USCIS Announces Availability of Additional H-2B Visas for Fiscal Year 2024

WASHINGTON – Today, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and the Department of Labor (DOL) published a temporary final rule making available an additional 64,716 H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker visas for fiscal year (FY) 2024, on top of the statutory cap of 66,000 H-2B visas that are available each fiscal year. American businesses in industries such as hospitality and tourism, landscaping, seafood processing, and more turn to seasonal and other temporary workers in the H-2B program to help them meet demand from consumers. The supplemental visa allocation will help address the need for these workers in areas where too few U.S. workers are available, helping contribute to the American economy. The temporary final ru

USCIS Establishes Family Reunification Parole Process for Ecuador

Process will allow family members to reunite in the United States while they wait for immigrant visas to become available

WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced a Federal Register notice implementing a new family reunification parole (FRP) process for Ecuador, advancing the Biden-Harris Administration's successful combination of expanded lawful pathways and strengthened enforcement to reduce irregular migration. The FRP processes promote family unity and are

USCIS Changes Filing Location for Form I-907 With Form I-140

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will begin transitioning the filing location for Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing, when filed with Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, from the service centers to the USCIS lockbox on Nov. 13.

On Nov. 13, the filing location for newly filed Forms I-140 filed at the same time with Form I-907 will change from the USCIS service centers to the USCIS lockbox as part of our efforts to increase efficiency by reducing our footprint at the service centers, digitizing the process, and reducing costs.

This change in filing location does not apply if you are filing Form I-907 for a currently pending Form I-140, or if you are filing Form I-140 with an associated application (such as Form I-765, Form I-131, or Form I-485). We will soon announce filing location changes for these forms, but at this time, they should be file

Visa Bulletin January 2024 Predictions

For official December 2023 Visa Bulletin & Analysis, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2023/visa-bulletin-december-2023.aspx

Please see January 2024 Visa Bulletin Predictions below (for both Family Based and Employment Based categories for all countries):

Family Based:

Final Action Dates

Dates For Filing Applications

"Final Action Date" is the date when when USCIS/DOS may render their final decision on submitted applications. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	08MAR15	08MAR15	08MAR15	15MAY01	22APR12
F2A	01MAR19	01MAR19	01MAR19	01MAR19	01MAR19
F2B	01NOV15	01NOV15	01NOV15	01JUN02	01DEC11
F3	22JAN09	22JAN09	22JAN09	01APR98	01JUL02
F4	15MAY07	15MAY07	01NOV05	08OCT00	22SEP02

"Date for Filing Application" is the date when you can submit I-485/NVC applications to USCIS/DOS. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	08OCT17	08OCT17	08OCT17	15JUN05	08JUN15
F2A	22SEP23	22SEP23	22SEP23	01OCT23	22SEP23
F2B	15FEB17	15FEB17	15FEB17	22OCT04	08NOV13
F3	08MAR10	08MAR10	08MAR10	22JUN01	01DEC03
F4	08MAR08	08MAR08	15MAR06	08MAY01	22MAY04

USCIS Updates Guidance for Special Immigrant Juvenile Petitions

Effective immediately, we are updating guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual (PDF, 343.18 KB) for adjudicating Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) petitions. This update will make the SIJ adjudication process more efficient for some applicants.

We are updating this guidance to align with the July 31, 2023, declaratory order in Casa Libre/Freedom House v. Mayorkas. The 180-day time frame for USCIS to adjudicate an SIJ petition applies only to the initial adjudication of an SIJ petition. It does not extend to the adjudication of any motion or appeal filed after a denial of an SIJ petition.

SIJ is a

DHS Announces Countries Eligible for H-2A and H-2B Visa Programs

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in consultation with the Department of State (DOS), has announced the lists of countries whose nationals are eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B visa programs in the next year. The notice listing the eligible countries will be published in the Federal Register on Nov. 9, 2023.

Effective Nov. 9, 2023, the secretary of homeland security, with the concurrence of the secretary of state, has decided to:

• Add Bolivia to the list of countries eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B programs.

DHS maintains its authority to amend the eligible countries lists at any time through publication of a Federal Register Notice, sh

USCIS Potomac Service Center Will No Longer Accept Paper Responses

As of Aug. 21, 2023, the Potomac Service Center (PSC) has begun to move to a new facility in Camp Springs, MD, and can no longer receive paper responses to correspondence such as Notices of Intent to Deny (NOID), Notices of Intent to Revoke (NOIR), Intents to Deny (ITD), Requests for Evidence (RFE) or supporting documentation for filings currently pending at the PSC.

PSC will no longer accept mailed correspondence beginning on Nov. 13, 2023.  All mailed correspondence intended for cases processed by the PSC must be mailed to the Texas Service Center (TSC), unless otherwise noted.

To avoid any processing delays, applicants and their representatives should instead upload their responses to their USCIS online account (for receipt notices that start with IOE-) or mail them to the Texas Service Center at:

USCIS Texas Service Center
Attn: Digital RFE
6046 N Belt Line

DHS to Supplement H-2B Cap with Nearly 65,000 Additional Visas for FY 2024

News release originally published by the Department of Homeland Security.

Certain Renewal Applicants for Employment Authorization to Receive Automatic 180 Day Extension

Certain renewal applicants who have filed Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, qualify for an automatic extension of their expiring employment authorization and/or employment authorization documents (EADs) while their renewal application is pending. Starting today, those who are eligible will receive 180-day extensions in accordance with existing regulations, including those who have applied for or have received Temporary Protected Status or asylum.

In May 2022, however, USCIS announced a temporary final rule (TFR) that increased the automatic extension period for EADs available to certain EAD

December 2023 Visa Bulletin

For November 2023 Visa Bulletin, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2023/visa-bulletin-november-2023.aspx

For analysis of December 2023 Visa Bulletin, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2023/visa-bulletin-analysis-december-2023.aspx

December 2023 Visa Bulletin has been officially released (valid from December 1 to December 31 only). Please see below for more details.

Family Based:

Final Action Dates

Dates For Filing Applications

"Final Action Date" is the date when when USCIS/DOS may render their final decision on submitted applications. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability  Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland  born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	01JAN15	01JAN15	01JAN15	01MAY01	01MAR12
F2A	08FEB19	08FEB19	08FEB19	01FEB19	08FEB19
F2B	22SEP15	22SEP15	22SEP15	01MAY02	22OCT11
F3	08JAN09	08JAN09	08JAN09	22MAR98	08JUN02
F4	22APR07	22APR07	08OCT05	15SEP00	22AUG02

"Date for Filing Application" is the date when you can submit I-485/NVC applications to USCIS/DOS. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability  Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland  born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	01SEP17	01SEP17	01SEP17	01APR05	22APR15
F2A	01SEP23	01SEP23	01SEP23	01SEP23	01SEP23
F2B	01JAN17	01JAN17	01JAN17	01AUG04	01OCT13
F3	01MAR10	01MAR10	01MAR10	15JUN01	08NOV03
F4	01MAR08	01MAR08	22FEB06	15APR01	22APR04

December 2023 Visa Bulletin Analysis

For December 2023 Visa Bulletin, please click here: https://www.mygcvisa.com/visa-bulletin/2023/visa-bulletin-december-2023.aspx

Please see below analysis of December 2023 Visa Bulletin:

Family Based:

Final Action Dates

Dates For Filing Applications

"Final Action Date" is the date when when USCIS/DOS may render their final decision on submitted applications. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F2A	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F2B	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F3	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F4	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change

"Date for Filing Application" is the date when you can submit I-485/NVC applications to USCIS/DOS. Your priority date should be before this date.

Family- Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F2A	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F2B	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F3	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change
F4	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change	No Change

Filing Location Change for H-2A, H-2B, CNMI-related Form I-129 Petitions, Form I-129CW Petitions, and CNMI-related Form I-539 Applications

Beginning Nov. 1, 2023, all H-2A, H-2B, CNMI-related Form I-129 petitions, Form I-129CW petitions, and CNMI-related Form I-539 applications must be filed directly at the Texas Service Center.

To allow the public time to transition to filing at the Texas Service Center, there will be a 60-day grace period for forms filed at the California Service Center (CSC) or Vermont Service Center (VSC), during which misdirected forms will not be rejected. After the 60-day grace period, on and after Jan. 1, 2024, we will reject H-2A, H-2B, CNMI-related Form I-129 petitions, Form I-129CW petitions, and CNMI-related Form I-539 applications if they are filed at the CSC or VSC.

Previously, all H-2A, CNMI-related Form I-129 petitions and Form I-129CW petitions, were filed at the CSC, and H-2B-related Form I-129 petitions were filed at the VSC and CSC.

We will reject any of these petiti

USCIS Extends Parole by Two Years for Certain Afghan Nationals Under Age 14

USCIS announced today that we will consider two-year extensions of the initial parole period on a case-by-case basis for certain Afghan nationals who:

• Were paroled into the United States between July 30, 2021, and Sept. 30, 2022, with an OAR or PAR class of admission;
• Were under 14 years old as of Sept. 26, 2023; and
• As of Sept. 26, 2023, have not yet filed:
  • Form I-131, Application for Travel Document (to apply for re-parole);
  • Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status; or
  • <a data

USCIS Updates Guidance on EB-5 Regional Center Program

We are updating the USCIS Policy Manual with new guidance on the EB-5 Regional Center Program and new content on regional center designation and obligations, project applications, and direct and third-party promoters.  

This update incorporates changes from the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 into the Policy Manual, building on the initial update that incorporated such changes on Oct. 6, 2022.   

This update reorganizes Part G, Volume 6 of the Policy Manual, and includes a few revisions to the content published in October 2022 to reflect the new organization. It also updates the chapter on adjudication of investor petitions for classification and adds new content on regional center designations and obligations, project applications, and direct and third-party promoters, including registration.  

Further updates to EB-5 guidance in the Policy Manual are fo