Tag: work visa

On April 26, 2021, the Governments of Mexico and the U.S. announced a change in the visa reciprocity standards for certain work visas for Mexican citizens and work permits for U.S. citizens. The principle of reciprocity is grounded in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and requires the Department of State (DOS) to set country-specific […]

The U.S. Consulate in Toronto recently held a Zoom video conference to address recent changes and updates to the processing of E visas. The E visa category includes treaty traders and investors who come to the U.S. under a treaty of commerce and navigation between the U.S. and the country of which they are a […]

On July 31, 2020, USCIS announced a final rule adjusting many of the fees for immigration and naturalization benefit requests. In addition to the fee adjustments, the final rule also changed the premium processing timeline.  What is Premium Processing? The premium processing service provides guaranteed expedited processing of Form I-129, Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker, and Form I-140, […]

Whether for performance issues or for lack of work, the termination of H-1B employees presents special challenges to both the employer and the employee. In today’s blog, we will take a closer look at these challenges.  H-1B Employer Obligations Notify USCIS of termination  Regulations require an H-1B employer to notify USCIS “immediately” of “any material […]

In the midst of creating global mobility strategies, our clients typically consider their immigration options for the United States.  However, with H-1B Cap season in process, a lot of our clients do not want to lose their talented employees.  When faced with the prospect of losing employees, we do suggest that our clients consider their options in […]

USCIS has announced that it has received enough electronic registrations during the initial period to reach the fiscal year 2021 H-1B numerical allocations (H-1B cap). Properly submitted registrations were randomly selected. All petitioners have now been notified of the selected registrations as of today. Selected registrations are now eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition […]

E-Verify is extending the timeframe to take action to resolve Social Security Administration (SSA) Tentative Nonconfirmations (TNCs) due to SSA office closures to the public. E-Verify is also extending the timeframe to take action to resolve Department of Homeland Security (DHS) TNCs in limited circumstances when an employee cannot resolve a TNC due to public […]

The Department of Homeland Security recently announced that due to the physical proximity complications associated with COVID-19, DHS will exercise discretion to defer the physical requirements associated with Form I-9. Employers with employees working remotely due to COVID-19 will not be required to review the employee’s identity and employment authorization documents in the employee’s physical […]

On January 31, 2020, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a notice to the Federal Register announcing a new version of Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification.  This new version was approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on October 12, 2019.  Employers should begin using this updated form (10/21/2019) immediately, although the prior version (Rev. […]

USCIS announced yesterday the fee involved with the newly required electronic registration of H-1B cap petitioners. The fee is $10 for each electronic registration, and it is intended to recover the costs spent on the new H-1B registration system. The proposed fee for electronic registration is...