VISA2US Blog

Nonimmigrants wishing to extend their visa’s validity period use Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status. This form is one of the most commonly filed, as it is used by students, visitors, and temporary workers. Generally, requesting an extension is simple, provided no significant changes have occurred. However, in the past, a biometrics requirement added extra time and expense to the application. Recently, USCIS announced changes to this requirement. How will that affect your I-539? We’ll explain here.

Followers of the US immigration system have seen the headlines demanding change across the board, particularly in the H-1B employment-based visa category. Reformation is necessary to address the border security, substantial backlog in Green Cards, and imbalance in the number of H-1B allotted visas versus the demand. According to many proponents, one potential solution is the move from skill-based to merit-based immigration. What would this mean for immigrants and the US? Keep reading to find out.

With the most recent Visa Bulletin released and the start of the new federal fiscal year in place, you’re seeing the terms H-1B Visa, EB-2 Green Card transfer, and Visa Bulletin everywhere in immigration headlines. What do these terms refer to, and how are they related? We’ll explain what you need to know here.

For decades, the US has relied upon foreign workers to fill vital positions in the labor market, including both skilled and unskilled jobs. In more recent years, the focus has shifted to ensure critical industries, such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), are taken care of through work visas such as the H-1B. This program has been in place since 1990 and is run by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Since its implementation, the H-1B program has significantly impacted the US economy, and we’ll discuss the effects here.

As the immigration system in the United States continues to undergo scrutiny, it is slowly evolving one category at a time. Most recently, on September 18, 2023, the Department of Homeland Security issued a proposed rule to bring the H-2 Temporary Visa Program up-to-date, strengthening protections for these workers and making other much-needed changes. What does this modernization attempt mean for skilled and unskilled workers? We’ll break down the changes here.

Each country has its own requirements in place that determine how foreign individuals may enter and work within its borders. In the United States, visa categories like J-1 Exchange Visitors and H-1B Specialty Occupation Workers are popular. The two visas have certain similarities in which they overlap in qualifications, but overall, they are distinctly different. Keep reading to find out everything you need to know to understand J-1 versus H-1B visas.

As the dramatic saga of Fiscal Year 2023 comes to its official close, those unable to secure an H-1B visa begin to look toward FY 2024 with hope. Still others, like you, may not have a sponsor yet but are actively searching for related companies in their industry. The good news is there is still time! Next year’s registration period won’t begin until March or April. However, you don’t want to wait until the last minute to find a sponsor. If you’re not sure where to start, use this guide to help you connect with a qualifying United States employer who will handle your H-1B visa in FY 2024.

The H-1B visa system is a popular avenue used by skilled foreign workers to expand their professional skills across borders and into the United States. While there are numerous benefits that come with this visa category, the downside to an H-1B is the need to wait for strict filing dates and hope that your registration is chosen in the random lottery, where a cap of 65,000 regular and 20,000 advanced registrants are selected to move forward and file a petition. But there’s a way around this limitation if you can find a cap-exempt employer, and those in the scholarly field often meet the conditions to do this quite naturally. Read on to find out if a scholar you know (or you yourself) can skip the lottery process and obtain an H-1B more easily.

The H-1B Fiscal Year for 2024 officially begins on October 1, 2023. However, there's still a lot of confusion about which registrations will proceed with the petition process and whether "not selected" is the official status for hundreds of thousands of this year's registrants. The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) department announced on July 31, 2023, that it reached sufficient petitions to meet the congressional mandates. This announcement includes the regular cap of 65,000 and the advanced degree exemption cap of 20,000. What does this mean for you, and should you give up on this fiscal year? Keep reading to learn more.

When you’re trying to obtain an H-1B visa, you must abide by specific beginning and ending dates, and these aren’t always optimal. This can be particularly concerning when you’re a student finishing your university program with a gap between your last day of school and your first day at your new job. Since this is relatively common, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has a process in place to streamline your H-1B petition and allow you to remain in the US with a cap gap extension.