This coming October, USCIS is allowing a number of foreign nationals to apply for adjustment of status earlier than they would otherwise be eligible. Specifically, USCIS has announced that it will allow individuals with immigrant petitions in employment-based categories to apply for adjustment of status based on the cutoff dates in the “Dates for Filing” Chart of the State Department’s monthly Visa Bulletin (Chart B). As a reminder, in October of 2015, the State Department made …

The U.S. State Department has released its monthly Visa Bulletin for the month of May 2018.  Notably, the priority dates for the Regional Center EB-5 category for nationals of Vietnam have become subject to retrogression.  As of May 1, 2018, only those approved Vietnamese EB-5 investors under the Regional Center Pilot Program whose EB-5 petitions were filed earlier than July 22, 2014 will be able to proceed with the processing of their immigrant visa applications. …

It has been reported that President Trump’s administration is likely preparing to effectuate additional changes affecting immigration issues.  Specifically, in addition to the Executive Order executed on Jan. 27, 2017, the administration is reportedly working on additional Executive Orders, a released draft of which addresses the availability and use of advance parole, among other issues which pertain to employment-based immigration.  Advance parole enables return to the United States after international travel for those who…

On Feb. 9, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a ruling keeping in force the temporary restraining order (TRO) that was issued last Friday by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. The TRO was issued in connection with the lawsuit filed by State of Washington and State of Minnesota challenging the Executive Order (EO) 13769, “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States.” The…