Client Payment Portal

Senate-Passed Bill Would Remove Per-Country Limits on All Employment-Based Immigrant Visa Categories; Includes Controversial Provisions

Feb 13, 2020 | Investor Visas

On December 2, 2020, the U.S. Senate passed its version of H.R. 1044, the “Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act of 2020.” The Senate version of the bill now returns to the U.S. House of Representatives. If the Senate version passes in the House and is signed into law by the President, it would remove the per-country limits on all employment-based immigrant visa categories, among other things. Since Congress is scheduled to end its session shortly, chances for passage in the House are unclear.

The bill includes several controversial provisions, such as an annual limit on the number of immigrants who could adjust from H-1B status to that of permanent resident and a bar on those affiliated with the military forces of the People’s Republic of China or the Chinese Communist Party or the Chinese military.

Details:

Related Posts:

EB-1 To Become Current in October 2018 Again for China and India – Is the Extraordinary Ability Visa the Best Option for Chinese Nationals?

By: Joseph Barnett Mr. Charlie Oppenheim, Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division within the U.S. Department of State (“DOS”), recently noted that the Final Action Date (“FAD”) for China employment-based first-preference (“EB-1”) will become current again at the beginning of Fiscal Year 2019, on October 1, 2018.  This is encouraging news, as this visa category has been subject to an FAD since April 2018 and those with approved I-140 petitions have not been able to move forward with immigrant visa processing.  Once current, visas become immediately available to those with approved I-140 petitions. U.S. immigration law offers an avenue to a green card for foreign nationals with extraordinary ability in science, arts, education, business, or athletics through sustained national or international acclaim who are coming to the U.S. to continue to work in their field of endeavor through EB-1A visa classification.  The biggest advantages of EB-1A classification are that (1) no job offer or permanent job position is required; (2) no labor certification is required; (3) self-petitions are allowed; and (4) premium processing is available for USCIS decisions within 15 days. With the China EB-5 visa backlog reaching unreasonable lengths, the EB-1A visa category has become a popular immigrant visa option […]

Read More

Judge Orders USCIS To Begin Accepting New EB-5 Regional Center Investment Applications – FAQ for Investors

On Friday June 24, 2022, a Federal District Court Judge ruled in favor of a regional center challenging USCIS’s implementation of certain portions of the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022. In a nationwide preliminary injunction, the Judge ordered that preexisting regional centers retain their designation and may file for project pre-approval and investors can file related I-526 petitions. This is a big step forward since the Judge has ordered USCIS to begin accepting new EB-5 regional center investment applications. Below are answers to questions commonly asked by investors: What Does This Decision Mean For New Investors?Regional centers that had previously been designated can now file the form I-956F project approval form and investors in that project will be allowed to file their form I-526 individual petitions without waiting for an approval. Can Investors File Form I-485 Adjustment Of Status Together With Form I-526?Yes, if an immigrant visa number is available, investors can file form I-485 adjustment application. (Presently only China has a waiting line, but the new set-aside categories of Rural Reserved, High Unemployment and Infrastructure are current and visas are available for persons chargeable to China). USCIS is now authorized to accept form I-485 adjustment of status […]

Read More