While many consulates across the globe accept credit card payments for visa application fees, Mission Mexico continues to require fees to be paid in cash at a bank in Mexico. Debit card payments are not accepted. The Department of State explained that this policy is a result of a high rate of credit card charge-backs […]
Read more...11 January 2019
USCIS announced that a lapse in annual appropriated funding does not affect USCIS’s fee-funded activities. USCIS offices will remain open, and all individuals should attend interviews and appointments as scheduled. USCIS will continue to accept petitions and applications, except as noted. The current lapse in annual appropriated funding for the U.S. government does not affect […]
Read more...9 January 2019
USCIS announced updates to the acceptable answers to four questions on the U.S. history and government (civics) test for individuals seeking naturalization as U.S. citizens. The revised answers to the questions are effective immediately. Q 20. Who is one of your state’s U.S. Senators now? The answer to this question may change as the result […]
Read more...5 January 2019
On November 9, 2018, President Trump issued a proclamation that, in combination with a rule promulgated by DHS and DOJ, bars from seeking asylum any individuals who enter the United States from Mexico between ports of entry. While affected individuals may still seek relief in the form of withholding of removal or protection under the Convention Against Torture, […]
Read more...3 January 2019
There have been multiple reports indicating that some fiscal year (FY) 2019 H-1B cap-subject petitions remain pending with the California Service Center (CSC). Some of these petitions appear to have not received an initial touch by the agency (e.g., Request for Evidence or Notice of Intent to Deny). USCIS indicated that it is unable to […]
Read more...2 January 2019
WASHINGTON – Today, Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M. Nielsen announced historic action to confront the illegal immigration crisis facing the United States. Effective immediately, the United States will begin the process of invoking Section 235(b)(2)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Under the Migration Protection Protocols (MPP), individuals arriving in or entering the United States from […]
Read more...27 December 2018
Background Applicants for nonimmigrant visas at U.S. consular posts abroad must complete an online Form DS-160. One of the questions on the form asks whether an immigrant petition has been filed on the applicant’s behalf. If the applicant is the principal beneficiary of an immigrant petition, the answer to the question is clearly “yes.” Less […]
Read more...24 December 2018
December 17, 2018 UPDATE: Congressional negotiations on federal spending for the remainder of FY 2019 remain very active. If Congress and the President can’t come to an agreement on a spending bill or continuing resolution by midnight December 21, 2018, approximately 25 percent of government functions will shut down. When it comes to immigration, agencies that […]
Read more...20 December 2018
December 18, 2018 USCIS recently updated its website with information regarding the agency’s practice of denying pending Form I-131 advance parole applications for abandonment due to international travel. Specifically, USCIS indicates on its website that if an applicant files Form I-131, Application for Travel Document, to request an advance parole document and departs the United States without […]
Read more...19 December 2018
On 12/4/18, over 80 members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to DHS Acting Inspector General requesting an immediate investigation into DHS’s decision to terminate TPS for Sudan, Nicaragua, Nepal, Haiti, El Salvador, and Honduras. Source: AILA Doc. No. 18122033.
Read more...17 December 2018
