Archive for the ‘Legal News’ Category
Published OP-ED: Christian asylum seekers waiting in limbo
On July 23, 2022, the Colorado Springs Gazette published a Guest Column by senior associate, Petula McShiras. Written with the assistance of the American Immigration Council, the column asks for the fair and equal treatment of Afghan applications for Humanitarian Parole. We applaud the administration for its efforts in Ukraine and it’s wonderful to see […]
ULP Bar Can Run in the United States!
On June 24, 2022, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a new policy alert for the 3-year and 10-year bars. According to this alert, individuals who lawfully entered the United States after triggering the 3 year or 10 year bar can now apply for Adjustment of Status without a waiver so long as […]
USCIS Announces that this year’s registration period opens on March 1!
USCIS has announced that the H-1b CAP (lottery) registration period begins March 1 and runs to March 18. This means that employer and applicant information should be gathered in February in order to complete the process during this period. If you are considering registering in the lottery for a H-1b visa, contact us by phone […]
SHAFTEL LAW IS HIRING – PARALEGAL POSITION
See our ad for an open position below Shaftel Law is Seeking an Immigration Paralegal TO APPLY: Please email Petula McShiras, at Petula@lawshaftel.com, the following: Cover letter, resume and a writing sample WHO WE ARE: SHAFTEL LAW is a full-service law firm, dedicated 100% to immigration law. We handle a variety of family, employment-based and […]
H-1b Lottery Will Not Change This Year, Wage Based System is Delayed
USCIS just announced that the Trump regulation that changes the H-1b lottery system to really a wage based allocation system (giving the highest wage earners in each occupation first preference) will be delayed until the end of the year, and not take effect until next year’s H-1b Cap season. HERE IS A LINK TO USCIS’ […]
President Biden’s Immigration Policy Executive Orders from February 02, 2021
Yesterday, President Biden issued three immigration related executive orders. The orders lay out new, thoughtful approaches to both address fundamental problems in our immigration system and to undo the harm caused by the Trump Administration’s immigration policies (which epitomized a complete lack of thought and humanity). One order addresses the new approach to Central and […]
Biden Immediately Begins Dismantling Trump’s Immigration Policies
The speed at which the Biden administration is committed to undoing 4 years of horrible immigration policy is exciting to say the least. Yesterday, President Biden issued an executive order that resets our immigration priorities. These priorities are exactly that, a focus on the most serious crises we currently face that affect our immigration system. […]
Final Rule Published on H-1b Lottery System Changes Based on Wage Level, But . . .
The Trump administration continues its last ditch efforts to undermine our immigration system with another final rule which would dramatically change how the H-1b lottery is conducted. I have an attached a AILA (American Immigration Lawyers Association) summary of what these changes look like and the possibility of whether they actually will take effect this […]
Full DACA Program Restored by a Federal Court
A U.S. District Court in New York ordered USCIS to fully restore the DACA program to its original Obama program version. This is fantastic news since it means that the program will once again have to accept new applicants who qualify, many of whom “aged into” the program after it was curtailed by the Trump […]
New Trump Memo on DACA, Barring New Applications, But Allowing Current Recipients to Renew in One-Year Increments
What the New DACA Memo Does The Department of Homeland Security issued a new memorandum today regarding the DACA program (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), authored by the acting Secretary for DHS Chad Wolf. The memo is in response to the Supreme Court’s recent decision that the previous memos that attempted to end DACA were […]