USCIS Announces Temporary Suspension for Premium Processing on H-1B Petitions
Beginning April 3, 2017, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will temporarily suspend premium processing for all H-1B petitions, possibly lasting up to 6 months. During the suspension, petitioners will be unable to file Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service for a Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker which requests the H-1B nonimmigrant classification. USCIS will notify the public before acceptance of premium processing application resumes.
Who is affected?
The suspension applies to all H-1B petitions filed on or after April 3, 2017. Because FY18 cap-subject H-1B petitions cannot be filed before that deadline, the suspension will apply to all petitions filed for the FY18 H-1B regular cap and master’s advanced degree cap exemptions (the “master’s cap”). Petitions that may be cap-exempt are also affected by the suspension.
While the suspension is in effect, USCIS will reject any Form I-907 filed with an H-1B petition. If the petitioner submits one combined check for both Form I-907 and Form I-129 H-1B fees, USCIS will have to reject both forms.
As long as the petitioner properly files an associated Form I-907 before April 3, 2017, USCIS will continue to premium process Form I-129 H-1B petitions. Premium processing fees will be refunded if both:
- The petitioner filed the Form I-907 for an H-1B petition before April 3, 2017; and
- USCIS did not take adjudicative action within the 15-calendar-day processing period.
The temporary premium processing suspension does not apply to other eligible nonimmigrant classifications filed on Form I-129.
Requesting expedited processing
While premium processing is suspended, petitioners can submit a request to expedite an H-1B petition as long as the criteria on the Expedite Criteria webpage are met. The petitioner holds the obligation to demonstrate that they meet at least one of the expedite criteria, and documentary evidence supporting their expedite request is encouraged by USCIS. All expedite requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and are granted at the discretion of the office leadership.
Why is USCIS temporarily suspending premium processing for H-1B petitions?
The suspension is being implemented in efforts to reduce overall H-1B processing times. Temporarily suspending premium processing will enable USCIS to:
- Process long-pending petitions, which USCIS has not been able to do because of the high volume of incoming petitions and the significant influx of premium processing requests over the past few years; and
- Prioritize adjudication of H-1B extension of status cases nearing the 240 day mark.
For more information, view the USCIS announcement.
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USCIS Updates Numerous Forms
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has updated a number of forms within the past two months. Below is a list of each of the effected forms and pertinent changes that have been made to them.
- Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record
Starting 04/28/2017, civil surgeons will be required to use the 02/07/2017 edition of Form I-693. This version has an expiration date of 02/28/2019 displayed in the top-right corner of page 1. After 04/28/2017, USCIS will stop receiving any editions with an expiration date of 03/31/2017 or earlier, which has been signed by a civil surgeon on or after 04/28/2017. The edition date can be found on the bottom of the page of the Forms and Instructions.
- Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card
Beginning 04/28/2017, USCIS will only accept 02/27/2017 editions. Until that date, the 12/23/2016 edition is acceptable.
- Form N-600K, Application for Citizenship and Issuance of Certificate Under Section 322
Beginning 04/28/2017, USCIS will only accept 02/13/2017 editions. Until that date, the 12/23/2017 edition is acceptable.
- Form N-600, Application for Certificate of Citizenship
Beginning 04/28/2017, USCIS will only accept 02/13/2017 editions. Until that date, the 12/23/2017 edition is acceptable.
- Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record
Beginning 04/28/2017, USCIS will only accept 02/07/2017 editions. Until that date, the 03/30/2015 edition is acceptable.
- Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative
Beginning 04/28/2017, USCIS will only accept 02/27/2017 editions. Until that date, the 12/23/2016 edition is acceptable. New Form I-130A, Supplemental Information for Spouse Beneficiary is also now available.
- Form I-942P, Income Guidelines for Reduced Fees
The new edition is dated 02/06/2017; you can find the edition date at the bottom of the page on the Form and Instructions.
- Form I-912P, HHS Guidelines for Fee Waiver Request
Only the new edition dated 02/06/2017 should be used; all earlier editions will not be accepted.
- Form I-821D, Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
While the newest edition is dated 01/09/2017, the previous edition dated 06/04/2014 is also accepted.
- I-914, Application for T Nonimmigrant Status
Beginning 03/20/2017, USCIS will only accept the 01/18/2017 edition. Until that date, editions dated 03/30/2009, 02/01/2011, 05/04/2012, or 07/29/2014 will be accepted.
For more information, view USCIS’ update page.
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“Dreamer” Says “Super Happy” With Jail Release
While President Trump claimed that he would manage individuals brought to the country as children illegally, one such “dreamer” was arrested for expired registration and lacking proof of insurance and subsequently detained overnight by Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) on February 21, 2017. Edwin Santiago Romero was picked up by police for an outstanding warrant on the evening of the 21st, and though his friends paid the $1,050 to clear his warrants at 3 A.M., he was held overnight by a detainer issued by ICE. The 26-year old Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) beneficiary and University of Texas Dallas student said at a news conference after his release that he was “super happy” to be freed. Though President Trump issued executive orders emphasizing more stringent enforcement against illegal immigration, he exempt the more than 752,000 individuals receiving DACA protections. Under the immigrational enforcement policies in the Obama administration, traffic warrants would not constitute a reason to detain an unauthorized immigrant, but under the new policies laid out by Trump, ICE’s power scope is widened, which allows for expedition of the deportation of unauthorized immigrants. A key organizer in the North Texas Dream Team, which is part of a larger nationwide group fighting to legal status for most of the unauthorized population in the United States, Romero’s detention represents the exact kind of circumstances he has been so actively fighting against. “There is an army of community people behind us,” Romero asserted at the news conference. “Don’t have fear. Be informed.”
For more information, view the full article.
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Mississippi ‘Dreamer’ targeted for deportation after speaking out on immigration
Attorneys representing a 22-year-old Mississippian Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) beneficiary claim that she has been unconstitutionally targeted for speaking out at a news conference, professing “dreamers” and other immigrants be given a path to citizenship.
Daniella Vargas was brought to America when she was seven years old from Argentina, where she is a citizen, and later received DACA protection from deportation. On her way home from a rally and news conference with her friend she was taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. According to her friend, two law enforcement vehicles pulled their car over, and four law enforcement agents opened Vargas’ door, removed her from the vehicle, and handcuffed her before taking her into custody.
Vargas had a well-documented interaction with ICE on February 15 of this year, when agents detained her father and brother at their residence as they left for work. Vargas barricaded herself inside of a closet as agents burst into the home, and after handcuffing her, they later released her due to a pending DACA case. The difference in circumstances between that incident and the one after the rally is what her attorneys are asking of law enforcement.
Vargas has no criminal history and has plans of becoming a math teacher to help better her community. She received DACA protection twice, first in 2012 then again in 2014, and was saving money for the $495 renewal fee when her latest benefit expired in November of 2016. Once the money was raised, her attorneys filed her renewal application in February this year.
After her detainment, Thomas Byrd, a spokesman for ICE, made a statement which declared Vargas an “unlawfully present Argentinian citizen” and described the circumstances of her detainment as a “targeted immigration enforcement action.” Byrd went on in the statement to say, “ICE exercised discretion to not take her into custody due to her claim that she had DACA,” during the February encounter. “Subsequent to this encounter, ICE verified that Ms. Vargas does not currently have approved DACA status.”
Vargas’ attorneys were surprised by her detainment, due in part to President Trump’s claims that he was “going to deal with DACA with heart.” One of the organizers of the news conference, Ramiro Orozco, an immigration lawyer based in Jackson, believed that the detainment was retaliation for speaking out about Dreamers. “I believe she was targeted,” he asserted, “I believe this is a maverick rogue office in Pearl, Mississippi, emboldened by federal policy memos.”
For more information, view the full article.
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After Dropping Daughter off at School, Immigrant Arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Pulling away from his 12-year old daughter’s school after dropping her off and turning onto a main road, two unmarked, black vehicles flashed their lights and pulled over Avelica-Gonzalez. Agents for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained the 48-year old father of four, with his wife and 13-year old daughter in the car. While ICE identified the arrest as routine, citing a 2014 order for his deportation, the arrest sent a shockwave of fear through the largely immigrant population which resides in the northern California neighborhood. Furthermore, Acadamea Avance, the charter school where Avelica-Gonzales’ daughter was dropped off, was so effected by the incident, that they felt compelled to hold an assembly at which they addressed the concerns over what happened. Ricardo Mireles, the school’s executive director, even instructed his teachers to discuss with students whose parents are illegally present about making a family plan in case their relatives are detained or deported. “It’s unfortunate we now have to have minors deal with reality” the executive director opined. “You need to be ready. ‘Have you talked to your parents? Do you have power of attorney?’” such were questions which teachers were forced to ask of their students.
While targeted operations by ICE agents are nothing out of the ordinary, such operations were quite common under the Obama administration, raids conducted under President Trump have faced much harsher criticism. This is partly due to the paradigm of avoiding conducting enforcement activities at so called “sensitive locations” under which ICE has always operated. The fact that the current administration shows no hesitancy to detain individuals at schools, hospitals, or churches is an undeniable aspect of the staunch opposition facing their efforts.
Amplifying the attention paid to this incident is the fact that Fatima Avelica, Avelica-Gonzales’ 13-year old daughter who was in the car at the time of the arrest, recorded part of the incident on the cellphone video camera. She is heard sobbing on the video, and utilizing Google Maps technology, the Los Angeles Times was able to identify that the arrest took place six blocks from Academa Avance, and three blocks from another school in the area. Attorneys and advocates suggest that this is the closest to a school an ICE detainment has occurred. While there are many rumors of arrests taking place in close proximity to schools, most have turned out to be false. Documented national cases, such as a woman’s detainment while seeking domestic abuse relief outside of a Texas courthouse, and men in Virginia being arrested outside of a church warming shelter, serve to influence public opinion.
An ICE agent who made comments under anonymity, asserted that in the past arrests were intentionally made in locations that would have the least impact on the fewest innocent bystanders. This usually meant that arrests would take place in jails or at the residences of the individuals. According to the unnamed source, however, a recent sharp increase in immigrants refusing to open doors for agents without warrants coupled with jails ceasing collaboration with ICE agents by detaining individuals until the agents’ arrival have culminated in more arrests taking place on the streets.
For more information, view the full article.
Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk.