USCIS Prediction For FY2015 H1B Cap

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will begin accepting H-1B petitions subject to the fiscal year (FY) 2015 cap on April 1, 2014. Cases will be considered accepted on the date that USCIS receives a properly filed petition with the correct fee. USCIS will not rely on the date that the petition is postmarked.

The congressionally mandated cap on H-1B visas for FY 2015 is 65,000. The first 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of individuals with a U.S. master’s degree or higher are exempt from the 65,000 cap.

USCIS anticipates receiving more than enough petitions to reach both caps by April 7. The agency is prepared to use a random selection process to meet the numerical limit. Non-duplicate petitions that are not selected will be rejected and returned with the filing fees.

Due to the high level of premium processing receipts anticipated, combined with the possibility that the H-1B cap will be met in the first 5 business days of the filing season, USCIS has temporarily adjusted its current premium processing practice. To facilitate the prioritized intake of cap-subject petitions requesting premium processing, USCIS will begin premium processing for H-1B cap cases no later than April 28, 2014. For more information on premium processing for FY 2015 cap-subject petitions, see the USCIS Alert.

USCIS US Citizen I-129F, I-130 & I-485 Processing Statistics As Of 01/31/14

Please see below latest US Citizen Beneficiary Statistics released by USCIS:

USCIS I-130 - Immediate Relative Category Processing Statistics:

	CSC	VSC	National
All Other Pending	9,410	21,296	325,192
Customer action waiting	12,905	1,542	25,107
Completed	18,830	1,523	68,636
New receipts	76	3,660	37,224

CSC = California Service Center 
VSC = Vermont Service Center 
    
USCIS I-129F Processing Statistics:

	CSC	VSC	National
All Other Pending	2,635	1,041	11,647
Customer action waiting	1,407	141	2,040
Completed	2,195	809	4,845
New receipts	1,676	76	3,951

USCIS I-485 Processing Statistics: 

USCIS FB I-485 & I-130 Processing Statistics As Of 01/31/14

Please see below latest FB (family based) statistics released by USCIS:

USCIS I-130 - Preference Category Processing Statistics

	CSC	VSC	NSC	National
All Other Pending	3,259	12,641	0	20,900
Pending but adjudication deferred	349,520	120,511	5,140	480,008
Customer action waiting	12,062	6,114	1,589	19,972
Completed	10,506	6,901	1,999	21,031
New receipts	14,892	3,882	557	19,445

Volume in Texas Service Center (TSC) is currently low.

CSC = California Service Center
VSC = Vermont Service Center
NSC = Nebraska Service Center
 
USCIS FB I-485 Processing Statistics

USCIS EB I-140 and I-485 Processing Statistics As Of 01/31/14

USCIS EB I-140 Processing Statistics 

	TSC	NSC	National
Pending	10,499	3,578	14,149
Customer Action Wait	795	2,602	3,397
Completed	1,946	1,573	3,520
New Receipt	3,050	2,437	5,487

The number of completed cases in most categories decreased at both NSC and TSC in the last one month.

USCIS EB I-485 Processing Statistics

USCIS Reaches H-2B Cap for First Half of Fiscal Year 2014

USCIS has received a sufficient number of petitions to reach the congressionally mandated H-2B cap for the first half of Fiscal Year (FY) 2014. March 14, 2014 is the final receipt date for new H-2B worker petitions requesting an employment start date before April 1, 2014.

How We Determine the Final Receipt Date
The final receipt date is when we have received enough cap-subject petitions to reach the statutory limit of 33,000 H-2B workers for the first half of FY 2014. There will not be any carry over spots from the first half to the second half of FY 2014.

What Happens After Reaching the Cap
USCIS will reject new H-2B petitions that:

• Request an employment start date before April 1, 2014; and
• Were received after March 14, 2014.

USCIS Announces 63 Countries Eligible to Participate in the H-2A and H-2B Visa Programs

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced the Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Department of State, has added Austria, Italy, Panama, and Thailand to the list of countries whose nationals are eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B Visa programs for the coming year. The notice listing the 63 eligible countries published January 17, 2014 in the Federal Register.

The H-2A and H-2B Visa programs allow U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary agricultural and nonagricultural jobs, respectively. Generally, USCIS only approves H-2A and H-2B petitions for nationals of countries the secretary of Homeland Security has designated as eligible to participate in the programs.

USCIS may approve H-2A and H-2B petitions for nationals of countries not on the list if it is determined to be in the interest of the United States.

Effective Jan. 18, 2014, nationals of the following 63 countries are eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B Visa programs:

Argentina	Fiji	Mexico	Slovakia
Australia	Grenada	Moldova	Slovenia
Austria	Guatemala	Montenegro	Solomon Islands
Barbados	Haiti	Nauru	South Africa
Belize	Honduras	The Netherlands	South Korea
Brazil	Hungary	Nicaragua	Spain
Bulgaria	Iceland	New Zealand	Switzerland
Canada	Ireland	Norway	Thailand
Chile	Israel	Panama	Tonga
Costa Rica	Italy	Papua New Guinea	Turkey
Croatia	Jamaica	Peru	Tuvalu
Dominican Republic	Japan	The Philippines	Ukraine
Ecuador	Kiribati	Poland	United Kingdom
El Salvador	Latvia	Romania	Uruguay
Estonia	Lithuania	Samoa	Vanuatu
Ethiopia	Macedonia	Serbia

USCIS Revises Form N-400, Application for Naturalization

As part of its form improvements initiative, USCIS is today releasing a revised Form N-400, Application for Naturalization. Through the Federal Register, USCIS received numerous comments from the public that helped inform this revision.

The revisions to Form N-400 provide USCIS with additional tools to make important eligibility determinations, present customers with clearer instructions, and incorporate technology that improves efficiency and accuracy for both USCIS and our customers. Although the form is now revised, the eligibility requirements for naturalization have not changed. For information on the requirements, see A Guide to Naturalization.

The revised Form N-400 (see an introductory video here) now includes:

• Additional questions to conform with the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act (IRTPA) of 2004 and Child Soldier Prevention Act of 2008. The additional information is important for USCIS to make a complete and informed determination of an applicant’s eligibility for U.S. citizenship. The questions relate not only to concerns surrounding good moral character but also to issues relating to the security of the United States.
• Clearer and more comprehensive instructions now highlight general eligibility requirements and help customers understand the naturalization application process by providing specific instructions on how to complete each part of the application.
• 2D barcode technology at the bottom of each page that greatly enhances USCIS’s ability to more efficiently scan data for direct input to USCIS systems. This feature results in improved data quality, efficiency in processing, and overall integrity of the naturalization program. USCIS now has a dedicated Web page for vendors so that third-party software products may also share in the benefits of this technology.

The revised form is now available at www.uscis.gov/n-400. Customers may continue to use previous versions of the form for a 90-day transition period. On Monday, May 5, 2014, USCIS will no longer accept older versions of Form N-400. USCIS will reject and return previous versions of Form N-400 submitted after May 5, 2014.

USCIS Introduces Form I-910 and Centralizes the Civil Surgeon Application Process

USCIS has implemented a new process to receive and adjudicate applications for civil surgeon designation centrally at the National Benefits Center. This process change requires physicians seeking civil surgeon designation to file a formal application at a USCIS Lockbox. Centralizing the civil surgeon application process will:

• Improve the application intake process;
• Enhance USCIS’s ability to manage and track civil surgeon applications;
• Promote consistency and uniformity in USCIS decisions on civil surgeon-related matters; and
• Improve overall efficiency and integrity of the program.

Physicians seeking civil surgeon designation need to complete Form I-910, Application for Civil Surgeon Designation, and pay a $615 application fee. This new application form and process implements provisions of the agency’s 2010 Fee Rule. It does not affect current civil surgeons.

May 2014 Visa Bulletin Predictions

For April 2014 Visa Bulletin, please click here: http://blog.mygcvisa.com/2014/03/april-2014-visa-bulletin.html

Please see May 2014 Visa Bulletin Predictions below (for both Family Based and Employment Based):

Quick Summary:

• EB1, EB4, EB 5: Current
• EB2 Rest Of World: Current
  EB2 China: 4-6 weeks (still behind EB3 China)
  EB2 India: 0 day. Please see article 1. Also see article 2.
• EB3 (ROW, China, Mexico): 0 to 1 month. Please see article.
  EB3 India:  0 to 1 week
  EB3 Philippines: 6 to 10 weeks. Please see article.
• FB categories: 1 to 5 weeks. Please see article.
• F2A: 0 day. Please see article.

Please Note: These numbers do not include the 10,000 additional unused visas from FB category to EB category.

Family Based:

Family-Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	15MAR07	15MAR07	15MAR07	15NOV93	08JAN02
F2A	08SEP13	08SEP13	08SEP13	15APR12	08SEP13
F2B	15DEC06	15DEC06	15DEC06	01MAY93	15JUN03
F3	15AUG03	15AUG03	15AUG03	01JUL93	01MAR93
F4	08DEC01	08DEC01	08DEC01	01DEC96	01NOV90

Employment Based:

April 2014 Visa Bulletin Analysis

For April 2014 Visa Bulletin, please click here: http://blog.mygcvisa.com/2014/03/april-2014-visa-bulletin.html

Please see below analysis of April 2014 Visa Bulletin:

EB1: All EB1 categories are current and should continue to remain current for fiscal year. Demand continues to be around 1000-1200 every month (per the latest pending inventory).

EB2 ROW: This category continues to remain current. Demand in EB2ROW continues to be very low at an average of around 400 per month. This is good news for EB2 India and China, as they could get a higher spillover in FY 2014.

EB2 China: EB2 China also moved forward by 3 weeks. It should continue to move forward around 3 to 5 weeks per month. It is still be behind EB3 China which is ahead by more than 3 years.

EB2 India: There was no change in EB2 India movement. As we had mentioned earlier, there was huge retrogression in EB2 India due to large amount of porting from EB3 India to EB2 India. We have added a blog post exclusive to EB2 India movement in fiscal year 2014. Also please see this blog post for updates in EB2 (India, ROW and China) category.

April 2014 Visa Bulletin

For March 2013 Visa Bulletin, please click here: http://blog.mygcvisa.com/2014/02/march-2014-visa-bulletin.html

April 2014 Visa Bulletin has been released (valid from April 1 to April 30 only). Please see below for more details.

Family Based:

Family-Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	22FEB07	22FEB07	22FEB07	01NOV93	01NOV01
F2A	08SEP13	08SEP13	08SEP13	15APR12	08SEP13
F2B	22OCT06	22OCT06	22OCT06	01MAY93	08JUN03
F3	15JUL03	15JUL03	15JUL03	22JUN93	22FEB93
F4	22NOV01	22NOV01	22NOV01	22NOV96	01OCT90

Employment Based:

April 2014 Demand Data

April 2014 Demand Data should be published soon. Demand data is used by DOS to calculate the monthly visa bulletin dates. If you are not familiar with demand data, please see this article: What is Demand Data?

There should not be any major changes in the April 2014 Demand Data.

EB2 India: As many of you know, due to huge demand from EB3 India porting to EB2 India, USCIS had to stop allocating visas to EB2 India category from November 20, 2013.  The demand data should include these porting cases, if they have been preadjudicated.

Currently the cases are been counted twice in both EB3 and EB2 category (since they do not have a system to accurately track various porting cases). Please see article.

EB3 ROW: The full demand for EB3 ROW/Mexico/China should start showing up in the next I-485 pending inventory. However since VB dates keep moving forward and visa is available, not all cases would appear in this demand data. This is because demand data only contains preadjudicated cases (and CP cases).

Currently it takes about 4+ months to process I-485 and preadjudicate case. Hence demand data for these categories could appear to be low, though dates have moved by 3+ years.

Immigration News Update

USCIS Invitation to Stakeholder Engagement on Immigration Services Scams
USCIS has sent invitation to an in-person and telephonic stakeholder engagement on 3/5/14 to discuss immigration services scams. In-person event will be held at the Dallas District Office in Irving, Texas.

FY2014 H-2B Cap Count 
As of 2/21/14, USCIS receipted 37,088 beneficiaries toward the 33,000 H-2B cap for the first half of FY2014. This count includes 33,337 approved and 3,751 pending beneficiaries. Information on the second half of FY2014 H-2B cap also included.  

ICE Extension of Employment Authorization for Haitian F-1 Students
ICE notice of extension of employment authorization for Haitian F-1 nonimmigrant students experiencing severe economic hardship as a direct result of the 1/12/10 earthquake in Haiti. Notice is effective 3/3/14 and will remain in effect until 1/22/16. 

USCIS Extends Comment Period on myE-Verify
USCIS extends comment period on myE-Verify (previously known as E-Verify Self Check). Comments are now accepted until 3/20/14.