Immigration law is at the forefront of public dialogue these days. Womble Bond Dickinson’s Immigration Solutions team helps employers navigate high-stakes, constantly shifting immigration challenges to avoid potential problems and secure the talent they need to make their companies thrive. The following newsletter, drafted by Womble Bond Dickinson Immigration Solutions attorneys, covers some of the recent and most important developments in immigration law.

03/31/2023    U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) rescinded the 60-day rule for civil surgeon signatures on Form I-693. There is now no date restriction for when civil surgeons must sign the form for it to be submitted with an immigration benefit. Instead, USCIS will use Forms I-693 for adjudicative purposes for up to two years after the date the civil surgeon signed the form.  

03/30/2023    USCIS announced that Special Immigrant Juveniles may schedule an appointment within two weeks before their 21st birthday to file Form I-360 in person.

03/28/2023    The U.S. Department of State (“DOS”) announced that future visa bulletins, starting with the April 2023 visa bulletin, will not have a separate column for applicants chargeable to El Salvador, Guatemala, or Honduras in the employment-based preference charts. 

03/28/2023    DOS published a final rule raising many consular services fees, effective May 30, 2023.

03/27/2023    USCIS announced it has received enough electronic registrations during its initial registration period to meet the fiscal year 2024 H-1B cap. Petitions may be filed with USCIS starting on April 1, 2023.

03/23/2023    USCIS announced an end to COVID-19-related flexibilities. Any notices or requests from USCIS dated after March 23, 2023 must be responded to by the deadlines listed in the notice or request.

03/21/2023    DOS published the visa bulletin for April 2023 and USCIS published its April 2023 Adjustment of Status Filing Chart.

3/15/2023    USCIS announced that beginning 3/15/23, petitioners no longer need to submit the $85 fee for biometrics services with their Form I-526E Immigrant Petition by Regional Center Investor. After filing, USCIS may request the submission of biometrics from a Form I-526E petitioner as may be necessary. Since the form’s release in 2022, USCIS received about 980 Form I-526E petitions filed with the biometrics fee and will refund these fees in the coming weeks. Petitioners do not need to contact USCIS to request a refund.   

3/13/2023    DHS announced it is suspending some employment authorization regulatory requirements for F-1 students whose are Somali citizens (or individuals having no nationality who last habitually resided in Somalia) and who are experiencing severe economic hardship as a result of the crisis in Somalia.   

3/13/2023    DHS announced the designation of Somalia for TPS was being extended for 18 months from 3/18/23 through 9/17/24, as well as redesignating Somalia for TPS. The redesignation allows Somali nationals who have been continuously residing in the U.S. since 1/11/23 to apply for TPS for the first time.  

3/6/2023    USCIS announced the expansion of premium processing for certain F-1 students seeking Optional Practical Training (“OPT”) and for the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (“STEM”) OPT extensions who have a pending Form I-765 application for employment authorization.  Beginning April 3, 2023 USCIS will begin accepting premium processing requests for initial or concurrently filed I-765 applications.  

3/2/2023    USCIS announced that it received enough petitions to meet the H-2B cap for the second half of FY2023 and announced the filing dates for supplemental H-2B visas for the remainder of FY2023 made available under the FY2023 H-2B supplemental visa temporary final rule. February 27, 2023, is the final receipt date for new cap-subject H-2B work petitions requesting a start date on or after April 1, 2023.

3/2/2023    The U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia announced it is resuming processing E-1/E-2 visa applications that were pending prior to the post ceasing operations in September 2020 due to COVID-19. The embassy will contact affected applicants directly when an appointment becomes available.  The embassy is not, however, accepting new E-1/E-2 visa applications at this time.