Immigration Updates

Since the initial proposal was approved in November 2016, the target launch date of the new European Union Travel Information & Authorization System (ETIAS) has changed several times. The ETIAS is now expected to be implemented in 2024. Citizens that currently have visa-free entry to the European Union (EU) will require an […]

The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has published the Monthly Visa Bulletin for August 2023 revealing new immigrant visa retrogression with up to a decade of retrogression for already-backlogged categories, along with some modest forward movement in other categories.  For the first time in years, the Final Action Dates in the EB-1 […]

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced on June 12, 2023 that it is expanding premium processing to certain I-539 applicants filing to change status to F-1 academic student, F-2 dependent, M-1 vocational student, M-2 dependent, J-1 educational and cultural exchange visitor, and J-2 dependent nonimmigrant status. With premium processing, these applicants can pay […]

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recently announced that employers must complete in-person physical document inspections for employees whose documents were inspected remotely during the temporary flexibilities by August 30, 2023.   During the COVID-19 pandemic, DHS implemented an inspection deferral policy allowing […]