Immigration Updates
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Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Expands Stampless Entry Program
Posted: 8/21/2023 9:23 AM
U.S. Customs and Border Protection's "stampless" entry program will now be implemented at all airports, seasports, and land ports across the nation. Despite the program's benefits, it will also pose a burden for foreign nationals who have previously used ink stamps to demonstrate maintenance of status or physical presence requirements when renewing visas or filing for naturalization.…
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2022 Changes to Form N-648, Medical Certification for Disability Exceptions for Naturalization
Posted: 2/6/2023 4:39 PM
Last October 2022, USCIS made updates to the Form N-648 Medical Certification for Disability Exceptions used by naturalization applicants with disabilities or mental impairments.…
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H-1B Registration and Filing: Why Should You Plan Now?
Posted: 1/31/2023 4:15 PM
In early March of 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will start accepting registrations of H-1B petitions subject to fiscal year (FY) 2024 cap. Beneficiaries of selected and approved H-1B cap-subject petitions will be eligible to start working in the United States on October 1, 2023. Last year, USCIS received 486,927 registrations for the FY2023 quota, an increase of approximately 57% over the prior year. We expect the competition for FY2024 H-1B numbers to remain high, due to continued worker shortages in many industries across the United States. Accordingly, there is no room for error, and employers who start planning for the FY 2024 H-1B season in advance will be better positioned to ensure the smooth and timely preparation and filing of their H-1B registrations and petitions.…
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DHS Final Rule to Preserve Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
Posted: 1/26/2023 4:06 PM
On October 31, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) implemented a final rule aimed to preserve and strengthen the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The implementation of the final rule means that DACA is now based on a formal regulation, rather than just a policy memorandum. The DACA program has allowed over 800,000 young people to remain with their families in the United States since its creation in 2012. Often referred to as “Dreamers,” young people under DACA…
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Posted: 10/26/2022 2:18 PM
USCIS has extended the temporary waiver of the requirement that civil surgeons must sign Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record, no more than 60 days prior to submission. The waiver took effect on December 9,2021 and has been extended to March 31, 2023, to further ease processing delays and difficulties completing the immigration medical examination. Despite this extension of the waiver, which provides more flexibility to applicants as to when to schedule their medical…