3/16/09 CA9 Clarifies the One-Year Deadline for Asylum Application The court held that the first day of the one-year period for filing an asylum application is the day after the applicant arrived in the United States. For example, if applicant arrived on April 9, the deadline for application is April 9 of the following year, not April 8 (Minasyan v. Mukasey, 1/20/09).

3/13/09  AAO Finds Extreme Hardship Would be Suffered by Father of Chinese I-601 Waiver Applicant AAO sustains appeal, finding the applicant merits an I-601 waiver because of the extreme hardship that his father would suffer. Factors considered included minimal family ties to China, emotional and physical problems, and reliance on the applicant for support.

3/13/09 Extending H-1B Status Beyond the Six-Year Limitation Period. If an employee has H-1B time remaining under the regulatory six-year limitation period, the employer may file an H-1B extension petition requesting the amount of H-1B time remaining, plus a one-year extension pursuant to AC21 §106. USCIS will first make a determination on the amount of time that may be granted to reach the six-year limitation of stay, then make a determination as to whether a labor certification application or I-140 petition will have been pending at least 365 days at the conclusion of the initial six-year limitation period. The one-year extension will be granted provided that:

1) A labor certification is unexpired at the time of filing the extension petition, and
2) The labor certification or the I-140 petition was filed at least 365 days prior to the date the alien will exhaust 6 years of H-1B status pursuant to 8 CFR § 214(g)(4); and
3) The extension petition is otherwise approvable.
With respect to the last condition, the VSC has confirmed that aliens remain eligible under the Neufeld Memorandum from May 30, 2008, for a three-year H-1B extension beyond the 6th year pursuant to AC21 section 104 as long as the alien is the beneficiary of an approved I-140 petition and is ineligible to adjust status or apply for an immigrant visa abroad because no visa numbers are available at the time the H-1B extension petition is filed. If the priority date becomes current while the extension petition is pending, the beneficiary should still be eligible for a three-year extension of H-1B status.

3/12/09 USCIS Update on EB-5 Extension  USCIS released an update announcing the extension of the EB-5, Immigrant Investor Pilot Program through September 30, 2009.

3/12/09 CBP Offers Spring Break Tips (.pdf 38 KB) In anticipation of spring break (woohoo!), CBP offers tips for travelers on documents needed at ports of entry.

3/11/09 USCIS List of Naturalization Publications and Study Materials (.pdf 288 KB)  USCIS released a list of naturalization publications for applicants, as well as study materials for the naturalization exam.

3/11/09 USCIS Announces New Edition for Form N-400 Posted to Website
USCIS announced that a 1/22/09 edition for Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, has been posted to the USCIS website. Certain previous editions are being accepted and are listed on the N-400 webpage.

3/11/09 DOS Cable Announces New Form to Accompany Returned and Transferred Cases
A DOS cable announces the introduction of a new form DS-3096 which consular posts must now use when returning or transferring IV or NIV petitions to the INS.

3/6/09 H-1B Cap Filing Estimates to CSC: Poll Result
AILA-CSC Liaison provides results of informal poll of anticipated volume of H-1B petitions to be filed with California Service Center under the FY2010 H-1B cap. Over 70% of respondents estimated that they will file fewer H-1B petitions under the FY2010 cap than under the FY2009 cap.

3/5/09 CSC Discusses Documentation to Demonstrate H-1B Beneficiary has Completed Degree Requirements

The CSC Liaison Committee asked the CSC what kind of documentation is satisfactory to show that an H-1B beneficiary has completed degree requirements. The CSC replied as follows:
"We will accept the following so long as the degree requirements were completed prior to filing:
A final transcript; OR

A letter from the Registrar; OR

A letter executed by the person in charge of the records of the educational
institution where the degree was awarded.
If the third option is utilized, then that person must show that they are authorized to issue such letters."
AILA liaison also recommends including this information in the initial filing in order to avoid an RFE, or an outright denial.

3/5/09 DOS Cable Regarding 2009 Poverty Guidelines (.pdf 24 KB) A February 2009 DOS cable instructs consular posts to begin using the 2009 poverty guidelines in calculating levels of income and assets that immigrant visa petitioners and joint sponsors must demonstrate on Forms I-864 or Forms I-864EZ, Affidavit of Support submitted, on or after 3/1/09.

3/5/09 USCIS Announces Backlog of Name Checks Pending More than 6 Months Eliminated (.pdf 263 KB) USCIS announced that it eliminated the backlog for FBI name checks pending more than 6 months. The next goal is to complete name check requests pending more than 90 days by 5/30/09.

2/26/09 USCIS Clarifies I-140 Premium Processing Eligibility for H-1B Nonimmigrants
USCIS Service Center Operations has provided the following clarification to AILA liaison on the changes to I-140 premium processing for H-1B nonimmigrants effective March 2, 2009 (see InfoNet Doc. 09022464, Feb. 24, 2009)
The Form I-140 Premium Processing Service (PPS) expansion commencing on March 2, 2009, will allow Form I-140 petitioners to request PPS for petitions filed for alien beneficiaries who are abroad, or who are currently in a nonimmigrant status other than H-1B, provided that the alien beneficiary, as of the date of filing the Form I-907:
a. Is the beneficiary of a Form I-140 petition filed in a preference category that has been designated for premium processing service;
b. Has reached the sixth-year statutory limitation of H-1B stay, or will reach the end of the sixth year of H-1B stay within 60 days of filing;
c. Is only eligible for a further H-1B extension under section 104(c) of the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000 (AC21); and
d. Is ineligible to extend H-1B status under section 106(a) of AC21.