The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) today announced a Final Rule to reform the wage methodology it uses to set prevailing wage rates for Permanent Employment Certification, H-1B, H-1B1 and E-3 Visa foreign worker programs. The Department’s Employment and Training Administration administers the foreign labor programs covered by the Department’s wage methodology. On Oct. 8, 2020, the[Read More]
Legal Alerts
ICE announces extension to I-9 compliance flexibility until January 31, 2021
Washington, D.C.– U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) today announced an extension of the flexibilities in rules related to Form I-9 compliance that was granted earlier this year. Due to the continued precautions related to COVID-19, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will extend this policy until January 31, 2021. Employers with employees taking physical[Read More]
USCIS to Publish Notice extending TPS by nine months for Beneficiaries of TPS designations for Nepal, Honduras, El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua and Sudan
Washington, D.C. USCIS will publish Federal Register notice on December 9, 2020 about the Temporary Protected Status (TPS). This notice will extend the continuation of TPS for Beneficiaries of TPS designations for Nepal, Honduras, El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua and Sudan for nine months through OCTOBER 4, 2021, from the current expiration date of January 4,[Read More]
Federal judge strikes down rules which placed restrictions on H-1B visa program
Federal judge strikes down Trump administration’s rules which sought to restrict H-1B visas for skilled workers. The judge ruled that the interim final rules (IFR) proposed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Labor (DoL) were promulgated in violation of rule making provision of Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The government’s[Read More]
ICE announces extension to I-9 compliance flexibility until December 31, 2020
Washington, D.C.– U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) today announced an extension of the flexibilities in rules related to Form I-9 compliance that was granted earlier this year. Due to the continued precautions related to COVID-19, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will extend this policy until Dec. 31, 2020. Employers with employees taking physical[Read More]
DHS Proposes Sweeping regulatory changes in H-1B work visa program
U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHL) has proposed sets of Interim Final Rules governing H-1B visa program and permanent labor certification program’s (PERM) prevailing wage system. These will restrict the definition of specialty occupation, limit the duration of approval for petition involving client-site (to 1 yr), and changing the[Read More]
Department of Labor issues Interim Final Rule governing the prevailing wage methodology for several foreign worker programs
U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has published an Interim Final Rule (IFR) in Federal Register governing prevailing wage methodology for several foreign worker programs, namely Permanent Employment Certification (PERM), H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 visa program. DOL has published the new regulations (effective from Oct 8th, 2020). The Department will be accepting public comments on the IFR for 30[Read More]
Court orders preliminary injunction in favor of Chamber and trade associations against President H, L, J visa ban
U.S. District Court has ordered a preliminary injunction against President’s Proclamation (10052) which banned a new issuance of H-1B, L-1, J-1 and H-2B work visa and banned the entry of these workers and their dependents. This order was made on a case, National Association of Manufacturers, et al. v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, et[Read More]
President Trump issues Executive Order seeking to Review Federal Contracting and Hiring Practices on Temporary Foreign Workers
President Trump has issued an “Executive Order on Aligning Federal Contracting and Hiring Practices With the Interests of American Workers”. The Executive Order (“EO”) seeks to review the federal contracting and hiring practices in relation of use of foreign workers in the U.S. and abroad in government contracting and subcontracting. EO lays the policy objective[Read More]
SEVP plans to modify temporary exemptions for international students taking online courses during fall 2020 semester
[Updated July 24, 2020]. Good news! In response to Harvard/ MIT lawsuit, government has agreed to rescind SEVP’s July 6, 2020 policy which had proposed to limit online study from the fall semester by intl students in the U.S. and the incoming students would not have been able to come to study in the U.S.[Read More]