Annual H-1B Cap
The new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) final regulations, “Retention of EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3 Immigrant Workers and Improvements Affecting High Skilled Nonimmigrant Workers,” (effective date January 17, 2017), may enable non-profit schools and school districts to secure an exemption from the annual H-1B Cap, thus providing a clear pathway for these institutions to hire qualified foreign national teachers as H-1B highly skilled workers without regard to the annual limits on the...
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USCIS receives 236,000 H-1B Cap Subject Petitions for Fiscal Year 2017

USCIS receives 236,000 H-1B Cap Subject Petitions for Fiscal Year 2017
Today the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced that it received more than 236,000 cap-subject H-1B petitions for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017. The Agency also announced that on April 9, 2016, it conducted a computer generated lottery of these 236,000 petitions to select 20,000 petitions under the Advanced Degree Cap (U.S. Master’s degree or higher) and 65,000 petitions under the regular H-1B cap. The 150,000 remaining petitions have been rejected...
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USCIS Reaches H-1B Cap for Fiscal Year 2017

USCIS Reaches H-1B Cap for Fiscal Year 2017
On April 7, 2016, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced that it received sufficient H-1B petitions to meet the regular and advanced degree caps for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017. On April 1, 2016, USCIS began accepting petitions from U.S. Employers requesting that it approve highly skilled professional foreign national workers for temporary employment commencing on October 1, 2016. Under the annual limits on H-1B visas set by Congress, USCIS...
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New Regulations Published for J-1 Exchange Teachers

New Regulations Published for J-1 Exchange Teachers
The United States Department of State has issued a final rule change, effective February 29, 2016, which codifies new regulations affecting the Teacher category of the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program. The Teacher category of the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program permits foreign teachers to teach full-time at accredited public or private primary or secondary schools (K-12 and Pre-K) and in some language immersion programs offered by accredited primary schools. In addition to other...
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Employers! It’s time to consider H-1B Cap Subject petitions again…

Employers! It’s time to consider H-1B Cap Subject petitions again…
The H-1B nonimmigrant visa is an employer sponsored temporary work visa for foreign national professional workers in specialty occupations in the United States. Many employers depend on the H-1B program in order to ensure that they can hire foreign nationals with specialized skills and help their businesses thrive and grow. The H-1B process is common for U.S. employers and requires that the employer prepare and submit a petition to the USCIS on...
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The New Visa Bulletin Explained

The New Visa Bulletin Explained
On September 9, 2015, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced an important change to the visa processing system in the United States. In order to understand the changes, we should first review the basics of our immigrant visa system and then discuss the changes announced this week. The Basics … The Immigration & Nationality Act (INA) sets limits on the number of immigrant...
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USCIS Issues Final Guidance on When to File an Amended or New H-1B Petition after Simeio Decision

USCIS Issues Final Guidance on When to File an Amended or New H-1B Petition after Simeio Decision
By Zuzana Geremes, Paralegal On April 9, 2015, USCIS published a draft guidance based on its Administrative Appeal Office’s precedent decision, Matter of Simeio Solutions, LLC, which held that employers must file amended H-1B petitions when a new Labor Condition Application for Nonimmigrant Workers is required due to a change in the H-1B worker’s worksite location. More specifically, the Simeio decision stated that an amended H-1B petition must be filed under...
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233,000 H-1B Petitions Filed under Cap for Fiscal Year 2016!

U.S. employers of all sizes use the H-1B visa program to employ foreign workers in professional level occupations that require specialized knowledge in their field. Many years ago, the U.S. Congress set a limit or “cap” of 65,000 H-1B visas for each fiscal year (FY). An additional 20,000 H-1B visas are available for foreign workers in a specialty occupation who hold a U.S. Master’s Degree in their field. An H-1B petition...
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For H-1B Employers, Change of Employee Work Site Location May Require Amended H-1B Petition

On April 9, 2015, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service’s Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) issued an important decision that will impact thousands of H-1B employers across the country. In its precedential decision, Matter of Simeio Solutions, LLC, 26 I&N Dec. 542 (AAO 2015), the AAO held that when an H-1B employee changes his or her place of employment (worksite) to a new geographical area, it constitutes a “material change” in employment...
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Kolko & Casey, P.C. is a full service immigration and naturalization law firm providing professional legal services to individuals and businesses throughout Colorado, the Rocky Mountain West, the United States, and the World. Our professional staff speaks English, Spanish, Korean, and Portuguese and we can arrange for translators in any other language.