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On December 31, 2020, President Trump issued a proclamation continuing Proclamations 10014 and 10052. The proclamations suspended the entry of certain immigrants and non-immigrants into the United States in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. They were due to expire on December 31 and have been continued until March 31, 2021.

Proclamation 10052 went into effect on June 24 and limits the entry of non-immigrants on H-1B, H-2B, L, and most J visas, and their spouses or children. Proclamation 10014 went into effect on April 23 and suspends the entry of those seeking admission using an immigrant visa. The restrictions apply to those outside of the US without a valid visa on the date the proclamations respectively became effective.

There are numerous exemptions, including for permanent residents, children and spouses of US citizens, and those whose entry would be in the “national interest.” Those issued other forms of valid travel documentation – such as Advanced Parole – may also be able to travel.

The January 2021 visa bulletin has been released. It is available here.

Employment-based petitions must refer to the Final Action chart, not the Dates for Filing chart. This means that dates for EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 applicants from China or India have retrogressed.

The employment-based dates are as follows: EB-1 is current for all countries except China (Sep 1, 2019) and India (Sep 1, 2019).  EB-2 is current for all countries except China (Jun 1, 2016) and India (Oct 8, 2009). EB-3 is current for all countries except China (Dec 15, 2017) and India (Mar 22, 2010). EB-3 Other Workers is current for all countries except China (Mar 1, 2009) and India (Mar 22, 2010). EB-4 is current for all countries except El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras (Mar 1, 2018) and Mexico (Dec 1, 2018). EB-5 non-regional centers are current for all countries except China (Aug 15, 2015) and Vietnam (Sep 15, 2017).

On December 1, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California found that the Department of Labor (DOL) failed to show good cause in forgoing advance comment for its October 8th wage guidance. The court’s order sets aside that guidance, which altered the prevailing wage methodology and made green card, H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 employment more expensive for many employers. On December 3, 2020, the U.S. District Court for New Jersey issued a similar preliminary injunction applying to the plaintiffs in that case.

To comply with the courts’ orders, DOL will update the application system used for labor certifications and replace the recently implemented wage data (10/8/2020-6/30/2021) with the wage data in use on October 7th.

Updates began Friday December 4. There will be some disruptions to services while they are completed. Beginning December 9^th employers and attorneys will again be able to file new Labor Condition Applications (LCAs) where the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey data is the prevailing wage source. DOL will resume processing Prevailing Wage Determinations (PWDs) for use in the PERM step of immigrant petitions on December 15^th.

The December 2020 visa bulletin was released today, November 23. It is available here.

Employment-based petitions must refer to the Dates for Filing chart. For employment-based petitions, only EB-3 and EB-3 Other Workers applicants from India retrogressed compared to the November 2020 bulletin.

The employment-based dates are as follows: EB-1 is current for all countries except China (Nov 1, 2020) and India (Nov 1, 2020).  EB-2 is current for all countries except China (Oct 1, 2016) and India (May 15, 2011). EB-3 is current for all countries except China (Jun 1, 2018) and India (Jan 1, 2014). EB-3 Other Workers is current for all countries except China (May 1, 2009) and India (Jan 1, 2014). EB-4 is current for all countries except El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras (May 1, 2018). Religious Worker visas are current for all countries except El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras (May 1, 2018). EB-5 non-regional centers are current for all countries except China (Dec 15, 2015). EB-5 regional centers are current for all countries except China (Dec 15, 2015).

On October 6 the Department of Labor (DOL) issued guidance changing the wage determination process for H-1B, H-1B1, E-3, and employment-based immigrant petitions. Under the new rule, DOL will differently assess Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) data to calculate the “prevailing” wage. The rule effectively makes sponsorship of these petitions more expensive by raising the minimum qualifying wage that employers must pay.

Within the last week, multiple lawsuits have been filed challenging the rule. The first, an October 16 suit by tech companies, seeks a preliminary and permanent injunction, arguing that the new wage standards conflict with statutory requirements under the Immigration and Nationality Act. Further, plaintiffs charge that DOL released the guidance without the requisite notice and comment period. The rule was announced on October 6 and took effect on October 8; by October 13, DOL was issuing wage determinations based on the revised OES data.

Tech companies also contest DOL’s underlying reasoning. While DOL cited high national unemployment as the basis for the statistical adjustment, government data shows low unemployment for technology positions – a common occupation for the affected highly-skilled workers.

On October 5, USCIS released a reminder that employers enrolled in E-Verify must take action on Tentative Nonconfirmations (TNCs) within 10 working days. Starting on November 5, employers who are out of compliance will begin receiving notices after 10 days urging them to take action on their employee’s TNC.

TNCs indicate a potential mismatch between the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification and Social Security Administration (SSA) or Department of Homeland Security (DHS) records.

When employers receive a TNC, they must notify the employee; provide the employee with the Further Action Notice; privately review the Further Action Notice with the employee; and have the employee confirm the information listed.

On October 1 the Trump administration announced a new proposal to limit U.S refugee admissions to 15,000 for fiscal year 2021. That number would represent a record low, down from a ceiling of 18,000 this fiscal year.

The actual number of refugees admitted tends to fall below the announced ceiling. This year only 11,000 refugees were admitted – also a record low.

Under previous administrations, the US accepted more refugees annually than all other nations combined. As the chart below demonstrates, refugee admissions have now decreased every year since 2017.

Due to EAD production delays, USCIS announced that employees may use a Form I-797, Notice of Action, with a notice date from 12/1/19 to 8/20/20 informing approval of an Application for Employment Authorization (Form I-765) as a list C #7 document for Form I-9 compliance. Employees may do so until 12/1/20.

Employees who present a Form I-797 Notice of Action for new employment must also present their employer with an acceptable identity document. By December 1, 2020 employees will need to present their employers with new evidence of employment authorization.

Find the full USCIS announcement here.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused rising unemployment in the United States, and unemployment days that exceed federal limits can result in a loss of status. Thus, USCIS reminds F-1 foreign nationals to update their employer information online with current unemployment data.

F-1 foreign nationals who are participating in post-completion Optical Practical Training (OPT), along with their designated school officials (DSOs), must update employer information in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). They can do this directly through the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) Portal, or provide the information to their DSO. An F-1 foreign national must notify their DSO within 10 days of any changes to their personal or employment information. A DSO must update SEVIS within 21 days of receiving these changes.

It is important that F-1 foreign nationals and DSOs update this information in a timely manner. SEVIS will count each day without employer information toward the total number of unemployment days allowed. Failure to update this information, and exceeding unemployment limits, may result in:

In light of April 22^nd  Executive Order that currently bans many individuals seeking to enter the U.S. as immigrants, we would like to provide this fact sheet from the American Immigration Council that distinguishes the difference between nonimmigrant and immigrant employment based visa classifications and outlines basic information about how the employment-based U.S. immigration system works.

Please contact immigrationinfo@cornerlaw.com if you have any questions about employment-based visa classifications in the U.S.