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Immigration News Briefs

By Humera Subhani

June 2016

USCIS completes H1B lottery selection
USCIS announced on May 2, 2016, that it has completed data entry of all fiscal year 2017 H-1B cap-subject petitions selected in its computer-generated random process. USCIS will now begin returning all H-1B cap-subject petitions that were not selected. Due to the high volume of filings, USCIS is unable to provide a definite time frame for returning these petitions. USCIS asks petitioners not to inquire about the status of submitted cap-subject petitions until they receive a receipt notice or an unselected petition is returned. USCIS will issue an announcement once all the unselected petitions have been returned.

Filing fee changes may come soon
On May 4, 2016, the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) published a notice in the Federal Register for comment in connection with a proposed increase in fees for certain immigration and naturalization benefits. After the required 60 day comment period, USCIS will publish a final rule in the Federal Register with what the actual filing fees will be. Some of the fee increases are as follows:
N-400 (Naturalization/Citizenship) from $595 to $640, ($725 including Biometrics)
I-485 (Permanent Residence/Green Card) from $985 to $1140 ($1225 including Biometrics)
I-130 (Relative Petition) from $420 to $535
I-129 (Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker) from $325 to $460
I-140 (Petition for Immigrant Worker) from $580 to $700
I-765 (Employment Authorization) from $380 to $410
I-131 (Advance Parole/Travel) from $360 to $575

Scam letters sent to L-1A executives
Members of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) have reported that suspicious letters are being sent to L-1A executives. The scam letters claim to be from USCIS and signed by Lori Scialabba, Deputy Director of USCIS. The letters use incorrect grammar and make reference to the receiver’s recently approved I-129 Petition for nonimmigrant worker being under investigation. USCIS has confirmed that they did not send the letters. To report a scam letter, please send a copy of the letter to Public.Engagement@uscis.dhs.gov with the subject line “L-1A Executive Letter Scam.”

New workload transfer web page
USCIS has created a new Workload Transfer Updates page on their website where customers can keep track of workload transfers between the five service centers. Quite frequently, USCIS will transfer cases from one service center to another in order to balance workloads and ensure timely processing. Go to https://www.uscis.gov/workload-transfers

APPLICATION FINAL ACTION DATES FOR June 2016

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	15Jan09	15Jan09
2A	08Nov14	08Nov14
2B	22Oct09	22Oct09
3rd	01Dec04	01Dec04
4th	01Jan01	08Aug03

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	Current	Current
2nd	01Oct04	Current
3rd	22Sep04	15Feb16
Other	22Sep04	15Feb16
4th	Current	Current
5th	Current	Current1B

DATES FOR FILING VISA APPLICATIONS - June 2016

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	01Oct09	01Oct09
2A	15Oct15	15Oct15
2B	15Dec10	15Dec10
3rd	01Aug05	01Aug05
4th	01May04	01May04

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	Current	Current
2nd	01Jul09	Current
3rd	01Jul05	Current
Other	01Jul05	Current
4th	Current	Current
5th	Current	Current1B