Breaking News :
NEW FEES ANNOUNCED FOR NEW & TRANSFER H-1B AND L-1 FILINGS
(Does not apply to extensions and amended filings.)- update 08/19/2010
PL 111230 has Increased H-1B and L-1 Filing Fees by:
• $2,000 for H-1B - transfer or new filing
• $2,250 L-1 - for transfer or new filing
As per the USCIS teleconference held August 19, 2010, the fee for H-1B and L-1 filings will be increased by $2,000 and $2,250, respectively. This fee increase will apply only to NEW and TRANSFER FILINGS, and not for extensions or amended filings.
The foregoing fee is applicable to employers with 50 or more employees in the United States, if more than 50 percent of the applicant’s employees are on H-1B and L-1 Visas.
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USCIS Announces Implementation of the Emergency Supplemental Appropriation for Border Security Act Update (Updated 08/17/2010)
WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced implementation of an Act Making Emergency Supplemental Appropriation for Border Security for the Fiscal Year Ending September 30, 2010, and for Other Purposes (also known as the Emergency Supplemental Appropriation for Border Security Act).
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Complaint Filed Challenging Employer-Employee/Third-Party Placement Memo (Posted 6/8/2010)
Broadgate, Inc., et al v. USCIS, et al
Case number: 1:10cv00941
This Application for Preliminary Injunction and Complaint filed on June 8, 2010 by Greenberg Traurig LLP in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia, challenges USCIS’s application of the January 8, 2010, Neufeld Memorandum’s definition of employer-employee relationships, resulting in the denial of H-1Bs filed by IT staffing firms. Judge Gladys Kessler will be hearing the case. More details to follow.
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Cap count update -USCIS Continues to Accept FY 2011 H-1B Petitions, (updated 4/9/2010)
WASHINGTON - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced it continues to accept H-1B nonimmigrant petitions subject to the Fiscal Year 2011 (FY 2011) cap. USCIS will monitor the number of petitions received for both the 65,000 general cap and the 20,000 U.S. master’s degree or higher educational exemption.
USCIS has received approximately 13,500 H-1B petitions counting toward the 65,000 cap. The agency has received approximately 5,600 petitions for individuals with advanced degrees.
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