Business Immigration in a Minute by Honigman LLP

• The Department of State recently released the July 2022 Visa Bulletin.  In addition to the final action dates and dates for filing charts for employment-based immigrant visa and adjustment of status cases, it contains notes on the diversity visa category. Notably, EB-2 India final action dates will advance by three months and EB-2 China final action dates will advance by one month. EB-3 India and China final action dates will remain unchanged. Additionally, the EB-2 India and China dates for filing will advance by one month. All first employment-based preference countries of chargeability will remain current for July. For July 2022, employment-based applicants must use the final action dates chart for adjustment of status applications.
  
  
• U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) is implementing premium processing for certain petitioners who have a pending Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, under the EB-1 and EB-2 classifications. This expansion of premium processing only applies to certain previously filed Form I-140 petitions under an E13 multinational executive and manager classification or E21 classification as a member of professions with advanced degrees or exceptional ability seeking a national interest waiver. Beginning June 1, 2022, USCIS will accept Form I-907 requests for E13 multinational executive and manager petitions received on or before January 1, 2021. Beginning July 1, 2022, USCIS will accept Form I-907 requests for E21 national interest waiver petitions received on or before June 1, 2021, and E13 multinational executive and manager petitions received on or before March 1, 2021. USCIS will reject premium processing requests for these classifications that are filed before their start date of June 1, 2022, or July 1, 2022. USCIS will not accept new (initial) Forms I-140 with a premium processing request at this time.
  
  
• Student and Exchange Visitor Program (“SEVP”) clarified that its reissued guidance for the 2022-2023 academic year only applies to nonimmigrant students who were actively enrolled at a U.S. school on March 9, 2020, and have continuously complied with the terms of their nonimmigrant status. Students enrolled after March 9, 2020 must adhere to SEVP’s regulations regarding online learning.
  
  
• The CIS Ombudsman will host a webinar on June 22, 2022 from 1:00 to 2:00 PM ET on USCIS backlog reduction efforts. The CIS Ombudsman and senior leadership at USCIS will discuss the extent of the current backlog, and various personnel, policy, and technology initiatives taken to reduce it. To register for this webinar, please click here.

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