AILA Report: Vermont Service Center (VSC) Reopened (UPDATED APRIL 13, 2020)

The Vermont Service Center (VSC) has re-opened after a temporary closure, according to the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). Last week, USCIS temporarily closed the VSC after a presumed positive COVID-19 case, but since the test results came back negative for the individual, the VSC is now able to accept cases and/or any other form of correspondence.

AILA Report: Vermont Service Center (VSC) Temporarily Closed

UPDATE APRIL 13, 2020: The Vermont Service Center has re-opened.

We have received reports through the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) that the Vermont Service Center (VSC) has been temporarily closed due to a potential COVID-19 exposure. Reports indicate that the VSC will likely be closed at least until Wednesday, April 15, 2020, for a deep cleaning. During this time, it appears that mail or packages cannot be delivered to the VSC. AILA National has reached out to USCIS for confirmation of closure and guidance on how filings should be handled during the VSC closure. We will provide updates as we receive them.

USCIS Processing Employment Authorization Extension Requests with Previous Biometrics

US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) announced this week that they will reuse previously submitted biometrics so the agency can process valid Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, extension requests due to the temporary closure of Application Support Centers (ASC) to the public in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The agency notes that this announcement is consistent with existing USCIS authority regarding the agency’s ability to reuse previously submitted biometrics. Applicants who had an appointment scheduled with an ASC on or after the March 18 closure or who has filed an I-765 extension will have their application processed using previously submitted biometrics.  USCIS notes this policy will remain effect until ASCs are open for appointments to the public.

FY 2021 H-1B Cap Petitions May Be Filed as of April 1

US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that H-1B cap-subject petitions for fiscal year (FY) 2021, including advanced degree cases, may now be filed with USCIS as of April 1, 2020, if based on a valid selected registration. Petitioners are only eligible to file a FY 2021 H-1B cap-subject petition if they electronically registered the beneficiary in the H-1B registration process and USCIS selected the registration for the beneficiary in the random lottery.

The H-1B cap-subject petition must be properly filed within the period indicated on the relevant registration selection notice. The period for filing the H-1B cap-subject petition will be at least ninety days. Since online filing is not available for H-1B petitions, petitioners must file H-1B petitions by paper and should include a printed copy of the applicable registration selection notice along with the supporting evidence and documents establishing eligibility for the H-1B.

According to USCIS, the H-1B electronic registration process was well-received by users, who provided a high satisfaction score with the system. The agency indicated that nearly 275,000 unique registrations were submitted during the initial registration period and roughly forty-six percent of all registrations were for prospective beneficiaries with US advanced degrees. More than 40,000 registration accounts were created in total.

“The new H-1B electronic registration system has been an overall success,” Joseph Edlow, USCIS Deputy Director for Policy, said in a statement.  “The positive feedback received by users of the H-1B registration system, the limited amount of technical issues experienced during the registration period, and the ability to immediately respond to questions from registrants was the result of a comprehensive effort developed over the course of more than a year. This new registration system is one of many ways USCIS is improving the H-1B program.”

USCIS Has Closed Offices to the Public from March 18 to June 4 but USCIS Service Centers Remain Operational (UPDATED APRIL 27, 2020)

UPDATE APRIL 27, 2020: USCIS has announced that they are planning to re-open offices for in-person services on June 4.

Effective March 18, 2020, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) suspended in-person services at its field offices, asylum offices, and Application Support Centers (ASCs) to help prevent the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19). The closure will be effective until at least May 3, but the closure date may be extended. Employees in these offices are continuing to perform mission-essential services not requiring face-to-face contact with the public and USCIS will still provide limited emergency services. USCIS Service Centers are operational at this time.

USCIS field offices will send notices to applicants and petitioners with scheduled appointments and naturalization ceremonies affected by the closure. USCIS states that asylum offices will send interview cancellation notices and automatically reschedule asylum interviews. When the interview is rescheduled, asylum applicants will receive a new interview notice with the new time, date, and location of the interview. When USCIS resumes normal operations, the agency will automatically reschedule the affected ASC appointments. Applicants will receive a new appointment letter in the mail and those who had InfoPass or other appointments must reschedule through the USCIS Contact Center after field offices are open again to the public. Individuals can check if their field office has been reopened online.

H-1B Initial Electronic Registration Selection Process Completed

US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that they have received enough electronic registrations during the initial period to reach the FY 2021 H-1B numerical allocations for the H-1B cap. The agency randomly selected from among the electronic registrations that were properly submitted. USCIS will notify petitioners with selected registrations no later than March 31, 2020, that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for the beneficiary named in the selected registration. Registrants’ online accounts will now show one of the following statuses for each registration (i.e, for each beneficiary registered):

• Submitted: A registration status may continue to show “Submitted” after the initial selection process has been completed. “Submitted” registrations will remain in consideration for selection until the end of the fiscal year, at which point all registration statuses will be Selected, Not Selected, or Denied.

• Selected: Selected to file an FY 2021 H-1B cap-subject petition.

• Denied: A duplicate registration was submitted by the same registrant for the same beneficiary, or a payment method was declined and not reconciled. If denied as a duplicate registration, all registrations you submitted for this beneficiary for the fiscal year are invalid.

USCIS notes that only petitioners with selected registrations may file H-1B cap-subject petitions for FY 2021, and only for the beneficiary listed in the selected registration notice.

UPDATE FEBRUARY 22, 2021: USCIS announced they have received a sufficient number of petitions to reach the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa US advanced degree exemption (master’s cap) for FY 2021 cap. The agency announced they completed sending non-selection notifications to registrants’ online accounts and the status for registrations properly submitted for the FY 2021 cap but that were not selected will now show as: “Not Selected: Not selected for this fiscal year.”

USCIS Announces Flexibility for Requests for Evidence and Notices of Intent to Deny (UPDATED MARCH 31, 2020)

UPDATE MAY 4, 2020: USCIS has announced additional flexibility for agency requests.

In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the agency is adopting a measure to assist applicants and petitioners responding to requests for evidence (RFEs) and notices of intent to deny (NOIDs) dated between March 1 and May 1, 2020. Applicants and petitioners who receive an RFE or NOID dated between March 1 and May 1, 2020 and submit any responses within sixty calendar days after the response deadline specified in the RFE or NOID will have the response considered by USCIS before any action is taken. The agency notes they are adopting several measures to protect their workforce and community at this time as well as to minimize the immigration consequences for those seeking immigration benefits during this time. USCIS will provide further updates as the situation develops.

UPDATE MARCH 31, 2020: USCIS has clarified that the outlined flexibility regarding submitting RFEs and NOIDs also applies to certain Notices of Intent to Revoke (NOIR) and Notices of Intent to Terminate (NOIT) regional investment centers, as well as certain filing date requirements for Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion. Specifically, the flexibility applies to an RFE, NOID, NOIR, NOIT or appealable decision within AAO jurisdiction and the issuance date listed on the request, notice, or decision is between March 1, 2020 and May 1, 2020, inclusive.

USCIS specifies that any response to an RFE, NOID, NOIR, or NOIT received within sixty calendar days after the response due date set in the request or notice “will be considered by USCIS before any action is taken.” Additionally, any Form I-290B received up to sixty calendar days from the date of the decision will also be considered by USCIS before the agency takes any action. We will post any additional updates from USCIS as we receive them.