General information

In the complex world of U.S. immigration, the Visa Bulletin is a complicated and ever-changing tool that outlines the availability of immigrant visas, offering insight into the waiting times faced by prospective immigrants. The Visa Bulletin is a crucial component of the United States immigration system, serving as a monthly guide that determines when eligible individuals can move forward in their journey to obtain a green card. Published by the U.S. Department of State, the Visa Bulletin categorizes applicants into different preference categories based on their family relationships or employment-based qualifications. These categories are further subdivided by country of origin due to the limited number of visas available each fiscal year.  

The Visa Bulletin displays a “priority date” which has been assigned to each applicant and corresponds to the date when their application was initially filed. The Visa Bulletin’s main function is to publicize processing status for each preference category and country. If an applicant’s priority date is earlier than the cut-off date listed in the Visa Bulletin for their category and country, they can proceed with the final steps in their immigration process. However, due to the limited number of visas available in certain categories from certain countries, waiting times can vary widely and can be quite significant. While maddening at times, the Visa Bulletin shows current immigrant processing wait times and helps applicants anticipate potential delays in the progression of their case. Regularly checking the Visa Bulletin and staying informed about anticipated changes and trends in priority dates is essential for immigrants striving to navigate the complex path to permanent residency in the United States.

On July 28, 2023, Congressmen Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Illinois) and Larry Bucshon, M.D. (R-Indianna) led 56 of their colleagues in sending a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas requesting the Biden administration take executive action to provide relief to highly skilled immigrant workers by advancing all the USDOS Visa Bulletin employment-based categories “Dates for Filing” to “Current”, and allowing employment-based applicants to file their I-485 applications for U.S. permanent residence based on the “Dates for Filing” charts. Since then, there has been much speculation regarding whether the Biden administration will entertain such administrative action. To date there has been no official response from the administration indicating that it intends to take such administrative action and if so, when. We will know if such action will be taken in October 2023 by mid-September when the USDOS issues the Visa Bulletin for October 2023. Given that the administration hasn’t already enacted this type of administrative relief for highly skilled workers, and USCIS is still mulling over proposed filing fee increases that would raise filing fees, decouple the I-485 Adjustment of Status filing fee from the I-765 Employment Authorization and I-131 Advance Parole filing fees, and enact a new filing fee for I-765 and I-131 renewals, we do not believe it is likely that the Biden administration will take such action starting in October 2023. If the Biden administration is considering taking such executive action, we believe it will be in conjunction with the implementation of the new filing fee rule. Thus, we do not believe that all employment-based preference categories will become “Current” in October 2023. However, we hope that there is a significant advancement in the employment-based preference categories in October 2023 which will allow those whose categories recently backlogged to move forward with their I-485 applications. Stay tuned! Mid-September is right around the corner!

In a highly anticipated event, last week USCIS announced that the agency would be conducting a second H-1B lottery for the 2024 fiscal year. The second H-1B cap lottery was conducted over the weekend, and now appears to be completed. All registrants chosen in this second lottery have been notified, and all other registrants not selected remain eligible for selection in any further FY2024 lottery. All H-1B registrants chosen in the second lottery must submit their H-1B petition within the filing period and at the service center indicated on the selection notice. For any questions or help with an H-1B petition, reach out to a CYA attorney.

In happy news for H-1B hopeful beneficiaries and petitioners, USCIS announced today that it will be conducting a second round of the H-1B lottery. Woo! Individuals who timely submitted their H-1B registration for FY 2024 will be automatically considered for the second lottery. We don’t know exactly when the second lottery will be conducted, but expect it to happen soon. This is very welcome news for the many H-1B registrants who were not selected in this years’ initial H-1B cap lottery. Stay tuned for further updates on this evolving process.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is launching several new online tools designed to facilitate efficiency and provide better access to the agency for people with pending immigration matters.  The USCIS customer service digital tools include the following:

• Text Ahead Feature – Applicants will have the ability to opt-in to the text back feature from USCIS on an escalated service request after calling the 1-800 Contact Center number or through the online Ask Emma function (available on the USCIS website).
• Online Appointment Request Form – USCIS is launching a new online appointment request feature that is designed to provide more flexibility and certainty for applicants needing specific types of appointments, including ADIT Stamps, Emergency Advance Parole (EAP), or Immigration Judge Grants.
• Online Change of Address Function – To access this feature, applicants or attorneys must use their myUSCIS account. The new online Change of Address function will update all systems within USCIS, for each receipt number provided in real time.
• Online Biometrics Rescheduling – Per USCIS, the online function to request a new biometrics appointment date can be used only two times. The system will ask customers to select a reason for the reschedule request, the current appointment date and time, the customer’s date of birth, and ASC location. This tool cannot be used for rescheduling missed biometrics appointments, however.

If you have questions about how to access or use the new USCIS digital tools, contact a CYA attorney today!

On June 23, 2023, the Supreme Court issued a decision in United States v. Texas, 599 U. S. __ (2023) (reversing United States v. Texas, 606 F. Supp. 3d 437 (2023)). The case was brought before the U.S. Supreme Court by the States of Texas and Louisiana challenging the Biden Administration’s policy of establishing federal civil immigration enforcement priorities. The Supreme Court held that the States lacked Article III standing to challenge the Biden administration’s immigration enforcement priorities and effectively reversed the Texas district court holding. The Biden policy prioritizes the arrest and removal of dangerous non-citizens and suspected terrorists.

Today U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the expansion of premium processing for change of status applications where individuals are looking to change to F, M, or J nonimmigrant status.

Premium processing will be implemented in the following phases:

• Beginning June 13, USCIS will accept premium processing requests, filed via paper form or online, for applicants seeking a change of status to F-1, F-2, M-1, M-2, J-1, or J-2 status, who have a pending Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status.
• Beginning June 26, USCIS will accept premium processing requests, filed either via paper form or online, for applicants seeking a change of status to F-1, F-2, M-1, M-2, J-1, or J-2 status, when filed together with Form I-539.

A few notes about this change:

1. Premium processing is only available for change of status requests at this time.
2. Applicants must submit their biometrics before premium processing can begin. Even if USCIS accepts an applicant’s Form I-907 and accompanying fees, the time limit for premium processing will not start running until the applicant and all co-applicants included on the Form I-539 submit their biometrics.

Please reach out to a CYA attorney with any questions about this new expansion to premium processing.

The U.S. Department of State posted the July 2023 visa bulletin, and there are some significant shifts to be seen. Unfortunately, in the most notable movement, EB-3 for India retrogressed from June 15, 2012, in June to January 1, 2009, and EB-3 for the rest of the world, Mexico, and the Philippines also retrogressed. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Serves has stated that for July 2023, applicants in all family-sponsored preference categories must use the Dates for Filing chart and applicants in all employment-based preference categories must use the Final Action Dates chart.

If you have questions about the visa bulletin or EB-3 retrogression, please contact the attorneys at CYA today!  

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If you or your employee did not get selected in the initial draw from this year’s H-1B lottery, unfortunately, you’re not alone. Since USCIS changed the H-1B process in 2020 to a bifurcated system that permits registration and lottery prior to filing a substantive H-1B petition, the number of applicants has gone up dramatically. Prior to 2020, an employer would need to file a full H-1B petition by the April deadline, and hope to receive a cap number. Now, for a very low registration fee, employers first enter their employees in the lottery, and if selected, the employer may then file a full H-1B petition for the beneficiary.

While the new registration system has many advantages, including not requiring employers to invest the full expense of an H-1B petition without knowing if their employee will be selected in the lottery, it has also had the effect of drastically increasing the pool of applicants, simultaneously decreasing the likelihood of selection for each person. This year’s lottery was especially bleak: during the registration period for the FY 2024 H-1B cap, USCIS saw a significant increase in the number of registrations submitted compared to prior years. There was an increase in the number of registrations submitted, the number of registrations submitted on behalf of beneficiaries with multiple registrations, and the number of registrations submitted on behalf of unique beneficiaries with only one registration. An astonishing 780,884 registrations were received in the lottery period, but ultimately, only 85,000 H-1B visas may be allotted each year. As a result, these numbers spelled disappointment for the vast majority of registrants.

This year’s lottery, more than ever, underscores the need for H-1B reform legislation that ensures that the supply of H-1B visas is responsive to the needs of U.S. employers and the economy.  If you did not receive an H-1B selection and would like to discuss your other visa options, reach out to the attorneys at CYA today.