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The numbers are in!  The National Foundation for American Policy reports that the Denial rate for new H-1B petitions for the first two quarters of 2021 is 7.1%.  This is down from 28.6% for the first two quarters of 2020.  However, this does NOT mean we can relax.  USCIS approval trends are still far stricter […]

For nearly the past decade, H-1B beneficiaries who earned their degree outside of the United States in an educational system with a three-year bachelor’s degree program have run into trouble.  Those holding Indian three-year bachelor’s degrees are hit the hardest and most consistently.  Even though there are equal if not more classroom contact hours in […]

This year, the H-1B lottery held two rounds to fill all 85,000 visa slots, regular and advanced degree caps.  That means those selected in round two are knee-deep in RFE season.  The Double RFE, which takes issue with both the occupation and the wage level is common amongst complex RFEs and is based on two […]

RFE rates have been tough on H-1B beneficiaries hired to the position of computer programmer, particularly if they are making level one wages.  This trend began several years ago when USCIS stopped approving H-1B visas outright for jobs that normally but not ALWAYS required a bachelor’s degree as a minimum educational requirement.  This hit programmers […]

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California vacated the DHS Final Rule, “Modification of Registration Requirement for Petitioners Seeking to File Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions” on September 15th, in the case Chamber of Commerce, et al., v. DHS, et al.  This final rule, put forth under the Trump administration on January 8, 2021, […]

Issues regarding education is a perennial problem H-1B beneficiaries face when it comes time to file.  This is because there are many educational pathways that highly skilled workers take to acquire the specialized knowledge and skill sets that their employers hire them for.   If the educational pathway is anything but a US bachelor’s degree or […]

Complex RFEs can cause employment start date delays which throw a wrench in overall company workflow.  In recent years, we have seen as many as three rounds of RFEs before visa approval.  If your registration was selected for the second round of the H-1B lottery, it is essential to get that visa approved the FIRST […]

If you, or if your employee or client meets employment-based green card eligibility requirements, this is the year to file.  In a normal calendar year, there are 140,000 of these green cards available to companies that permanently employ foreign nationals.  This year, starting October 1, 2021, there will be over 290,000 available. Why is this […]

This is the second year the H-1B lottery has been conducted as a two-step process, with an initial electronic registration and subsequent selection and invitation to submit completed petitions.  On March 30th 2021, USCIS conducted the first lottery, selecting 87,500 registrations to fill 85,000 H-1B visa slots.  Applicants in the first round had until June […]