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Immigration News Briefs

Provided by Humera Subhani

March 2022

H-1B registration opens on March 1

USCIS announced that the initial registration period for the fiscal year 2023 H-1B cap will open at noon Eastern on March 1 and run through noon Eastern on March 18. During this period, prospective petitioners and representatives will be able to complete and submit their registrations using its online H-1B registration system. USCIS will assign a confirmation number to each registration submitted for the FY 2023 H-1B cap. Prospective H-1B cap-subject petitioners or their representatives are required to use a myUSCIS online account to register each beneficiary electronically for the selection process and pay the associated $10 H1B registration fee for each registration submitted on behalf of each beneficiary.

Prospective petitioners or their representatives will be able to submit registrations for multiple beneficiaries in a single online session. Through the account, they will be able to prepare, edit, and store drafts of registrations prior to final payment and submission of each registration. If enough registrations are received by March 18, USCIS will randomly select registrations and send selection notifications via users’ myUSCIS online accounts. USCIS intends to notify account holders by March 31. An H-1B cap-subject petition, including a petition for a beneficiary who is eligible for the advanced degree exemption, may only be filed by a petitioner whose registration for the beneficiary named in the H-1B petition was selected in the H-1B registration process.

EAD validity periods for certain applicants

USCIS, in February, published updated policy guidance to change the maximum validity period that may be granted for Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) issued to certain applicants, as well as to provide general guidance on adjudicating Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization.

Starting February 7, 2022, USCIS will generally grant new and renewed EADs that are valid for two years to applicants in the following categories:

Admitted as a refugee (a)(3);
Granted asylum (a)(5);
Granted withholding of deportation or removal (a)(10); and
VAWA self-petitioner (c)(31).

Additionally, USCIS will generally grant new and renewed EADs up to the end of the parole or deferred action period to applicants in the following categories:

Paroled into the United States for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit (c)(11); and
Granted deferred action (non-DACA) (c)(14).

This policy update is effective immediately. Therefore, new and renewed EADs issued for impacted categories on or after Feb. 7, 2022, will reflect the updated validity periods. EADs issued before Feb. 7, 2022, are not affected. USCIS will continue to issue replacement EADs with the same validity date as the original EAD.

Biden administration to attract STEM talent

The Biden administration announced numerous executive actions to attract and retain STEM talent in the U.S. These actions include J1 extension and Research in STEM fields, 22 new fields of study added to the STEM list, for students and OPT candidates and updated eligibility for O-1 visas. In addition, USCIS also has updated guidance related to the use of the national interest waiver (NIW) program by entrepreneurs and by persons with advanced degrees in STEM fields. The full text can be accessed online (www.WhiteHouse.gov).

APPLICATION FINAL ACTION DATES FOR MARCH 2022

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	01Dec14	01Dec14
2A	Current	Current
2B	22Sep15	22Sep15
3rd	22Nov08	22Nov08
4th	15Sep05	22Mar07

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	Current	Current
2nd	01May13	Current
3rd	15Jan12	Current
Other	15Jan12	Current
4th	Current	Current
5th	Current	Current1B

DATES FOR FILING VISA APPLICATIONS - JANUARY 2022

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	15May16	15May16
2A	01Dec21	01Dec21
2B	22Sep16	22Sep16
3rd	22Aug09	22Aug09
4th	01Jan06	01Oct07

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	Current	Current
2nd	01Sep13	Current
3rd	22Jan12	Current
Other	22Jan12	Current
4th	Current	Current
5th	Current	Current1B