Effective today, October 3, 2017, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) has resumed premium processing for all H-1B visa extension of stay petitions. Premium processing is now available for all H-1B petitions. Earlier this year, USCIS had suspended premium processing for all cap and cap exempt cases, but resumed premium processing in stages for certain H-1B petitions. Prior to today, USCIS resumed premium processing for H-1B petitions subject to the annual cap, petitions filed on behalf of physicians under the Conrad 30 waiver program, as well as for interested government agency waivers and certain H-1B petitions not subject to the cap.
Read moreThe Chance to Feel Safe
Autumn Nights in Prague!
As fall begins, I spent a few days in Prague. Of course, it was hard to miss the stunning Prague Castle (not to mention the beautiful 14th century Charles Bridge). Prague Castle is said to be the world’s largest castle area, with three courtyards spread over eighteen acres. Along with admiring the beauty of the city, I also admired Roger Federer's singles and doubles win at the Laver Cup. It was the first (and will likely be the only) time Roger played doubles with his rival, Rafael Nadal, and it was a joy to watch the camaraderie between the two throughout the weekend!
Reuters: “Trump administration red tape tangles up visas for skilled foreigners, data shows”
US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS), under the leadership of the Trump administration, has been challenging a significant number of visa applications for skilled workers since President Trump vowed to investigate the “fraud and abuse” of the H-1B visa program by American-based companies this past April. Although neither the Trump administration nor Congress have instituted any changes to the H-1B program, data provided by USCIS reveals that the agency has issued 85,000 challenges, or “requests for evidence” (RFE’s), regarding H-1B visa petitions between January 1st and August 31st of this year. This is a forty-five percent increase since the same period of time last year. These RFE’s have also been issued at a rate greater than any point during the Obama administration, apart from 2009. RFE's can delay cases by months, and often interfere with hiring plans and business operations for American companies.
Read morePresident Trump Issues New Travel Restrictions for Nationals of 7 Countries
On September 24, 2017, President Trump issued a presidential proclamation that details new travel restrictions targeting nationals of seven countries, including Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen, as well as places some travel restrictions or increases scrutiny for certain nationals of Venezuela and nationals of Iraq. Under this proclamation, most citizens of Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen will be banned from entering the US. Certain government officials from Venezuela who seek to visit the US will face restrictions and Iraqi nationals will face heightened scrutiny.
Read moreSlowly Over Time
National Cheeseburger Day
Thanks, Shake Shack!
In honor of National Cheeseburger Day this past Monday, September 18, we had a couple of, you guessed it, cheeseburgers (and fries). While the origins of National Cheeseburger Day are unclear, we nevertheless were excited to celebrate this special day by getting some cheeseburgers from Shake Shack, one of our favorite places. The origins of the cheeseburger itself are also unclear, with one story saying that Lionel Sternberger invented it in 1926 while working at his father’s Pasadena, California sandwich shop, The Rite Spot, when he dropped a slice of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger. O'Dell's, a Los Angeles restaurant, and Kaelin's, a Kentucky restaurant, also make a claim for its invention. Whatever the origin, cheeseburger, we honor you!
Alla Malova: The DLG-Proust-Actors Studio Questionnaire
Alla was born and grew up in the Moscow region in Russia. When she was a teenager, her stepdad received a job in the Washington D.C. area, and her family moved to the United States, just as she was set to attend Moscow State University. Although her family moved away, she still attended the university, one of the oldest and most prestigious in Russia, and majored in philosophy. “I knew I was always good with languages and humanities,” she says. “Philosophy seemed like a good match.” She specialized in cultural studies, which would be close to American studies in anthropology. After graduation, she moved to the US to attend graduate school at The George Washington University, where she studied international policy.
Read moreThe New York Times: “Forced Searches of Phones and Laptops at U.S. Border are Illegal, Lawsuit Claims”
Two civil rights groups filed a lawsuit last week against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on behalf of eleven people whose cellphones and laptops were confiscated or searched at the nation’s border. The lawsuit alleges that their First and Fourth Amendment rights were violated when their devices were seized and searched without a warrant. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed the lawsuit for these eleven individuals, which includes ten American citizens and one permanent resident. These individuals, a journalist, student, US military veteran, artist, and NASA engineer, among others, hope that the lawsuit will force courts to place limits on the agency’s broad authority to search all travelers entering the country, including US citizens. The lawsuit argues that the current laws in place that established rules for searching luggage for all individuals (unless exempt by diplomatic status) regardless of nationality should not apply to electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops because these types of devices contain immense amounts of personal data and information.
Read moreUSCIS Resumes Premium Processing for H-1B Cap Petitions
US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has resumed premium processing effective September 18, 2017 for all H-1B visa petitions subject to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 cap including for the 20,000 additional petitions for those workers with a US master’s degree or higher educational degree. Premium processing is only available for pending H-1B cap petitions, not new submissions, since USCIS received more than enough petitions during the April filing window to meet the FY 2018 cap.
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