May Visa Bulletin

Each month, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) publishes the Visa Bulletin, listing all "preference" categories and states whether a backlog exists for each one. In addition, the categories are folded into two charts: “Final Action” chart and a “Dates for Filing” chart for Family-Based immigration and Employment-Based immigration.

In May, the EB-1 preference category on the Final Action Chart remains current for all countries other than China and India. The EB-1 priority dates for China and India for May are September 1, 2022 and March1, 2021 respectively.  

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) determined that Chart A (Final Action Dates Employment-Based Visa Applications) could be used in May. Both the EB-2 and EB-3 preference categories remains backlogged for all countries, which means that individuals in these categories may not file Form I-485 applications until their priority dates become “current.”

The complete Visa Bulletin, including priority dates for family-based immigrant applications, can be found on the Department of State website.

If you have questions about planning, please schedule a consultation with one of the attorneys at Iandoli, Desai & Cronin (info@iandoli.com).

USCIS Launching a Pilot of E-Verify+ in Spring 2024

USCIS has announced the upcoming trial launch of E-Verify+, a platform intended to streamlining the Form I-9 and employment eligibility verification process into one seamless experience.  Details about this new feature can be found here. This feature is expected to become available later this year, with a pilot launch this spring. USCIS invites feedback during this trial period.

Department of Justice settlement with Washington University School of Medicine related to I-9 Discrimination and Retaliation

On April 16, 2024, the U.S. Justice Department announced a settlement agreement between a plaintiff and the Washington University School of Medicine. The agreement resolves the department’s determination that its medical school, known as Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, violated antidiscrimination requirements under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by discriminating against an employee based on his citizenship status and then retaliating against him for complaining about the discrimination.

The Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) found that the university discriminated against an individual who had been granted asylum by the federal government by “repeatedly confronting” him about his immigration status in relation to his right to work, even though he had provided sufficient proof of valid work authorization. The department also determined that the university had retaliated against the plaintiff by terminating his employment after he complained about the discrimination.

The settlement requires that the school pay civil penalties to the United States and pay backpay to the affected employee who filed a complaint with IER. The agreement also requires the school to train its personnel on immigration related antidiscrimination requirements, and revise its employment policies.  The school will also be subject to departmental monitoring and reporting requirements.

J-1 for Japanese language & culture specialists

On April 19, 2024, a Federal Register notice posted by the Department of State (DOS) announced a new international exchange visitor program for Japan. The program authorizes an exception under the Specialist category in the Exchange Visitor Program regulations to permit Japanese language and culture specialists to stay up to 36 months in the United States on J-1 visas.

The purpose of the program is to “…expand educational and cultural exchange opportunities between the people of the United States and Japan, promote the interchange of knowledge and skills among foreign and U.S. specialists, and foster long-term mutual understanding and international cooperation with U.S. communities across the United States… During their program, exchange visitors from Japan will share their specialized knowledge of Japanese language and education in the United States at community based, non-profit organizations, U.S. Government offices, secondary schools, or post-secondary academic institutions offering Japanese, and similar types of institutions to increase U.S. local communities' understanding of Japan, its culture, and language. Selected experts in Japanese culture and language will gain a better understanding of U.S. culture and society and promote mutual enrichment by enhancing U.S. knowledge of Japanese culture, language, and educational systems.” 

More information about the J-1 Visitor Exchange Program can be found here.

Employment Authorization for Certain Palestinian F-1s experiencing Severe Economic Hardship and for certain individuals covered by “Deferred Enforced Departure"

Per the Federal Notice posted on April 15, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is suspending certain regulatory requirements for certain Palestinian F-1 nonimmigrant students who are experiencing severe economic hardship as a direct result of the current humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian Territories. DHS is providing relief to these students who are in lawful F-1 nonimmigrant status, so the students may request employment authorization, work an increased number of hours while school is in session, and reduce their course load while continuing to maintain their F-1 nonimmigrant status.

Applicants covered under DED for Palestinians can apply for a DED-based Employment Authorization Document (EAD) valid through Aug. 13, 2025 may apply by following the instructions provided in the Federal Register notice to apply for an EAD.

Applicants must file Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, and pay the associated fee (or request a fee waiver). On Form I-765, applicants must indicate that they are covered under DED for Palestinians by putting “(a)(11)” in response to Question 27.

General processing times for Form I-765 can be found on USCIS’s processing times page.

Department of State Suspends Visa Services in Haiti

Per the announcement issued on April 15th, 2024 The Department of State has suspended visa services in Haiti and has provided a list of options Haitian nationals seeking U.S. visas may consider:

Immigrant Visas

Information about Immigrant visas can be found here.   As the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince has suspended routine immigrant visa appointments until further notice,  immigrant visa applicants who can travel to another U.S. embassy or consulate that processes immigrant visas and remain in that country for the duration of their visa processing should consider requesting the transfer of their case.  If the case is pending at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, the applicant may contact a new U.S. embassy or consulate in writing to request the transfer of their immigrant visa case.  Evidence will be needed to demonstrate the applicant’s presence in (or ability to travel to) the country where they would like their case transferred, and evidence that they will be in that country for the duration of their case. Applicants can find the contact information for Immigrant Visa Units at U.S. embassies and consulates here. If the case is Pending at the National Visa Center (NVC), applicants may contact NVC here to request a transfer to another post for immigrant visa processing.  Again,  the applicant must provide evidence of the ability to enter and remain in the requested country for the duration of the process.

The NVC can also be contacted for expedited case processing at the new consular section (NVCExpedite@state.gov).  Applicants requesting that a case be expedited must provide a specific reason for the request, and cases in family preference visa categories that are not yet current are not eligible to expedite.

Adoption
Dept of State continues to communicate with U.S. adoptive families in the intercountry adoption process and adoption service providers regarding these matters and is to individual inquiries from Adoption Service Providers and prospective adoptive parents.

U.S. citizens who have adopted Haitian children through the domestic Haitian process and have an appointment date from USCIS for an N-600K interview may apply for a B-1/B-2 visa for the child to attend the interview and naturalize.  Dept of State indicates that this is only appropriate for children who do not intend to reside in the United States. 

Nonimmigrant visas
As routine visa processing has been suspended, the U.S. Embassy in Port au Prince can only accept expedited nonimmigrant visa appointments for life-or-death medical emergencies (with proof of travel plans) or to facilitate travel for a child with a confirmed USCIS appointment for a naturalization interview based on a Form N-600K.  Applicants can submit a request for an expedited NIV appointment by following the instructions here. 

Nonimmigrant visa applicants may apply at any embassy or consulate where they are physically present and where appointments are available.  A full list of embassies and consulates is available here. Wait times for appointments at embassies can be looked up here.  Applicants with a scheduled interview can submit a request for an expedited appointment date, but they must describe qualifying circumstances that justify moving up their appointment. 

USCIS Announces Open Application Period for the Citizenship and Integration Grant Program

On April 24, 2024, USCIS announced the application period for the Citizenship and Integration Grant Program, which provides grant funding for citizenship preparation programs in communities across the country. The program will provide up to $10 million in grants to prepare legal immigrants for naturalization and promote civic integration through increased knowledge of English, U.S. history, and civics.

Per the USCIS announcement, the program expects to award up to 40 organizations up to $300,000 each for two years to expand availability of high-quality citizenship and integration services. This grant opportunity will fund public or nonprofit organizations that offer both citizenship instruction and naturalization application services to lawful permanent residents. Applications are due by June 21.  Prospective applications can review information on the application process here.

USCIS National Adoption Engagement

On May 20, 2024, USCIS will be hosting a National Adoption Engagement from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. Eastern time.  During this engagement, USCIS will provide adoption-related updates, receive stakeholder feedback on adoption customer service and processing, and answer questions.  USCIS is specifically seeking feedback on:

• Orphan and Hague Adoption Process USCIS National Adoption Engagement ing:

• What parts of the USCIS adoption process do you feel are working well?

• What would you like to see improve about the USCIS adoption process (notices, processing times, etc.)?

• Customer service matters including USCIS’s adoption-related customer service (voicemail and email box) for orphan and Hague cases.

USCIS is not asking for feedback or taking questions on areas that are the Department of State’s (DOS’s) responsibility, such as country conditions and adoption processing at consular posts abroad.  Those matters should be directed to DOS directly at adoption@state.gov or the DOS adoption website here.  

Interested individuals can register for the engagement webinar here.  After registering, participants are encouraged to submit questions in advance by emailing public.engagement@uscis.dhs.gov by 4 p.m. Eastern time on Friday, May 10.  Emails should have “National Adoption Engagement” in the subject line.

USCIS Provides Third Gender Option on Form N-400

On April 1, 2024, USCIS announced a revised Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, to provide a third gender option, “X,” defined as “Another Gender Identity.” USCIS is also updating guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual accordingly to account for this form revision and other forthcoming form revisions that will add a third gender option; see the Policy Alert. 

The 04/01/24 edition of Form N-400 will be the first USCIS form to include the X gender option. Applicants filing this edition of Form N-400 on or after April 1, 2024, will have X immediately available as a gender option on their form.

Applicants who have a pending Form N-400 using the edition in effect before April 1, 2024, may request to update their gender on or after April 1, 2024, as well. For all other forms, individuals must wait until USCIS revises those forms to include the X gender option.

Applicants do not need to provide supporting documentation to select X as their gender initially or to change their gender selection for Form N-400. The gender selected does not need to match the gender listed on applicant’s other immigration documents or on supporting identity documents, such as the birth certificate, passport, or state identification.

Note that if the X gender option is selected on the new Form N-400, the applicant may need to visit a Social Security office for a Social Security card or to update their citizenship status. The Social Security Administration is still developing systems to accept the X gender option.

H-1B Initial Electronic Registration Selection Process Completed

On April 1, 2024, USCIS announced that it had received enough electronic registrations for unique beneficiaries during the initial registration period to reach the fiscal year (FY) 2025 H-1B numerical allocations (H-1B cap), including the advanced degree exemption (master’s cap). All prospective petitioners with selected beneficiaries have been notified that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for such beneficiaries.

Registrants’ online accounts will now show one of the following statuses for each registration (that is, for each beneficiary registered):

• Submitted: The registration has been submitted and is eligible for selection. If the initial selection process has been completed, this registration remains eligible, unless subsequently invalidated, for selection in any subsequent selections for the fiscal year for which it was submitted.

• Selected: Selected to file an H-1B cap petition.

• Not Selected: Not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this registration.

• Denied – duplicate registration: Multiple registrations were submitted by or on behalf of the same registrant for the same beneficiary. If denied as a duplicate registration, all registrations submitted by or on behalf of the same registrant for this beneficiary for the fiscal year are invalid.

• Invalidated – failed payment: A registration was submitted but the payment method was declined, not reconciled, or otherwise invalid.

• Deleted: The submitted registration has been deleted and is no longer eligible for selection.

• Processing submission: USCIS is processing your submission. It may take up to 72 hours for all of your case information to show on the case details page. While it is processing, you will be unable to access your draft.

H-1B cap-subject petitions for FY 2025, including those petitions eligible for the advanced degree exemption, may be filed with USCIS beginning April 1, 2024 through June 30, 2024, if filed for a selected beneficiary and based on a valid registration.  Only petitioners with registrations for selected beneficiaries may file H-1B cap-subject petitions for FY 2025.