Search Result for:

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on April 8, 2008, that it had received enough H-1B petitions to meet the congressionally mandated cap for fiscal year (FY) 2009. USCIS announced a preliminary number of nearly 163,000 H-1B petitions received during the filing period ending on April 7, 2008. More than 31,200 of those petitions… Read More

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued an interim final rule, effective April 8, 2008, that extends the maximum period of optional practical training (OPT) from 12 months to 29 months for F-1 students who have completed a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) degree and accept employment with employers enrolled in U.S. Citizenship and… Read More

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on April 24, 2008, that it has revised the Application for Employment Authorization (Form I-765) to include additional eligibility codes under the Department of Homeland Security’s interim final rule regarding Optional Practical Training (OPT), published on April 8, 2008. The rule modifies the conditions and duration of OPT… Read More

The Department of State has released a cable sent to the field on March 11, 2008, regarding student (F and M) and exchange visitor (J) nonimmigrant visa issues. Among other things, the cable notes that first-time visa applicants may be the highest priority when scheduling appointments, and repeat applicants may be scheduled on a lower-priority… Read More

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released the projected times for local offices to complete processing of citizenship applications filed during the summer of 2007. Projected processing times at the end of September 2008 range from a high of 14.7 months for Washington, D.C., to a low of 5 months for Helena, Montana. Last… Read More