A final USCIS guidance memorandum on job portability for employment-based adjustment applicants broadly recognizes that applicants subject to immigrant visa backlogs and lengthy adjudication periods should be able to advance in their careers or move to a new job in the same or a related field without the need for a new labour certification or Form I-140 immigrant worker petition.
US: Reminder - FY 2017 H-1B cap filing season opens soon
On Friday, April 1, 2016, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will begin to accept H-1B cap petitions for the FY 2017 quota of 85,000. The demand for new H-1Bs could exceed last year’s record level, meaning that the cap is likely to be exceeded in the critical first five business days of the filing season.
The filing window for FY 2017 cap cases is the week of Friday, April 1 through Thursday, April 7. Cases received by USCIS during this period are treated equally for cap counting purposes.
US: Delays in processing prevailing wage determinations
At a recent meeting with business immigration stakeholders, officials from the Department of Labor’s National Prevailing Wage Processing Center (NWPC) confirmed that the agency is experiencing backlogs of 80 to 90 days in the processing of PERM-related prevailing wage determination (PWD) requests. PWDs have historically taken no more than 60 days to process, but since last summer, employers and their counsel have noted a steady increase beyond this time-frame.
US: H-1B cap reminder: To ensure timely filing, gather documents and submit LCAs now
With just over two months until the start of the FY 2017 H-1B cap filing season, employers should be working with their immigration counsel to gather necessary documents and submit required labour condition applications (LCAs) so that they are ready to submit cap petitions during the week of Friday, April 1 to Thursday, April 7, 2016.