December 28, 2021
Processing times for employment authorization documents (EAD) can exceed 8 to 12 months, even for renewals. On December 28, 2021, the USCIS announced that certain healthcare workers who have a pending EAD renewal application (Form I-765 Application for Employment Authorization) are eligible for expedited processing. To qualify for expedited processing,the applicant must be an essential healthcare worker […]
December 09, 2021
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is temporarily waiving the requirement that the civil surgeon sign Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record, no more than 60 days before an applicant files an application for the underlying immigration benefit (including Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status), until Sept. 30, 2022. […]
October 14, 2021
Most doctors get a green card through an employer’s sponsorship of the labor certification process. Depending upon your country of birth, it can take anywhere from two to 10+ years to get a green card this way. And if you don’t have an employer willing to sponsor, then labor certification is not an option at […]
September 11, 2021
Starting October 1st, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) will require proof of COVID-19 vaccination for all green card applicants and refugees. Vaccination requirements for immigration are not new. In fact, proof of many other vaccines recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) are required when applying for a green card. Procedurally, an […]
August 25, 2021
The Department of Justice announced today that it reached a settlement with Ascension Health Alliance (Ascension), a Missouri-based health care organization with more than 2,600 sites – including 146 hospitals and more than 40 senior living facilities – in 19 states and the District of Columbia. The settlement resolves the department’s claims that Ascension violated the Immigration […]
February 27, 2021
You are going about your usual duties at work when you get a call that a government agent wants to speak with you about your H-1B visa. As you descend in the elevator to the lobby, your imagination goes wild. As you meet the agent, he identifies himself as an FDNS inspector and wants to […]
February 22, 2021
H-1B visas authorize highly educated non-citizen professionals to work for U.S. employers in specialty occupations. Current law limits the number of new H-1B visas issued each fiscal year. The H-1B quota for this fiscal year is 65,000 for those who hold at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent. In addition, 20,000 H-1B visas are […]
January 27, 2021
Just before it ended, the Trump administration issued two last-minute H-1B visa rules that substantially changed the H-1B visa program. H-1B cap registration – under a final rule issued Jan. 8 , only the highest-paid applicants for new H-1B visa would be selected. Currently, foreign workers are randomly selected through the annual H-1B visa lottery. […]
January 22, 2021
Join Badmus & Associates at the Plano Multicultural Outreach Roundtable-MCOR annual Citizenship Workshop on Saturday, February 13, 2021 from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Learn about the citizenship process, hear from the US Citizenship & Immigration Service, and meet with immigration attorneys. Attorney Ann Massey Badmus will explain the background screening process for citizen applications. […]
December 19, 2020
Badmus & Associates joins with the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) in opposition to the Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act of 2020 H.R. 1044, as amended by S. 386. Don’t get us wrong. We absolutely support removing the per-country limitations for employment-based immigrants because individuals should become permanent residents based on the skills they […]