| H-1B News The H-1B lottery is complete. USCIS reports on April 10, a computer-generated random selection process was used to select enough H-1B petitions to meet the congressionally mandated regular cap and the U.S. advanced degree exemption for the fiscal year. USCIS received a little over 200,000 H-1B petitions during the 5-day filing period, which began April 1, including petitions filed for the advanced degree exemption. For more information see here. In accordance with the new H-1B regulation, USCIS first conducted the selection process for H-1B cap-subject petitions submitted on behalf of all beneficiaries, including those that may have been eligible for the advanced degree exemption. USCIS then selected a number projected to reach the advanced degree exemption from the remaining eligible petitions. USCIS has started to issue receipts for those cases selected. We expect to continue to receive receipts into May. USCIS will reject and return all unselected petitions with their filing fees. USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap. New H-1B data hub. USCIS also announced a new H-1B Employer Data Hub available starting April 1, 2019. The data hub is part of USCIS’s effort to increase the transparency of the H-1B program. The site will allow people to search for H-1B petitioners by fiscal year, North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) industry code, company name, city, state, or zip code. With this data one can calculate approval and denial rates and review which employers are using the H-1B program. Beware: State and Federal Laws Differ on Marijuana Use Forewarning: federal law marijuana violations can prevent one from being eligible to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. As background, federal law classifies marijuana as a “Schedule I” controlled substance whose manufacture (which includes production, such as planting, cultivation, growing, or harvesting), distribution, dispensing, or possession may lead to immigration consequences. Since the 1990s several states, now including Massachusetts, have enacted laws that decriminalize the manufacture, possession, distribution, and use of both medical and non-medical (recreational) marijuana within their respective jurisdictions. In light of this growing trend of decriminalizing marijuana, USCIS has recently issued a policy guidance in order to reaffirm its stance on controlled substances at the federal level. USCIS states that federal controlled substance laws, including violations involving marijuana, are generally a bar to establishing good moral character, a requirement for naturalization. This may be the case even where that conduct would not be an offense under state law. The policy guidance clarifies that an applicant who is involved in certain marijuana-related activities that are lawful under applicable state laws, may be found to lack good moral character if found to have violated federal law. Such federal law violation would may make one ineligible to become a U.S. citizen. The Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments on the Inclusion of a Citizenship Question in the 2020 Census The Supreme Court recently heard arguments over whether the Trump administration can add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. Proponents of the question argue that the reinstate of the question will help obtain more effective enforcement of the Voting Rights Act and more accurate citizenship data. Opponents of the question argue that it will lead to a decrease in response rates by the millions, thereby reducing the accuracy of the census. Lower courts tend to agree with the opponents of the question stating that the citizenship question would unreasonably compromise the distributive accuracy of the Census. Although the Constitution requires that every person be counted each decade, the census also serves a practical purpose. The census provides critical data that helps in the allocation of congressional seats and the distribution of billions of federal dollars to states and localities. Visa Bulletin The Visa Bulletin includes “Final Action Dates” and “Dates for Filing Applications” for the family- and employment-based categories. The DOS Visa Bulletin for May 2019 is available here. |
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