Temporary Protected Status Extended for Somalia

From USCIS: Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson has extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for eligible nationals of Somalia (and eligible individuals without nationality who last habitually resided in Somalia) for an additional 18 months, effective Sept. 18, 2015, through March 17, 2017.

Current TPS Somalia beneficiaries seeking to extend their TPS must re-register during the 60-day re-registration period that runs from June 1, 2015, through July 31, 2015. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) encourages beneficiaries to re-register as soon as possible once the 60-day re-registration period begins. USCIS will not accept applications before June 1, 2015.

Revised Form I-907 Now Available

USCIS recently published the revised Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service with a 01/29/15, edition date.

You can download the revised form and details about who may file, and where to file, Form I-907 from the USCIS forms page.

August 2015 Visa Bulletin Predictions

For June 2015 Visa Bulletin, please click here: http://blog.mygcvisa.com/2015/06/july-2015-visa-bulletin.html

Please see August 2015 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: 3-5+ months
  EB2 India: 0-3 months. Please see article 1. Also see article 2.
• EB3 (ROW, Mexico): 0-2+ months. Please see article.
  EB3 China: 0-2+ months
  EB3 India: 1-2 weeks
  EB3 Philippines: U. Please see article.
• FB categories: 1 to 12 weeks Please see article.
• F2A: 3-6 weeks. Please see article.

Family Based:

Family-Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	22OCT07	22OCT07	22OCT07	22NOV94	01APR00
F2A	08DEC13	08DEC13	08DEC13	15OCT13	08DEC13
F2B	22NOV08	22NOV08	22NOV08	22APR95	01JUN04
F3	01APR04	01APR04	01APR04	01MAY94	01SEP93
F4	22NOV02	22NOV02	22NOV02	08MAR97	08JAN92

Employment Based:

July 2015 Visa Bulletin Analysis

For July 2015 Visa Bulletin, please click here: http://blog.mygcvisa.com/2015/06/july-2015-visa-bulletin.html

Please see below analysis of July 2015 Visa Bulletin:

EB1: All EB1 categories are current and should continue to remain current for fiscal year. Demand continues to be around 1650 every month (per the latest pending inventory).

EB2 ROW: This category continues to remain current. Per the latest report, demand in EB2ROW has increased significantly. However, since it can get spillover from EB4/EB5 and EB1 categories, this category is expected to remain current for FY 2015.

EB2 China: EB2 China moved forward by 4 months in this visa bulletin after moving 12 months in the last visa bulletin. It is likely to continue to move forward around at a fast pace in the next few months.

EB2 India: As mentioned in earlier blog post, demand in EB2 ROW has increased significantly. This directly impacts the amount of spillover visa available to EB2 India category. Due to increase demand in EB2 ROW, the total supply has decreased significantly in this category. Because of this, this category did not move forward in this visa bulletin;

In previous visa bulletin, it had moved forward by 5.5  months in this visa bulletin. In addition, there are applicants in EB2 who have not yet filed their application as well as applicants who will be porting from EB3 India to EB2 India.

July 2015 Visa Bulletin

For June 2015 Visa Bulletin, please click here: http://blog.mygcvisa.com/2015/05/june-2015-visa-bulletin.html

For July 2015 Visa Bulletin Analysis, please click here: http://blog.mygcvisa.com/2015/06/july-2015-visa-bulletin-analysis.html

July 2015 Visa Bulletin has been released (valid from July 1 to July 31 only). Please see below for more details.

Family Based:

Family-Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	01OCT07	01OCT07	01OCT07	15NOV94	15MAR00
F2A	08NOV13	08NOV13	08NOV13	15SEP13	08NOV13
F2B	15OCT08	15OCT08	15OCT08	08APR95	15MAY04
F3	15MAR04	15MAR04	15MAR04	22APR94	22AUG93
F4	22OCT02	22OCT02	22OCT02	01MAR97	08DEC91

Employment Based:

USCIS Temporarily Suspends Premium Processing for Extension of Stay H-1B Petitions

From USCIS: Starting May 26, 2015, USCIS will temporarily suspend premium processing for all H-1B extension of stay petitions until July 27, 2015. During this time frame, petitioners will not be able to file Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, for a Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, requesting an extension of the stay for an H-1B nonimmigrant.

USCIS will continue to premium process H-1B extension of stay petitions filed with Form I-907 premium requests prior to May 26, 2015.

USCIS will refund the premium processing fee if:

• A petitioner filed H-1B petitions prior to May 26, 2015, using the premium processing service, and
• USCIS did not act on the case within the 15-calendar-day period.

Premium Processing Remains Available for Certain H-1B Petitions

Premium processing remains available for:

• Form I-129 H-1B petitions subject to the H-1B cap and cap exempt petitions, as long as the petition is requesting:
  • A change of nonimmigrant status, or
  • Consular notification;
• Form I-129 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of individuals who already have H-1B nonimmigrant status, as long as the petition is requesting:
  • Consular notification, or
  • An amendment of a previously approved petition that does not include a request for an extension of stay; 

Why We Are Suspending Premium Processing

Employment Authorization for Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses Final Rule in Effect

From USCIS: Certain H-4 dependent spouses may now apply for employment authorization under the H-4 rule.

On February 24, 2015, USCIS announced that effective today, May 26, 2015, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would begin accepting applications for employment authorization from certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants who are seeking employment-based lawful permanent resident status.

Starting on May 26, you may apply for employment authorization under this rule if your H-1B nonimmigrant spouse:

• Is the principal beneficiary of an approved Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker; or
• Has been granted H-1B status under sections 106(a) and (b) of the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000 as amended by the 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act (AC21).  AC21 permits H-1B nonimmigrants seeking lawful permanent residence to work and remain in the United States beyond the six-year limit on their H-1B status.