H-4 EAD ELIMINATION REGULATION TO BE ANNOUNCED SHORTLY

As we have mentioned several times, the Trump Administration is seeking to eliminate 90,000 lawful jobs by ending the H-4/EAD rule.  This rule, which was first passed in February 2015, provides work authorization to spouses of H-1B workers, provided that the H-1B worker has an approved I-140. 

USCIS sent the new regulation, "Removing H-4 Dependent Spouses from the Class of Aliens Eligible for Employment Authorization," to the Office of Management and Budget on February 20, 2019.  It is currently pending review. OMB is expected to publish a Notice of proposed rulemaking in the near future, although OMB has not released a timeline.  The publication of the notice will allow the public to offer notice and comment.  

After the notice and comment period, USCIS must review and consider the public’s comments, before publication of the final rule.  Unfortunately, it is not expected that the public’s comments will materially change the new rule’s core goal: the elimination of the H-4/EAD.

This needless attack against lawful workers is further proof that the Trump Administration is not at all interested in legal immigration, despite the President’s public statements.  The reality is that the President and his administration are only interested in harming immigrants: lawful and otherwise.

MARCH 2019 VISA BULLETIN: ANALYSIS AND PREDICTIONS

The Department of State has just issued the March 2019 Visa Bulletin. This is the sixth Visa Bulletin of Fiscal Year 2019. This blog post analyzes this month's Visa Bulletin.

 

March 2019 Visa Bulletin

Table A: Final Action Dates -- Applications with these dates may be approved for their Green Card (Permanent Residency card) or Immigrant Visa appointment.

 

EB  Class	All Other	CHINA	INDIA	PHILIPPINES
EB-1	01JAN18	22FEB17	22FEB17	01JAN18
EB-2	C	01JAN16	09APR09	C
EB-3	C	08JUL15	22MAY09	01DEC17

Table B: Dates for Filing -- The DOS may work on applications with these dates. But the Visa cannot be approved until the date is current per Table A.

EB  Class	All Other	CHINA	INDIA	PHILIPPINES
EB-1	01JUN18	01OCT17	01OCT17	01JUN18
EB-2	C	01MAY16	22MAY09	C
EB-3	C	01JAN16	01APR10	01MAR18

 

MU Law Analysis (all references are to Table A unless noted)

 

All Other: The EB-1 category moved one month.  We expect continued steady movement in this category for All Other.  We do not see any retrogression in the future for EB2 or EB3, other than the usual retrogression at the end of the Fiscal Year.

 

China: China EB-2 moved three months, moving a total of a half year in just two calendar months.  EB-3 only moved one week, as demand continues in EB-3, likely related to the many EB-3 “downgrades”. 

 

India: There was very little movement in any of the Indian categories.  We are slightly more optimistic about India EB-3, which could continue to progress faster than EB-2.

 

Philippines: The EB-3 date showed great progress, improving four more months.  By next month, we should see the EB-3 priority date extend into FY2018.

MARIA SCHNEIDER BECOMES AN MU PARTNER

Musillo Unkenholt (MU) is pleased to welcome Maria T. Schneider as a partner to the law firm.  Schneider’s practice is focused on immigration matters, primarily in assisting US employers in hiring foreign workers for specialized positions and shortage occupations.  Schneider has been an attorney with MU since 2011 and will continue to represent clients from a range of industries, including healthcare, information technology, recruitment, staffing, construction, engineering, finance, and consulting in all phases of the immigration process.  Schneider’s clients include large public and private companies as well as small start-up, entrepreneurial ventures.  Schneider is a life-long resident of Cincinnati, attending Northern Kentucky University as an undergraduate and the University of Cincinnati College of Law.  Schneider currently serves on the Cincinnati Bar Association, Board of Trustees and teaches immigration law as an adjunct at the University of Cincinnati College of Law.

REMINDER: H-1B CAP STRATEGY TELECONFERENCE

In anticipation of the H-1B cap filing date of April 1, 2019, MU Law will be holding a free teleconference for our clients and friends on Wednesday February 6, 2018 at 2PM / 11AM PT.  Interested clients and friends can register for our webinar by clicking on the link below.

REGISTER HERE 

Last year the H-1B cap was reached in the first week.  We expect that the demand will be even greater this year.  It is imperative that all H-1B cap-subject petitions are filled on April 1, 2019.

H-1B Teleconference Agenda

• H-1B Cap Basics and Projections

• H-1B Dependency

• H-1B issues for Staffing Companies and Third Party Placements

• What is Third- Party Placement v. In-House work?

• Employer-Employee relationships

• The New H-1B lottery

• H-1B electronic filing

Hot issues:

•Cap-gap for F-1s

• CPT / OPT maintenance

• NIV maintenance

• H-4 EAD rule

• H-1B amendments: lengthy processing times

• Top 10 things H-1B employers can do to stay compliant

• Legislative Update

• What we can expect from the Trump administration and the Republican congress.

• Q&A