Tag: USCIS

Attorney Spotlight: Nancy Shalhub of Ogletree Deakins

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By Ryan Mernin Ryan recently caught up with Nancy Shalhub of Ogletree Deakins to discuss the relatively new H-1B lottery and other potential immigration policy changes. This entry in our Attorney Spotlight series continues our focus on emerging challenges and changes in the business immigration world. Q: What visas does your firm typically handle? Nancy: Ogletree Deakins has one of the nation’s largest business immigration practices, providing premier immigration services for nearly 28 years. Our largest corporate immigration clients are Fortune ...

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Attorney Spotlight: Shehryar Chaudhry at BAL

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By Shail Sturm and Ryan Mernin Business immigration can present interesting challenges to immigration attorneys and their industry partners. Seasonal workloads and annual changes to the regulatory rhythm of petition filings sometimes disrupt the day-to-day operations even for industry leaders - not to mention delays and difficulties brought on by the global pandemic. But recent updates from USCIS seem to point toward a smoother process and more responsive regulatory environment. This week, Ryan and Shail spoke with Shehryar Chaudhry at Berry Appleman & Leiden to focus in on regulatory updates, USCIS' efforts to address consulate backlogs, and other upcoming ...

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Attorney Spotlight: Hiba Anver of EIG

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By Shail Sturm and Ryan Mernin Despite pandemic shocks, business immigration continues to be a strong route for the world's talent to enter the United States. Shail and Ryan caught up with Hiba M. Anver at Erickson Immigration Group to provide clarity on current trends and obstacles facing foreign nationals seeking entry to the United States on the H-1B visa. This entry in our Attorney Spotlight series continues our focus on emerging challenges and changes in the business immigration world. Park Evaluations: What visas do your firm typically handle and what trends have ...

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Reopening Continues: Impact on H-1B Visa Petitions

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By Ben Chappelow With Mark Rogers  Special thanks to Susanne Heubel, Special Counsel with Duane Morris, for contributing to this post. Be sure to follow Park Evaluations on LinkedIn for future updates. Introduction As vaccination rates increase and COVID-19 restrictions ease, companies will be looking to safely reopen offices. Reopening continues to present challenges as business leaders, especially in spaces served by foreign nationals immigrating the United States on a non-immigrant work visa, work hard to keep up with the latest guidance to ensure safe and effective workplaces. Leading IT services companies are transitioning to a hybrid model, where select employees will come into the office on designated workdays. Industry watchers believe this return-to-work model of work will have a comparative advantage ...

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EB-5 Visas Still Not Being Processed: Why This is Problematic

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By: Annika Minton The United States EB-5 visa was created in 1990 to provide a method for foreign investors (and their spouses and unmarried children under 21) to obtain a U.S. visa by investing capital with the goal of financing a business that will employ at least 10 American workers.[1] The US government allocates 10,000 of these visas per year. This particular program has not been renewed since June 2021, when a federal judge struck down the 2019 EB-5 “modernization” regulation, the goal of which was to increase the investment threshold from $500,000 to $900,000 in targeted employment areas (a rural area or an area with high unemployment). This has left many people wondering what the future looks like ...

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Vaccine Mandates Restrict P-1A Athletes in the NBA

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By: Maddie Carlson As of early December, a memo issued by the National Basketball Association (“NBA”)  revealed that any unvaccinated athlete who possesses a temporary visa status will not be allowed to reenter the United States following international travel. This statement primarily pertains to those with the P-1A Athlete visa classification, which allows athletes to compete in the United States temporarily. Concurrently, the Canadian government also announced that non-vaccinated NBA athletes are now not allowed to enter the country to participate in competitions against their Toronto team. Both announcements threaten the legal status of U.S. athletes who have planned, and are expected to, participate in any upcoming basketball competitions in Toronto. Many NBA Athletes are eligible for the P-1A visa based ...

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Visa Extensions Granted for L-2 and H-4 Holders

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By: Annika Minton Spouses of L-1 and H-1B visa holders recently  got some good news. A US court decision is granting L-2 and H-4 visa holders an extension of their work authorization, lengthening the amount of time spouses can remain in the United States on work visas. L-2 visa holders will receive a 180-day auto extension of their work authorization (or an I-94 expiration date, whichever is shorter); and all H-4 visa holders will get extensions of their H-4 employment authorization document (EAD) until the expiration of their I-94s, or 180 days from the expiration of the prior EAD, whichever comes first. L-2 visa holders will get the extension automatically without applying for it, but H-4 visa holders are still required ...

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Blanket L-1 Visas and How Companies can Benefit

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By: Hannah Rae Welbourn When a multinational company sends an employee to a subsidiary in the United States, candidates will need to be granted L-1 status through USCIS. But what if they need to send more than one employee at a time? That’s where the L-1 Blanket visa comes in. While a regular L-1 visa is granted on an individual basis, Blanket status grants multiple employees from the same company the ability to transfer to the states to work at a U.S. branch. The criteria for employees (managerial capacity for L-1A and specialized knowledge for L-1B) remains the same, but the process of obtaining this kind of L-1 status is expedited, sometimes up ...

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TN Visas 101: What They Are and How Park Evaluations Can Help

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By Madison McKenzie   What is a TN visa?   The TN visa is a special classification issued under the United-States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which replaced the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 2020. Under this classification, citizens of Mexico or Canada can fill certain specialty occupations—listed under the approved list of USMCA professions—in the United States for an initial period of three years.     What eligibility requirements must be met to file a TN visa?   As outlined by USCIS, an applicant is eligible for a TN visa if they meet the following criteria:   The applicant must be a citizen of Mexico or Canada. The applicant must have a pre-arranged job offer in the United States. The proffered position in the United States must qualify as ...

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USCIS’s Response to the Afghanistan Conflict

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By Dillan Wright Intro With the withdrawal of US forces and subsequently rapid Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, there is a present and obvious need for clarity on the part of USCIS regarding the steps Afghani residents must take in order to take refuge in the United States. We will examine USCIS’s initial response to the crisis and offer a glance at how some organizations have responded in kind. USCIS’s Response USCIS last updated their policies for Afghani refugees on August 26, 2021, shortly after the closure of the US embassy in Kabul. Their site offers a comprehensive breakdown of how to achieve “parole”, including steps on how to apply, directions on waiving application fees, and a list of necessary documentation that must be ...

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