Business Immigration in a Minute by Honigman LLP

• Last week, USCIS announced that applicants may now call the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) Contact Center (800-375-5283) to reschedule their biometric services appointments scheduled at a USCIS Application Support Center. Previously, applicants were required to submit requests in writing to reschedule biometrics appointments. Applicants must call before the date and time of their original appointment to reschedule.
  
  
• As an update to last week’s notice that USCIS planned to suspend biometrics requirements for certain I-539 applicants, USCIS officially announced that it would suspend biometrics requirements for I-539 applicants in the H-4, L-2, E-1, E-2, and E-3 categories for a two-year period from May 17, 2021 to May 17, 2023. The biometrics suspension will apply to applications that are pending as of May 17, 2021 if the applicant has not yet received a biometric services appointment notice and to applications filed on or after the effective date of May 17, 2021. Any I-539 applicants who have already received a biometric services appointment notice should still attend their scheduled appointment.
  
  

• The Department of Labor (“DOL”) published a final rule that officially further delays the effective date of the Trump Administration rule modifying the computation of prevailing wage levels for H-1Bs and permanent labor certifications (“PERM”) from May 14, 2021 to November 14, 2022. As a result of the final rule, DOL will not apply the proposed wage data computation changes to any H-1B registration period or to any PERM prevailing wage requests that are filed before November 14, 2022.
  
  

• The USCIS recently withdrew a 2018 proposed rule that would have removed the International Entrepreneur parole program. The reinstated International Entrepreneur parole program allows the Department of Homeland Security to use its parole authority to grant a period of authorized stay of up to five years to foreign entrepreneurs, on a case-by-case basis, who demonstrate that their stay in the United States will provide a significant public benefit through the potential for rapid business growth and job creation. This withdrawal is consistent with President Biden’s recent executive order that instructs federal agencies to conduct a review of all regulations, policies, and guidance that affect legal immigration in the United States and make a plan within 90 days to more effectively and efficiently deliver immigration benefits.
  
  

• E-Verify, which is a web-based system that allows employers to confirm the eligibility of their employees to work in the United States, has redesigned its login page to enhance the usability of the page, modernize its look and feel, and ensure consistency with other modernized E-Verify pages. Please note that while the page will look different when logging in, the functionality remains the same.

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