Immigration News

The H-1B cap lottery process has been conducted and completed for this fiscal year. Given the new H-1B regulation and registration process that was applied to this years’ lottery, no one really knew what to expect as far as what the odds of winning would be and how the process would go. This week USCIS finally released the lottery data which tells us:

• 114,017 beneficiaries were selected in the initial lottery this year.
• There was a decrease in the total number of registrations submitted as compared to last year, including a decrease in the number of beneficiaries with multiple registrations submitted on their behalf.
• This year there were ~442,000 beneficiaries who applied for the H-1B lottery whereas last year the number was ~446,000. However, the number of eligible registrations was down by 38.6% this year as compared to last year.
• Beneficiaries with multiple H-1B registrations submitted on their behalf decreased significantly – this year there were ~47,000 eligible registrations for beneficiaries with multiple registrations compared to more than 408,000 last year. That’s an 88% decrease!

This data tells us that while USCIS’s new regulations have improved the H-1B lottery process and made the system more fair, the H-1B system still falls short of offering the number of temporary nonimmigrant work visas that are needed by U.S. employers to cover demand.

USCIS announced last week that the Form I-693 Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record will no longer expire and can be used indefinitely so long as it was properly competed and signed by a U.S. civil surgeon on or after November 1, 2023. Woo!

Getting the medical exam completed can be expensive and time-consuming. Previously, long processing timelines resulted in applicants for lawful permanent residence needing to re-do their medical exams before their green card could be issued. Now, thanks to updates to public health electronic notification and recommendations from the CDC, USCIS has determined that a Form I-693’s evidentiary value should no longer be limited to a certain period if it is properly completed and was signed by a civil surgeon on or after Nov. 1, 2023. Of course, USCIS officers always have discretion to request more evidence or a new or updated Form I-693 if they have reason to believe the applicant’s medical condition has changed, that the Form I-693 submitted does not accurately reflect the applicant’s medical condition, or the applicant may be inadmissible on other health-related grounds.

If an applicant’s immigration medical examination was completed before Nov. 1, 2023, the prior policy still applies and the medical exam results will be valid for two years from the date of the civil surgeon’s signature.

The I-693 is filed when someone applies to get lawful permanent residence in the United States as a way of showing that they are not subject to any of the medical grounds of inadmissibility. Four general medical conditions can arise to make someone ineligible for permanent residence in the U.S. based on medical grounds. Those include:

1. Drug abuse or addition;
2. Failure to show proof of required vaccinations;
3. A communicable disease of public health significance; and/or
4. A physical or mental disorder with associated harmful behavior.

Public health concerns have been reflected in U.S. immigration law since the Immigration Act of 1882. Among other concerns, “persons suffering from a loathsome or a dangerous contagious disease” were not allowed to enter the United States. In 1990, Congress narrowed health-related grounds of inadmissibility to include only noncitizens with communicable diseases, physical or mental disorders with associated harmful behavior, or those with drug abuse or addiction problems. As of 1996, Congress began to require that all immigrant visa and adjustment of status applicants establish that they have been vaccinated against certain vaccine-preventable diseases.

If you’re looking to become a lawful permanent resident in the U.S. and have questions about health-related grounds of inadmissibility, reach out for a consultation.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a temporary final rule that will increase the automatic extension period applicable to certain expiring Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) to up to 540 days from the expiration date stated on the EADs. The temporary final rule is effective as of April 8, 2024. DHS is effecting these changes to prevent renewal applicants from experiencing a lapse in their employment authorization and documentation. Without this temporary rule, DHS estimates that approximately 800,000 renewal EAD applicants would be in danger of having their applications remain pending beyond the current 180-day auto-extension period because of USCIS processing delays. Thus, the 540-day extension is a welcome and necessary update. Comments on the temporary final rule are due by June 7, 2024.

It has been a whirlwind of a first quarter for USCIS and immigration attorneys across the country. In addition to USCIS announcing the conclusion of the H-1B Cap Lottery selection process yesterday, it was also the first day that USCIS’s new fee rule went into effect. Additionally, it was the first day that new versions of some of the most common immigration forms such as the I-129 and I-140 took effect. For some of these forms there is no grace period to accept prior editions of the forms, while for others prior editions will be accepted through June 3, 2024. The filing location for many immigration applications and petitions has also changed. CYA attorneys and staff are closing following all these updates and moving pieces. Never a dull moment trying to stay on top of the many substantive and procedural changes in the world of immigration! If you have questions about these or other changes, please reach out to your attorney or schedule a consultation with us.

This afternoon, USCIS announced that it had finished the process of notifying the winners of the H-1B Visa Lottery. All those “selected” to proceed, must file their H-1B petitions by June 30, 2024. Later in the summer, if USCIS determines that there are still H-1B visas available for this fiscal year, USCIS will initiate another round of “selections.”

USCIS’ new fees, forms and filing locations will be effective starting on Monday, April 1, 2024. On March 29, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado denied the Plaintiffs’ request to stop the new fees from going into effect, stating that the Plaintiffs’ failed to meet their burden of proof. (Moody, et. al. v. Mayorkas, et al. (Case No. 1:24-cv-00762, 3/19/24)).

The H-1B Cap Registration period closed on Monday, March 25, 2024, at 12 noon ET. USCIS has announced that it has run the lottery and notifications are being sent to myUSCIS accounts and will continue to be sent for the next few days. USCIS will make an official announcement once all the selection notices have been sent. Those that have been selected in the initial round of selections will have until June 30, 2024, to file their H-1B petitions. USCIS will then evaluate whether another round of selections will be made depending on how many of the 85,000 (65,000 for the Bachelor’s Cap and 20,000 for the U.S. Advanced Degree Cap) H-1B visas have been used. It seems like USCIS is taking a bit longer to send out all the selection notices this year, likely because of enhanced system checks for duplicate beneficiary registrations.

On March 19, 2024, the American Immigrant Investor Alliance, IT Service Alliance, and an EB-5 investor filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado challenging the legality of the new USCIS final fee rule, scheduled to take effect on April 1, 2024.  (Moody, et al. v. Mayorkas, et al., 3/19/24).  The District Court of Colorado may issue an order this week that stops the new fee rule from going into effect on April 1, 2024.  If so, USCIS would likely continue to accept the current filing fees and forms until the Court decides on the legality of the new fee rule.  Stay tuned, it’s going to be an exciting week!   

Due to technical issues and glitches with the online H-1B Cap Registration system, USCIS has extended the deadline for H-1B Cap Registration to Monday, March 25, 2024, at 12 noon ET. Once the registration period ends, USCIS will run the lottery and notify the winners that they have been selected to proceed with filing an H-1B petition by June 30, 2024. Good luck to all registrants!

If you thought USCIS was catching up with the 21^st century, think again! USCIS recently issued updated guidance regarding the signature requirement for the USCIS fillable version of the Form I-9. Even though the Form I-9 is an electronic fillable form, USCIS has clarified that employers/employees must still print and manually sign the form rather than typing or electronically signing signatures. Thus, employers and employees using the fillable version of the Form I-9 may electronically type answers directly into the form, except for the signature blocks. Any I-9s that have been completed with an electronic signature are noncompliant and need to be corrected. For more info, see this link.