San Francisco Immigration Law Blog

No Procedural Changes for H-1B FY2019 Cap Season Confirms SCOPS USCIS Service Center Operations Directorate (SCOPS) confirmed no procedural changes for the FY2019 H-1B cap season is anticipated The discussed pre-registration system procedures will not be implemented. The same procedures as were used for the FY2018 H-1B season will be followed. USCIS does not anticipate premium processing will be suspended

https://www.dhs.gov/news/2018/01/31/secretary-homeland-security-kirstjen-m-nielsen-announcement-temporary-protected Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security announced that Syrians with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) status will be eligible to re-register for an extension of status for 18 months, through 9/30/19. The decision to extend TPS for Syria was made after a review of the conditions upon which the country’s designation is based, which was ongoing armed conflict and

The government filed a petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment, asking the Supreme Court to review the case before the Ninth Circuit issues judgment. (DHS v. Regents of the University of California, 1/18/18) (DHS v. Regents of the University of California, 1/18/18)

https://www.uscis.gov/news/news-releases/uscis-updates-policy-ensure-petitioners-meet-burden-proof-nonimmigrant-worker-extension-petitions Versión en español Release Date: Oct. 23, 2017 WASHINGTON – Under updated policy guidance (PDF, 97 KB), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is instructing its officers to apply the same level of scrutiny to both initial petitions and extension requests for certain nonimmigrant visa categories. The guidance applies to nearly all nonimmigrant classifications filed using Form I-129, Petition

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/attorney-general-jeff-sessions-rescinds-25-guidance-documents December 21, 2017, Department Of Justice (DOJ), Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that, pursuant to Executive Order 13777 and his November memorandum prohibiting certain guidance documents, he rescinds 25 documents, he states are unnecessary, inconsistent with existing law, or otherwise improper. The list of 25 guidance documents that DOJ has withdrawn in 2017 is as follows: ATF Procedure 75-4.

DOL announced a change in the H2B processing because on January 1, 2018 the number of H2B applications exceeded the number of H2B visas available. https://www.foreignlaborcert.doleta.gov/news.cfm On January 1, 2018, the earliest date on which an employer seeking an employment start date of April 1 through September 30, 2018, OFLC received approximately 4,500 applications covering more than 81,600 worker positions.

Employment Authorization for Haitians with TPS Automatically Extended Until July 21, 2018 WASHINGTON-U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that current beneficiaries of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) under Haiti’s designation who want to maintain that status through the program’s termination date of July 22, 2019, must re-register between Jan. 18, 2018, and March 19, 2018. Re-registration procedures, including how

USCIS and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in consultation with the Department of State, have published the list of countries whose nationals are eligible to receive H-2A and H‑2B visas in 2018. The notice listing the eligible countries was published on Jan. 18, 2018, in the Federal Register. For 2018, Secretary of Homeland Security Nielsen and Secretary of State