On November 12, 2021, USCIS announced a new policy granting an automatic extension of employment authorization for H-4 (spouses of H-1 workers), L-2 (spouses of L-1 employees), and spouses of E status holders.  USCIS Policy Alert, PA-2021-25, November 12, 2021 (Policy Alert).  The change must be noted by every employer and worker.  Not being aware - Read More

I am pleased to be speaking at the Northwest Regional Immigration Law Conference 2021: Yesterday’s Lessons, Tomorrow’s Strengths, sponsored by the Washington and Oregon Chapters of AILA.  This year the conference will be held virtually on October 6-8, 2021, and it will offer up to 22.25 CLE credits for attorneys.  - Read More

The Seattle Field Office of USCIS and USCIS District 41, which includes Washington, Oregon, and other states, announced new measures to attempt to address the backlog of pending cases. - Read More

On Friday, March 12, 2021 the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security announced H-1B petitions previously denied pursuant to one of three policies can now be requested to be reopened and reconsidered.  - Read More

On March 9, 2021, USCIS announced a Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans for an 18-month period beginning March 9, 2021 through September 9, 2022. - Read More

The USCIS has announced that the initial registration period for H-1B petitions will run from March 9 through March 25, and that the 2021: H-1B wage-based selection process will not be implemented for the 2021 selection. - Read More

DHS has extended the COVID-19 compliance accommodations for Form I-9, and USCIS has issued new I-9 guidance concerning employees with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and for DACA recipients. - Read More

There are many new developments regarding visa issuance and changes to H-1B’s.  Some of these changes will not become effective as originally put forward, but they may be implemented in a slightly different form. This year is a good time to petition for any anticipated H-1B needs. - Read More

As you may know, one of the many obstacles we are experiencing is the extreme delay in obtaining biometrics appointments. Some applicants have even received approval notices of employment authorization cards but not received the card itself, because the government still needs to do the biometrics check. I want to share with you the latest - Read More

The president orders executive department and agency review of the use of foreign workers to perform certain government contracts in 2018 and 2019 to determine whether opportunities for US workers were affected. Learn more about this order. - Read More