News Updates

Temporary Closure of USCIS Offices Extended through May 3rd

22:23 01 April in News Updates by Larrabee

USCIS Temporary Office Closure Extended until at least May 3 USCIS has announced it is extending the suspension of in-person services at its field offices, asylum offices and Application Support Centers through at least May 3. The temporary closure initially took effect on March 18 to help slow the spread of COVID-19 and was due to last until at least April 1. Today USCIS announced the temporary closure will continue through at least May 3. Please note that USCIS adjudications of all case types continue under regular processing. Premium processing has been suspended until further notice. Any clients who need assistance, please contact...

H-1B Registration Selection Process Completed for FY2021 H-1B Cap – Notifications to Begin 3/31

20:45 27 March in News Updates by Larrabee

USCIS has announced it has received enough registrations to reach the FY2021 H-1B Cap or annual quota. Accordingly, USCIS conducted the lottery to select which registrants could proceed to filing of an H-1B petition. LAC will obtain the registration status and notify the employer/ petitioner and employee/ beneficiary on Tuesday, March 31st, or as soon as the registration status is available from USCIS. We wish everyone well during these challenging times and remain available to assist with the H-1B process and all other matters as needed. The Team at Larrabee Albi Coker LLP ________________________________________________________________________ H-1B Initial Electronic Registration Selection Process Completed USCIS Press...

Immigration and Customs Enforcement Issues Guidance to Employers regarding I-9 Completion during COVID-19 Shutdowns

21:07 20 March in News Updates by Larrabee

Summary: Employers must complete Form I-9, but are excused from physically reviewing original documents and may review documents for completion of Sections 2 or 3 remotely (over video-link, fax, or email) Employers must obtain copies of documents within the normal 3 business days Employers must enter "COVID-19" as the reason for the physical inspection delay in Sections 2 or 3 Original documents must be physically inspected within 3 business days of the date normal operations resume Once the documents have been physically inspected, the employer should add "documents physically examined" with the date of inspection to the Section 2 additional...

USCIS TO SUSPEND PREMIUM PROCESSING FOR ALL I-129 and I-140 PETITIONS

21:04 20 March in News Updates by Larrabee

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced the immediate and temporary suspension of premium processing service for all Form I-129 and I-140 petitions until further notice due to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). When does the suspension take effect? Effective today, March 20, 2020, USCIS will not accept any new requests for premium processing. USCIS will process any petition with a previously accepted premium processing request. Petitioners who have already filed a Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, or Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, using the premium processing service and who receive no agency action on their case within the 15-calendar-day period will...

LAC News Alert: USCIS Temporarily Closes All Offices in Response to COVID-19

18:51 18 March in News Updates by Larrabee

USCIS has announced it is suspending in-person services at its field offices, asylum offices and Application Support Centers to help slow the spread of COVID -19. The temporary closure will be effective from Wednesday, March 18 until at least April 1. Any clients who need assistance, please contact your LAC attorney. We will continue to update you as additional information becomes available. The Team at Larrabee Albi Coker LLP of Public Affairs USCIS Temporary Office Closure To protect our workforce and to help mitigate the spread of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) in our communities, effective immediately, USCIS is suspending all routine face-to-face services with applicants...

LAC Notice to Visitors re: COVID-19

22:46 12 March in News Updates by Larrabee

Please know that you are a valued guest. Your health and safety, as well as that of our employees, is a priority. In support of public health recommendations to help reduce the spread of COVID-19, we ask that all individuals refrain from visiting the office if they have traveled or been in close contact with anyone who has traveled within the last 14 days to areas identified as high risk by government health authorities. We also respectfully request that anyone who has been exposed to a person who has tested positive for COVID-19, or anyone with cold or flu symptoms, please refrain...

FY2021 H-1B CAP REGISTRATION FILING DEADLINE APPROACHING

23:44 12 February in News Updates by Larrabee

Filing Window for Registration The filing window for H-1B registration to seek a quota number for this fiscal year will be from noon EST March 1, 2020 through noon EST March 20, 2020. To ensure timely filing, please initiate H-1B cap cases for this fiscal year right away. New Registration System USCIS is changing the way H-1B "cap" petitions are filed and selected. Previously, a fully completed petition was required for consideration in the random selection process that took place the first week in April of each year. This year, the process is changing so that candidates eligible for an H-1B will be...

Travel Ban Extended to Six Additional Countries

23:33 05 February in News Updates by Larrabee

Trump Administration Expands Travel Restrictions to Include Nationals of Six More Countries On January 31, 2020, President Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation expanding what has become known as Travel Ban 3.0 to include foreign nationals of the following six countries: Burma (Myanmar), Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Sudan, and Tanzania. This represents an expansion of the third version of a travel ban introduced in September of 2017, which was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Trump v. Hawaii. This brings the total number of countries impacted by the ban to 13. Effective Date The effective date of the expansion is February...

Impact on Travel and Consular Appointments in China Due to Coronavirus

19:51 05 February in News Updates by Larrabee

We understand clients are following national and international news in this rapidly changing situation. The below is an update to our Client Alert of January 31, 2020. The information is current as of February 4, 2020. Impact on Travel to the U.S. Evacuation flights: The Department of State has advised it may be staging additional evacuation flights with capacity for private U.S. citizens on a reimbursable basis, leaving Wuhan Tianhe International Airport on Thursday, February 6, 2020. Non-U.S. citizen immediate family members (spouse, parent or child of the U.S. citizen) traveling with the U.S. citizen family member will also be eligible for...

New Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification Published Today

22:45 31 January in News Updates by Larrabee

On Jan. 31, 2020, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published the Form I-9 Federal Register notice announcing a new version of Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. This new version bears a revision date of Oct. 21, 2019 and contains minor changes to the form and its instructions. The notice provides employers additional time to make necessary updates and adjust their business processes. Employers may continue using the prior version of the form (Rev. 07/17/2017 N) until April 30, 2020. After that date, they may only use the new form with the 10/21/2019 version date. The version date is located in...