Foreign national workers who have been waiting in the employment-based second and third preference green card backlogs for many years have fortuitously become eligible to file I-485 adjustment of status applications due to the advancement of filing dates in the October 2020 Visa Bulletin. Many of the labor certifications were filed between 2009 and 2014. A labor certification filed on behalf of a software engineer years ago may have been required to use very different…

By Cyrus D. Mehta & Kaitlyn Box Last week the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) each issued new rules aimed at further attacking the H-1B visa program. The DOL rule, which was issued without affording the public an opportunity for notice and comment, significantly raises the minimum required wage that employers must pay to H-1B employees. The new rule could increase prevailing wages for some positions by as…

The October 2020 Visa Bulletin significantly advanced the  Filing Date of the employment-based third preference (EB-3) for India to January 1, 2015. This would make many beneficiaries with approved I-140 petitions caught in the EB-3 backlog eligible to file I-485 adjustment of status applications. Even those with approved I-140 petitions under the employment-based second preference (EB-2) could potentially file a downgrade I-140 petition under EB-3 and concurrently file I-485 applications.   Following the posting of our…

By Cyrus D. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box* On September 24, 2020, the Department of State released the October 2020 Visa Bulletin. Importantly, the Filing Date for an EB-3 from India has advanced to January 1, 2015 from February 1, 2010 in the September 2020 Visa Bulletin, while the Filing Date for an EB-1 from India advanced to September 1, 2020 from July 1, 2018.  By contrast the Filing Date for EB-2 India advanced to…

Saddened by the death of Justice Ginsburg, I searched through the blogs I have written on her opinions in immigration cases. I was again reminded not only about her brilliance but how forcefully she advanced the rights of immigrants that was consistent with the Constitution and the Immigration and Nationality Act. I wrote Justice Ginsburg’s Observation on Piepowder Courts in Vartelas v. Holder in 2012 with Gary Endelman when he was in private practice and…

Since COVID-19 afflicted the world, people have learned to work remotely from home and the office seems to be less relevant. Most white collared work can be carried out remotely through Zoom Video or Microsoft Teams. Jack Dorsey, the head of Twitter, said that the company’s employees can work from home “forever.” This view may not be shared by all. 85% of French office workers are back at their desks. Reed Hastings, the founder…

Before President Trump, one could hardly imagine that an American president would use INA § 212(f) to rewrite immigration law in a manner he saw fit and with whatever prejudices might be harboring in his mind. While INA § 212(f) does give extraordinary power to a president, Trump has exploited these powers beyond what could have been imagined when Congress enacted this provision.  INA §212(f) states: Whenever the President finds that the entry of any…