Below are some takeaways from AILA regarding the Department of State's first "chat with Charlie" held on 3/17/2021 on the U.S. Department of State: Consular Affairs YouTube channel. This will be a recurring monthly segment where Charlie Oppenheim responds to the public’s questions regarding the Visa Bulletin. Debut of Chats with Charlie!The State Department’s inaugural engagement “Chats...
Since the Covid Pandemic began last year, we have been bombarded with inquiries from lawful permanent residents (LPRs) who expressed unwillingness to return to the US and asked about potential consequences of staying outside the US beyond 6 months. An LPR Lives in the U.S. Permanently Before we begin the analysis, it's important to set the expectations first of what it means to be an LPR. When...
We have been posting about the on-going delays affecting numerous case types since October 2020. USCIS Receipt Delays and Its Impact on Employment VerificationCIS Ombudsman Provides Case Assistance on Receipt Delays, Biometrics Appointment, EAD delaysUpdate on the Receipt Notice DelaysUSCIS Receipt Notice Update: N-400USCIS Receipt Notice Update: Final Two I-485 Receipt Notices Received (4...
On March 9, 2021, DHS announced that it would no longer defend the 2019 Public Charge Rule (2019 Rule) implemented by the Trump Administration which led to the creation of the Form I-944. Lawsuits were filed challenging the 2019 Rule. It has been confusing at times when the Rule was put on hold, then back on, then only applicable to some jurisdictions. Given that the last court decision was to...
DOL’s OFLC has released a FAQ regarding the extent of its accommodations for employers in Texas and Oklahoma who were impacted by the recent weather disaster. Accommodations include, for example, deadline flexibility and guidance relating to unintended changes in worksite. Anyone in these states who has on-going cases relating to PERM, labor certification, prevailing wage request, H-2A, H-2B,...
In order to pursue adjustment of status and become a lawful permanent resident (LPR), an applicant must in addition to meeting other requirements have been properly "inspected and admitted or paroled" into the United Sates. Otherwise, the applicant cannot apply for Green Card inside the U.S. A TPS recipient have lawful status in the U.S. given the TPS designation but oftentimes they obtained TPS...
As we have been posting recently, USCIS is experiencing record delays in issuing receipt notices of various applications. We just finally received all receipt notices in connection with I-485 employment based applications in October 2020 (a 4 month wait!). It does not seems like the situation is improving as we are continuing to receive various receipt notices that are 2 to 3 months late. The...
Update April 2, 2021 We are now receiving EAD/AP approvals from I-485 EB applications filed in October. USCIS processing time for EAD and AP have also been updated recently to reflect the current processing timeframe. You may initiate service inquiry if EAD/AP is pending outside of the posted time frame. Update March 18, 2021 We have now received a substantial number of Biometrics Appointment...
The answer should be fairly straightforward. But USCIS has not always been consistent in adjudicating similar cases. They are supposed to follow the "last action" rule. Once GC is approved, then the beneficiary becomes a lawful permanent resident from that point onwards. The pending H-1B extension may be approved but only up to the day before GC approval. But the varying adjudication outcomes...
