On March 17, 2015, the VSC began issuing two-year work permits under 8 C.F.R. sec, 274a.12(c)(14) to U applicants granted Deferred Action under the conditional grant program. If there is an I-765 application based on 274a.12 (a)(19) or on (a)(20) submitted with the U visa application then it may be changed to a (c)(14) to issue an EAD without delay for the applicant. A principal applicant should include an I-765 based on (c)(14) with their U visa application. It is still a best practice for U visa derivatives to include two I-765 applications, one based on (c)(14) and one based...

H-1B Filing Tips On April 1, 2016, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will begin accepting H-1B petitions subject to the fiscal year (FY) 2017 cap. The congressionally mandated cap on H-1B visas for FY 2017 remains at  65,000. The first 20,000 H-1B petitions filed for individuals with a U.S. master’s degree or higher are exempt from the 65,000 cap. USCIS expects to receive more than 65,000 petitions during the first five business days of this year’s program. The agency will monitor the number of petitions received and notify the public when the H-1B cap has been met. If USCIS...

NATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR AMERICAN POLICY NFAP POLICY BRIEF  » M A R C H 2 0 1 6 IMMIGRANTS AND BILLION DOLLAR STARTUPS BY STUART ANDERSON EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Immigrants play a key role in creating new, fast-growing companies, as evidenced by the prevalence of foreign born founders and key personnel in the nation’s leading privately-held companies. Immigrants have started more than half (44 of 87) of America’s startup companies valued at $1 billion dollars or more and are key members of management or product development teams in over 70 percent (62 of 87) of these companies. The research finds that...

Lomi Kriel, Houston Chronicle, Mar. 15, 2016 - "The backlog in Houston's overwhelmed downtown immigration court grew more than 460 percent between 2010 and 2016, swelling from about 6,400 to 36,100 pending cases, according to a new analysis released Tuesday.  With only six immigration judges on the bench, Houston's court could see its case load double again in three years if no more are added, found the report by Human Rights First, a national nonprofit. In six years, the number of pending cases across the country could reach more than 1 million, twice as much as it is now."

USCIS will host a webinar on March 16, 2016, to discuss T and U visas and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), immigration relief for victims of human trafficking, domestic violence, and other serious crimes. Representatives from USCIS's Office of Policy and Strategy and the Vermont Service Center (VSC) will provide an overview of T and U visa eligibility requirements, law enforcement certification, and VAWA eligibility requirements. A question-and-answer period will follow the presentation.

The Fiscal Year 2017 H-1B season will end at the end of this month March 2016. USCIS will start accepting H-1B visa petitions on April 1, 2016. We anticipate that the cap will be reached during the first week it is opened, which was the case last year as well. For that reason we strongly recommend that you start your H-1B case and prepare for submission of the petition by April 1, 2016. For more information on H-1B visas, please contact us at 713. 527. 9606.

Deferred Action by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stops the unjust deportation of promising youth. To be eligible for deferred action the applicant must: Have arrived in the U.S. when they were under the age of sixteen; Have continuously resided in the U.S. for at least five years prior to June 15, 2012 and have been present in the U.S. on June 15, 2012; Currently be in school, have graduated from high school, have a GED, or be an honorably discharged veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard or the U.S. Armed Forces; Not have been convicted of a felony...