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Effective April 1, 2024 the USCIS will increasefiling fees on manyimmigration applications. 

In addition to the fee increase, the USCIS hasalso introduced the new Asylum Program Fee of $600, which will be an add-on toall new I-129 (H-1B, L-1, and other) and I-140 petitions.  Nonprofit petitioners will be exempt from thenew Asylum Program Fee, while employershaving 25 or fewer full-time employees will be subjectto a reduced Asylum Program Fee of $300.

With the fee increase, the USCIS has also lengthenedthe premium processing timeframe from calendar days to businessdays.  In a separate ruletaking effect February 26, 2024, the USCIS hasincreased the premium processing fee from $2500 to $2805.

*It is important to note that the USCIS hasunbundled the I-485 fees from the related I-131 Advanced Parole (traveldocument) and I-765 EAD (Employment Authorization Document) fees.  Under the current process, a separate I-765and I-131 fee are not charged when the I-765 and I-131 are filed or renewedbased on an I-485. 

Under the new rule, I-131s filed based on anI-485 will require the full fee payment of $630.  I-765s filed based on a pending I-485 will requirea 50% reduced fee of $260.  As anexample, an adult filing an I-485 for a green card with a related AdvancedParol and EAD application would pay:

• I-485Filing Fee: $1440
• I-765Filing Fee: $260
• I-131Filing Fee: $630

Total:$2330

The H-1B cap registration fee willalso increase from $10 to $215 per registration.  However, this specific increase will not takeeffect until March 2025.

MU Law will behosting a FREE webinar for our clients andfriends on Tuesday, February 13, 2024 at 2PM Eastern (1PM Central).

Join us forthis FREE webinar tolearn more about:

• H-1B Cap Basics, Registration Process, and Projections
• What is a Specialty Occupation?
• H-1B Dependency
• Special Issues for Staffing Companies, Third Party Placements
• Employer-Employee relationships, end-client documentation
• Cap-gap for F-1s as well as CPT/OPT maintenance
• New H-1B Rules
• Top 10 things H-1B employers can do to stay compliant

PLEASE JOIN US!

The fiscal year 2025 (March 2024) H-1Bcap registration period will open at noon eastern on March 6, 2024 and runthrough noon eastern on March 22, 2024. For fiscal year 2025 H-1B cap filings, employerswill also have the option of filing Form I-129 electronically on the USCISwebsite.

On January 30, 2024, USCIS announced afinal rule to reducethe potential for fraud in the H-1B registration process. The new rule selects H-1Bcap entries by each unique employee, instead of by each registration. Thisgives each employee the same chance of selection, regardless of how manyregistrations were submitted on that employee’s behalf.

With this update to the registrationprocess, the employee is required to include valid passport or travel documentinformation, and a employee cannot register under more than one passport ortravel document.

USCIS has also provided clarificationthat for H-1B cap petitions, a start date after October 1 of the relevantfiscal year is allowed.  

 MU Law will be hosting a FREE webinar for our clients and friends on Tuesday, February 13, 2024 at 2PM Eastern (1PM Central).

Join us for this FREE webinar to learn more about:

• H-1B Cap Basics, Registration Process, and Projections
• What is a Specialty Occupation?
• H-1B Dependency
• Special Issues for Staffing Companies, Third Party Placements
• Employer-Employee relationships, end-client documentation
• Cap-gap for F-1s as well as CPT/OPT maintenance
• New H-1B Rules
• Top 10 things H-1B employers can do to stay compliant

PLEASE JOIN US!

The Department of State has just issued the February 2024 Visa Bulletin, which is the fifth of the 2024 US fiscal year.  This blog post analyzes this month’s VisaBulletin.

Visa Bulletin

Table A: Final Action Dates — Applications with these dates may be approved fortheir Green Card (Permanent Residency card) or Immigrant Visa appointment.

Table B: Dates of Filing

The USCIS is expected to use the Table B Dates of Filing chart for I-485 employment-basedfilings. See: USCIS Visa Bulletin Dates

MU Law Analysis

We were again encouraged to see slow, steady improvement of dates in mostcategories.  Philippine and All OtherEB-3 moved ahead one month.  IndiaEB-3 advanced one month.   We wouldnot be surprised to see a few more small progressions this fiscal year in thesecategories.  China EB-3 unfortunatelydid not move ahead. 

There was modest progression of All Other EB-2 dates of two weeks,although India and China EB-2 remained the same as last month.

On December 27, 2023, USCIS announced that thefiling fee for Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing, will be increasingto adjust for inflation.

The fee change will go into effect onFebruary 26, 2024. If USCIS receives a Form I-907 postmarked on or afterFebruary 26, 2024, with the incorrect fee, the Form I-907 will be rejected and returned.

The fee changes are as follow:

• Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker will increase from $2500to $2805, except for H-2B and R-1 petitions. For H-2B and R-1 petitions it willincrease from $1500 to $1685.
• Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker will increase from $2500to $2805.
• Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status willincrease from $1750 to $1965.
• Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization will increase from$1500 to $1685. Please note that premium processing for Form I-765 is onlycurrently available for certain F-1 students.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS)will use the revenue generated by the premium processing fee increase toprovide premium processing services, make improvements to adjudicationsprocesses, respond to adjudication demands (including reducing benefit requestprocessing backlogs), and otherwise fund USCIS adjudication and naturalizationservices.

OnJanuary 05, 2024, the USCIS updatedits policy manual to clarify how the UCSIS will determine an employer’s abilityto pay when an employment-based green card applicant ports to a new employerunder the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-First Century Act of 2000(AC21).

TheAC21 allows certain employment-based green card applicants to port, or changeemployers, without filing a new Form I-140 petition. Under certaincircumstances an employment-based green card applicant can change employers whentheir Form I-140 petition and Form I-485 application are concurrently filed andremain pending.

TheUSCIS has explained that when a green-card applicant changes employers whileForm I-140 is pending, USCIS will only consider the facts existing at the timeof filing when making an ability to pay determination. In other words, USCISwill only review initial evidence submitted with the Form I-140 petition (andany responses to Requests for Evidence) to determine if the petitioner hasestablished its ability to pay from the priority date to the date of filing theI-140 petition.

On December 20, 2023, USCIS publisheda Policy Alert,announcing changes to its Policy Manual, specifically the guidance for F and Mnonimmigrant students.  

The guidance clarifies that a studentdoes not violate his or her nonimmigrant status by simply having a green cardapplication pending with USCIS. A student in F and M status, upon entry to theUS, is required to demonstrate that he or she has aforeign residence and plans to leave the US after finishing his or her studies.However, a student’s intent can change afterarrival in the US. At the time the student enters in F or M status, a studentcan intend to leave the US at the completion of his or her schooling and thencan later change his or her intent and decide to apply for a green card in theUS.

Theguidance also announced several additional cosmetic changes to the Policy Manual, including a few new chaptersand transferring of section information.

USCIShas announced that they have received sufficient H-1b cap petitions toreach the statutory limit of 65,000 H-1b regular cap visas and the 20,000 H-1b advanceddegree visas for fiscal year 2024.

Since the H-1b cap limit has been hitfor the 2024 fiscal year, there will be no further selections in the H-1blottery for this fiscal year.

All registrants who were not selectedhave been sent notices through their online USCIS accounts to inform them thatthey have not been selected. The non-selection notice will update theregistration entry to state:

“NotSelected: Not selected – not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based onthis registration.” “

All currently pending H-1b cappetitions will continue to be processed normally. USCIS will also continue toaccept all cap-exempt H-1bs petitions, such as:

1. Extensions and amendments topreviously approved H-1bs;
2. H-1b transfers for a change insponsoring employers;
3. H-1b concurrent petitions to allow anH-1b Beneficiary to work for multiple employers; and,
4. H-1b petitions filed by cap-exemptorganizations (Institutions of higher education and affiliated non-profitorganizations as well as non-profit or governmental research organizations).

The H-1b lottery will open forregistrations for the US government’s 2025 fiscal year in March of 2024.

TheDepartment of State has just issued the January2024 Visa Bulletin, which is the third of the 2024 US fiscal year. This blog post analyzes this month’s Visa Bulletin. 

VisaBulletin

TableA: Final Action Dates– Applications with these dates may be approved for their Green Card(Permanent Residency card) or Immigrant Visa appointment.

TableB: Dates of Filing

TheUSCIS is expected to use the Table B Dates of Filing chart for I-485employment-based filings. See: USCISVisa Bulletin Dates

MULaw Analysis

Thiswas a very positive Visa Bulletin.  Nearlyevery category advanced.  Philippineand All Other EB-3 leaped forward eight months, allowing thousands toobtain green cards.  China EB-3advanced seven months.  Even IndiaEB-3 moved forward by one month. 

Similaradvancements happened in EB-2, with India and China EB-2 (each twomonths), and Philippine and All Other EB-2 (three and a half months) allprogressing.  We even saw EB-1advancements in India and China.  IndiaEB-1 jumped three and a half years, and China moved ahead by four and a halfmonths.

MUexpected advancements.  We expect slowprogress in the near future, with occasional bursts like in this January VisaBulletin.  We still believe that there issome slack in the EB-3 numbers (non-India and China) and would not be surprisedto see the EB-3 dates advance into late 2022 or even 2023 before the end of thesummer.