Department of State Publishes Significant J-1 Skills List Revision

Effective today, December 9, 2024, the Department of State (DOS) published an update to the J-1 Exchange Visitors Skills List, a list of countries that require the services of individuals engaged in specific fields of specialized knowledge or skills. The list determines whether a J-1 visa visitor is subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement, that requires certain J-1 exchange visitors to return to their home country for two years after their J-1 program, under Section 212(e) of the amended Immigration and Nationality Act. 

The update has the following takeaways:

  • J-1 visitors who were admitted in J status or obtained J status before December 9, 2024, are no longer subject to the requirement if their country is not designated in this revised Skills list. 

  • The list removes several countries, notably China and India, subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement. The list removes Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Gabon, Georgia, Guyana, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Laos, Malaysia, Mauritius, Montenegro, Namibia, Oman, Paraguay, Peru, Romania, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Eswatini (Swaziland), Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Uruguay.

  • DOS did not update skills in this update. For countries on this revised 2024 Skills List, the skills are the same as in the 2009 Skills List.

  • However, a J-1 visitor may be subject to the requirement based on funding from the U.S. government or home country government, or from receiving graduate medical education or training in the United States. This update only affects former J-1 visa holders who were subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement based on the Skills List.

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

Change of Address Filing Requirements for Foreign Nationals

U.S. immigration law requires that all foreign nationals, including lawful permanent residents (green card holders), report any change of address to USCIS within ten days of moving by submitting Form AR-11, the Alien's Change of Address Card. Note that changing your address with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) does not update your address with USCIS, and USPS will not forward mail from USCIS. As USCIS increasingly adopts online systems, the following are the two current methods for reporting address changes:

  • Online filing via myUSCIS:

    • Create a myUSCIS account online at https://my.uscis.gov/

    • Use the self-service “Change-of-Address” tool found in your USCIS Online Account under the My Account dropdown menu.

  • Paper Form Submission: Complete and mail a paper Form AR-11 to update your address.

Timely compliance with this reporting requirement is essential, as failure to update your address could jeopardize your immigration status or ability to remain in the United States.

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

H-1B “Cap” reached for FY 2025

On December 2, 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory H-1B visa “cap” for fiscal year (FY) 2025.

The USCIS announcement states:

“We will send non-selection notices to registrants through their online accounts over the next few days. When we finish sending these non-selection notifications, the status for properly submitted registrations that we did not select for the FY 2025 H-1B numerical allocations will show:

·         Not Selected: Not selected – not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this registration.

We will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap. Petitions filed for current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap, and who still retain their cap number, are exempt from the FY 2025 H-1B cap. We will continue to accept and process petitions filed to:

·         Extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the United States;

·         Change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers;

·         Allow current H-1B workers to change employers; and

·         Allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in additional H-1B positions.”

No further selections for new H-1B petition filings will take place for FY 2025, and the next registration period for FY 2026 will take place sometime in Q1 2025.

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

USCIS now requires Form I-693 medical report to be submitted with Form I-485

As of today, December 2, 2024, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) is requiring Form I-693, Report of Immigration Medical Examination and Vaccination Record to be submitted with Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. If Form I-693 is not submitted with the Form I-485, USCIS can reject the entire filing. USCIS has updated the Form I-485 instructions to reflect this change.

This is a departure from USCIS’ previous practice of allowing the I-485 to be filed without the medical exam, and either issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE) for the medical, or allowing the applicant to bring the medical to a USCIS interview.

Form I-693 is required to demonstrate to the government that the applicant is free from health conditions that would make them inadmissible based on health-related grounds.

The full announcement can be found here.

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

Statement on the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election

Dear Clients and Community:

First and foremost, we want to emphasize that we stand in solidarity with immigrants and firmly oppose any form of anti-immigrant rhetoric. In light of Donald Trump's re-election, we want to extend our assurances to you as we navigate this political transition together. While change can bring uncertainty, especially in immigration law, know that we have steered through similar challenges in the past and are ready to face the road ahead with you. For nearly 30 years, our firm has guided clients through administrations, ensuring they remain on track to meet their immigration goals despite shifting policies from the White House.

Our deep understanding of immigration law enables us to adapt swiftly to any changes. We are actively implementing plans to address potential policy shifts. Our team is monitoring developments closely and will assess impacts and formulate strategies to protect your interests. You can rely on us for updates and expert guidance throughout this transition. We offer personalized support tailored to your needs, whether it’s navigating visa applications, ensuring compliance, or exploring alternative pathways. While the landscape may shift, there are always possibilities for innovation, and our firm will help you identify opportunities to transform challenges into achievements.

As we move forward, remember that you are not alone. We are your partners, committed to helping you achieve the best outcomes for you, your business, and family. We are honored to serve you and look forward to navigating this path together with resilience and optimism.

Onward!

JSPBC

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

New edition of Form I-131 effective 10/11/2024

On October 11, 2024, USCIS will publish a new edition of Form I-131 (edition 06/17/2024). The form will be renamed “Application for Travel Documents, Parole Documents, and Arrival/Departure Records.” There is no filing grace period for the new form due to the significant changes to the form (now 14 pages long!), so any I-131s postmarked on or after 10/11/2024 must be this newest edition. Full announcement can be found here: https://www.uscis.gov/i-131

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

Entry for 2026 Diversity Visa Lottery program opens October 2, 2024

Updated November 4, 2024

The U.S. Department of State’s instructions for the 2026 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV-2026) are now available and entries must be submitted electronically between Wednesday, October 2, 2024, at 12:00 noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)(GMT-4) and Tuesday, November 7, 2024, at 12:00 Noon, Eastern Standard Time (EDT)(GMT-5). Submission of more than one entry for a person during the registration period will disqualify all entries for that person.

For DV-2026, persons who are natives of the following countries and areas are not eligible to apply:

Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (including Hong Kong SAR)*, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, Venezuela, and Vietnam.

*Natives of Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible.

Note: United Kingdom and its dependent territories are eligible for DV-2026.

Eligibility requirements and entry instructions are on the U.S. Department of State’s website here: Diversity Visa Instructions.

The congressionally-mandated Diversity Immigrant Visa Program is administered annually by the Department of State under Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). This law provides for a class of immigrants known as diversity immigrants, with visas made available to persons from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States. For fiscal year 2026, up to 55,000 diversity visas will be available.

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

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Citizens of Qatar Eligible for Visa Waiver Program from December 1

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As of December 1, 2024, Qatar will be the 42nd member of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). Citizens of member countries of the VWP may enter the United States for business or tourism for up to 90 days without a visa. In return, U.S. citizens may enter member countries under the same conditions.

Citizens of countries participating in the VWP may travel to the United States as visitors for business or pleasure without first obtaining a visitor (B-1 or B-2) visa from a U.S. Consulate. Instead, they apply online for authorization to travel to the United States through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). VWP travelers are not permitted to board a carrier to travel to the U.S. by air or sea unless they have ESTA clearance. VWP admittees may enter for periods of up to 90 days, provided that they are eligible for admission under applicable law.

There are now 42 VWP countries:

Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Chile, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom.

The Secretary of Homeland Security announced the designation of Qatar in the VWP on September 24, 2024. Eligible Qatari passport holders with ESTA clearance will be able to visit the United States without visas only from December 1, 2024.

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

USCIS Extends Green Card Validity Extension to 36 Months for Green Card Renewals

Effective September 10, 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is automatically extending the validity of green cards to 36 months for lawful permanent residents filing Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card. Lawful permanent residents who properly file Form I-90 to renew an expiring or expired green card may receive this 36-month extension. USCIS is updating the language on the I-90 receipt notices to extend the validity of the Green Card for 36 months from the expiration date on the face of the Green Card. Amended receipt notices are automatically being created for pending I-90 cases (previously only a 24-month extension was provided). These I-90 receipt notices can be presented with an expired Green Card as evidence of continued lawful permanent residence status. USCIS’ full announcement can be found here.

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024

USCIS runs second lottery on 2024 (FY 2025) H-1B registrations

On August 5, 2024, USCIS announced that it ran a second H-1B lottery on 2024 (FY 2025) registrations. The USCIS announcement states:

USCIS recently announced that we would need to select additional registrations for unique beneficiaries to reach the fiscal year 2025 H-1B regular cap numerical allocation. Our projections indicate we have now randomly selected a sufficient number of registrations for unique beneficiaries as needed to reach the regular cap from the remaining properly submitted FY 2025 registrations. Additionally, we have notified all prospective petitioners with selected registrations from this round of selection that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for the beneficiary named in the applicable selected registration.

An H-1B cap-subject petition must be filed within the period indicated on the registration selection notice; for this round of selectees, that period is August 8, 2024 to November 7, 2024.

As we noted before, in 2023 (FY 2024), a second selection process took place in July, to make unused H-1B visas available. No additional selections took place in 2022 (FY 2023). In 2021 (FY 2022) a second and third selection process took place in August and November, respectively. USCIS has not yet announced whether and when a third selection might take place later in 2024 (FY 2025).

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024