Immigration Lawyers Blog

The new visa bulletin is out at this link: http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_4659.html. Employment-based categories are as follows: EB-1 remains current; EB-2 remains current, except for India and China (China is 06/08/2005 and India is 02/01/2005); EB-3 is at 2001 or 2002 depending on the category; other workers are at 2001; EB-4, religious workers, EB-5, and targeted employment areas and regional centers are all current. Family based petitions are backlogged, with the most recent date at 2006.

The new visa bulletin is out at this link:http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_4611.html. Employment-based categories are as follows: EB-1 remains current; EB-2 remains current, except for India and China (China is 05/22/2005 and India is 01/22/2005); EB-3 is at 2001 or 2002 depending on the category; other workers are at 2001; EB-4, religious workers, EB-5, and targeted employment areas and regional centers are all current. Family based petitions are backlogged, with the most recent date at 2006.

The new visa bulletin is out at this link:http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_4587.html. Employment-based categories are as follows: EB-1 remains current; EB-2 remains current, except for India and China (China is 04/01/2005 and India is 01/22/2005); EB-3 is at 2001 or 2002 depending on the category; other workers are at 2001; EB-4, religious workers, EB-5, and targeted employment areas and regional centers are all current. Family based petitions are backlogged, with the most recent date at 2005.

The USCIS has issued an update reminding applicants to apply early for advance parole and refugee travel documents to ensure adequate processing. Advance parole is required for travel for applicants who have been granted Temporary Protected Status, applicants who have pending applications for adjustment of status, applicants with pending applications for relief under NACARA 203, applicants with pending asylum applications, or applicants with pending applications for legalization.

The United States Customs and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that starting June 29th, the agency will once again offer premium processing services for alien workers applying for immigration via form I-140. Pursuant to 8 CFR 103.2(f)2, this rule change aims to eliminate backlog for I-140 form processing and speed up adjudication over these petitions.

Who can use this premium processing service, and who cannot?

Many visa petitioners can take advantage of this service. Those who can include:

• EB-1 aliens with extraordinary ability
• EB-1 outstanding professors and researchers
• EB-2 members of professions with advanced degrees or exceptional ability (who are not concurrently applying for a national interest waiver)
• EB-3 professionals
• EB-3 skilled workers
• EB-3 workers other than skilled workers and professionals.

Immigrants who cannot use this premium processing service include:

• EB-1 multinational executives and managers
• EB-2 members of professions with advanced degrees or exceptional ability (who ARE applying for a national interest waiver)

New rules and standards for premium processing service

The program works as follows. Qualified petitioners will pay a $1000 processing fee to USCIS. The agency then has 15 calendar days to process the application. At the end of that time, USCIS must respond by doing one of the following:

• Submitting an approval notice
• Submitting an intend-to-deny notice
• Submitting a request for more evidence
• Opening an investigation for fraud or misrepresentation

If USCIS does not respond in any one of the above ways, the petitioner will get his or her $1,000 fee refunded, and the application will be processed as quickly as possible. There is a dedicated premium processing email and phone hotline.

The USCIS has announced that, starting June 29nd, 2009, alien workers petitioning for immigration via Form I-140 will be allowed to resume using the so-called premium processing service. The USCIS had removed this service due to the influx of I-140 filings in 2007. However, because their backlogs have decreased, the USCIS is in a position to resume I-140 premium processing.

Who can use premium processing service?

Not all petitioners can enjoy this faster processing service. Those who can include:

• EB-1 aliens with extraordinary ability or outstanding professors and researchers
• EB-2 aliens with exceptional ability or members of professions with advanced degrees (who are NOT concurrently trying to apply under a national interest waiver).
• EB-3 professional, skilled, and other workers.

Petitioners who cannot use this service include:

• EB-1 multinational executives and managers
• EB-2 petitioners (discussed above) who are applying under the national interest waiver category

How does the premium processing service benefit petitioners?

By paying a $1,000 fee to USCIS, petitioners can get responses to their applications guaranteed within 15 days (“approval,” “denial,” or “request to collect evidence or investigate further”). Petitioners can also access information about their petition status via email and a special phone number.

The USCIS press release reaffirms that petitioners who have previously been designated as available for premium processing service will continue to have this option at their disposal. For instance, non-immigrant workers petitioning via Form I-129 can still use the premium processing service.

For more information on changes to I-140 processing, you can connect with USCIS via the official website, www.uscis.gov or via 1 (800) 375-5283.

A June 9, 2009 press release issued by the Department of Homeland Security reports that DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano has changed the rules by which widows and widowers of U.S. citizens may seek adjustment to their immigration status.

Secretary Napolitano’s rule changes will allow these individuals and their children (less than 18 years old) to take advantage of a policy known as “deferred action,” as long as said individuals have lived two years in the United States.

Per these new rules, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has been ordered to stop adjusting applications and visa petitions in the cases of widows and widowers whose spouses died prior to their second wedding anniversary. Secretary Napolitano’s orders also change the directives of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE), which now must defer initiating, proceeding with attempts to remove, or finalizing the removal of said widows/widowers and their children from the country. Widows/widowers whose petitions have been revoked may be granted a second chance to have their cases heard. In addition, the USCIS must consider humanitarian reinstatement for said individuals. Furthermore, even if a widowed spouse had not previously petitioned for citizenship, he or she will still qualify for deferred action protection under this DHS directive.

Deferred action is not a permanent solution to immigration status. It is merely a mechanism by which individuals or groups can bide time to apply for work authorization in the U.S. The DHS directive does not grant alien spouses of deceased U.S. citizens permanent resident status. For a change like that to take effect, Congress would have to revise the wording of the Immigration Nationality Act to allow spouses and qualified immediate relatives to remain indefinitely in the country.