If you or a loved one is facing unsettling circumstances or threats in your native country – or if the fear of such circumstances if you were to return – the U.S. government provides an opportunity for you to seek asylum in America regardless of your immigration status, provided you fulfill particular criteria. This disturbing circumstance must be a result of your nationality, ethnicity, political beliefs, religion, or your involvement in a socially stigmatized group. Moreover, you are required to offer a sworn statement explaining the reasons behind your departure from your homeland and the reasons that make you afraid to return. The process of seeking asylum in the United States can be overly complicated, but it is a necessary step for many individuals who are facing persecution or danger in their home country. Asylum seekers must meet certain criteria to be eligible for protection under U.S. law, including being unable or unwilling to return to their country due to fear of persecution. There are various reasons why someone may seek asylum in the United States. This could include being targeted because of one's race, religion, nationality, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or membership in a specific social group. It is important to note that seeking asylum is not just reserved for those fleeing war-torn countries or violent regimes; anyone who faces persecution and cannot rely on their government for protection may be eligible. Seeking asylum can be an intimidating process, involving extensive paperwork and interviews with immigration officials. However, having an experienced immigration attorney by your side can greatly increase your chances of success. An attorney can help guide you through the application process, gather evidence to support your claim, and represent you during interviews and hearings. It is essential to act quickly if you believe you qualify for asylum in the United States. There are strict deadlines for filing an application after entering the country, and delays could jeopardize your chances of being granted protection. By seeking legal counsel as soon as possible, you can ensure that all necessary steps are taken promptly and correctly. In conclusion, seeking asylum in the United States can provide safety and protection for individuals facing persecution in their home countries. If you believe you qualify for asylum based on fear of harm due to your race, religion, nationality, political beliefs, or other factors, it is crucial to consult with an immigration attorney who can assist you throughout the application process. Remember that everyone deserves safety and security – don't hesitate to reach out for help if you need it.

If you are a U.S. citizen or green card holder, Diaz Shafer Immigration can guide you as you bring eligible family members to the United States. We are experienced immigration attorneys, based in Tampa, Florida, who offer assistance with family-based immigrant visa applications. Whether you are looking to sponsor your spouse, parent, child, or sibling for a green card, our team can help navigate the complex immigration system. The Complex Process The process of sponsoring a family member for an immigrant visa can be daunting and overwhelming. There are multiple steps involved and various forms and documents that must be completed accurately and submitted on time. Diaz Shafer Immigration has extensive knowledge of the legal requirements and procedures involved in family-based immigration. We can provide personalized guidance to ensure that your application is complete and meets all necessary criteria. Qualifying for Sponsorship One important aspect of the process is determining whether your relationship with your family member qualifies for sponsorship. This includes establishing the nature of the relationship, such as marital status or biological/adoptive parent-child relationship. It also involves providing evidence of the relationship, such as birth certificates or marriage certificates. How We Can Assist Together, we can help collect critical documents, fill out necessary paperwork, and navigate through every step of the process. With Diaz Shafer Immigration, your loved ones have a better chance of successfully obtaining a visa to join you in the United States. Bringing your family members to the United States can be a complex and challenging process. However, with the help of experienced immigration attorneys like Diaz Shafer Immigration, you can receive personalized guidance and support throughout every step of the journey. Don't navigate this process alone - reach out to Diaz Shafer Immigration today to learn more about how they can assist you in bringing your family members to the United States.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced that, starting April 1, applicants filing Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, will have the option to request an original or replacement Social Security number (SSN) or card and update their immigration status with the Social Security Administration (SSA) without having to visit an SSA office. Noncitizens applying for naturalization using the new edition of Form N-400 (edition date 04/01/24) will be able to request an SSN or replacement card when submitting Form N-400. New citizens may no longer need to visit an SSA field office to apply for an SSN or replacement card or to provide documentation as evidence of their new U.S. citizenship status. Note that SSA may request additional information, if needed. Applicants who use the 09/17/19 edition of Form N-400 will not have this option as the SSA questions are only included in the 04/01/24 edition. The 04/01/24 edition of the Form N-400 will be available for online filing on April 1. To file Form N-400 online, applicants must first create a USCIS online account, which provides a convenient and secure method to submit forms, pay fees, and track the status of any pending USCIS immigration request throughout the adjudication process. There is no cost to set up a USCIS online account, which offers a variety of features, including the ability to communicate with USCIS through a secure inbox and respond to Requests for Evidence online. USCIS previously announced our intention to expand the Enumeration beyond Entry program to include applicants who apply for U.S. citizenship in the Interagency Strategy for Promoting Naturalization: First Anniversary Accomplishment Highlights (PDF, 1.79 MB).

H-1B Initial Registration Period Closed The initial registration period for the FY 2025 H-1B cap season closed at noon Eastern on March 25, 2024. USCIS will soon randomly select enough unique beneficiaries of properly submitted registrations projected as needed to reach the FY 2025 H-1B numerical allocations (H-1B cap), including the advanced degree exemption (master’s cap), and will notify all prospective petitioners with selected beneficiaries that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for such beneficiaries. They will issue another web alert when this process has been completed. H-1B Form I-129 Filing Location Change to Lockbox Starting April 1, 2024, H-1B and H-1B1 (HSC) Form I-129 petitions must no longer be filed at the USCIS service centers. All paper-based H-1B and H-1B1 (HSC) Form I-129 petitions must be filed at USCIS lockbox locations. This includes cap, non-cap, and cap-exempt H-1B filings. They will reject H-1B or H-1B1 (HSC) petitions received at a USCIS service center on or after April 1, 2024. There will be no grace period provided. USCIS has specific mailing addresses for cases that are subject to the H-1B cap. To determine the correct mailing address, please see our Form I-129 Direct Filing Addresses page. If a petition is filed at the wrong location, we may reject the petition. Rejected petitions will not retain a filing date. If they reject a petition because it was filed at the wrong location, it may be refiled at the correct location, or online. H-1B cap subject petitions may be refiled at the correct location, or online, as long as the petition is refiled during the designated 90-day filing window listed on the selection notice. New Fees and Form Edition On Jan. 31, 2024, USCIS published a final rule that adjusts the fees required for most immigration applications and petitions. The new fees are effective April 1, 2024. Petitions postmarked on or after April 1, 2024, must include the new fees or they will not accept them. Additionally, there will be a new 04/01/24 edition of Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker. There will be no grace period for filing the new version of Form I-129 because it must include the new fee calculation. What to Know About Sending Them Your Form I-129. They will accept the 05/31/23 edition of this form if it is postmarked before April 1, 2024; They will not accept the 05/31/23 edition of this form if it is postmarked on or after April 1, 2024; and They will only accept the 04/01/24 edition of this form if it is postmarked on or after April 1, 2024. They have published a preview version of the 04/01/24 edition of Form I-129 (PDF, 2.07 MB) and its instructions (PDF, 428.11 KB). They will use the postmark date of a filing to determine which form version and fees are correct but will use the received date for purposes of any regulatory or statutory filing deadlines. As a reminder, they recently announced a final premium processing fee rule that increased the filing fee for Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, to adjust for inflation, effective Feb. 26, 2024. If we receive a Form I-907 postmarked on or after Feb. 26, 2024, with the incorrect filing fee, we will reject the Form I-907 and return the filing fee. For filings sent by commercial courier (such as UPS, FedEx, and DHL), the postmark date is the date on the courier receipt. Online Filing and Organizational Accounts On Feb. 28, 2024, they launched new online organizational accounts that allow multiple people within an organization and their legal representatives to collaborate on and prepare H-1B registrations, H-1B petitions, and any associated Form I-907. Information on organizational accounts is available on the Organizational Accounts Frequently Asked Questions page. They also launched online filing of Form I-129 and associated Form I-907 for non-cap H-1B petitions on March 25. On April 1, they will begin accepting online filing for H-1B cap petitions and associated Forms I-907 for petitioners whose registrations have been selected. Petitioners will continue to have the option of filing a paper Form I-129 H-1B petition and any associated Form I-907 if they prefer. However, during the initial launch of organizational accounts, users will not be able to link paper-filed Forms I-129 and I-907 to their online accounts. No More Pre-paid Mailers Prepaid mailers are no longer used to send out any communication or final notices for any H-1B or H-1B1 (HSC) petitions as of March 25. With H-1B intake now occurring at the lockbox or online, they will not be able to use any prepaid mailers for H-1B or H-1B1 (HSC) filings. The process of printing and mailing H-1B petition approval notices by first-class mail is fully automated. MyUSCIS account holders will also receive an email or text message notification when there is a case status change on a case in their account, followed by a paper notice by mail. 

USCIS has extended the initial registration period for the fiscal year (FY) 2025 H-1B cap. The initial registration period, which opened at noon Eastern on March 6, 2024, and was originally scheduled to run through noon Eastern on March 22, 2024, will now run through noon Eastern on March 25, 2024. USCIS is aware of a temporary system outage experienced by some registrants and is extending the registration period to provide additional time due to this issue. During this period, prospective petitioners and their representatives, if applicable, must use a USCIS online account to register each beneficiary electronically for the selection process and pay the associated registration fee for each beneficiary. USCIS still intends to notify selected registrants by March 31, 2024. On Feb. 28, 2024, they launched new myUSCIS organizational accounts that allow multiple people within an organization, as well as their legal representatives, to collaborate on and prepare H-1B registrations, H-1B petitions, and any associated Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service. A new organizational account is required to participate in the H-1B Electronic Registration Process. For additional information and resources, please review updated information on the Organizational Accounts Frequently Asked Questions page. To help guide organizations and legal representatives through the new process, we launched our Tech Talks sessions in February 2024. During these sessions, individuals can ask questions about the organizational accounts and online filing of Form I-129 for H-1B petitions. USCIS encourages all individuals involved in the H-1B registration and petition filing process to attend these sessions. Additional information and dates are available on the Upcoming National Engagements page.

USCIS has begun implementing a streamlined process for Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization , to provide Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) more efficiently to eligible refugees after they are admitted into the United States. This streamlined process shortens the wait time for an EAD to approximately 30 days instead of several months. All individuals admitted into the United States as refugees on or after Dec. 10, 2023, will receive EADs pursuant to this new process. Under U.S. law, a refugee is legally authorized to work as soon as they arrive in the United States. Obtaining proof of this work authorization in the form of an EAD, however, was previously a cumbersome paper-based process that led to undue delays. The new process is fully automated and no longer requires refugees to apply for an EAD, allowing for more efficient processing and adjudication of Form I-765 and quicker delivery of EADs after we approve them. With this new process, USCIS will digitally create a Form I-765 for arriving refugees and begin adjudicating it as soon as they are admitted into the United States. After USCIS approves a refugees Form I-765, refugees will generally receive their EAD within one to two weeks. USCIS will mail their EAD via U.S. Postal Service Priority Mail to their address of record. The time frame for a refugee to receive their EAD card may vary, depending on delivery times. Please allow a total of 30 days before inquiring. USCIS will also electronically provide the Social Security Administration with the information required to assign a Social Security number and mail a Social Security card to the refugee. USCIS recognizes that documents such as an EAD and Social Security card are critical to a newly arrived refugee’s ability to integrate into the United States. This new process is the result of coordination across the U.S. government to support the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program and refugee integration. USCIS is committed to streamlining and digitizing our processes to make them more efficient. We launched this process on Dec. 10, 2023, following a successful trial period. This process does not apply to following-to-join refugees admitted into the United States based on an approved Form I-730, Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition . Additionally, refugees seeking a replacement or renewal EAD will still need to complete and submit Form I-765.

H-2B Cap for Second Half of FY 2024 USCIS has received enough petitions to meet the congressionally mandated H-2B cap for the second half of FY 2024. March 7, 2024, was the final receipt date for new cap-subject H-2B worker petitions requesting an employment start date on or after April 1, 2024, and before Oct. 1, 2024. We will reject new cap-subject H-2B petitions received after March 7, 2024, that request an employment start date on or after April 1, 2024, and before Oct. 1, 2024. We continue to accept H-2B petitions that are exempt from the congressionally mandated cap. This includes petitions for: Current H-2B workers in the United States who wish to extend their stay and, if applicable, change the terms of their employment or change their employers; Fish roe processors, fish roe technicians and/or supervisors of fish roe processing; and Workers performing labor or services in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and/or Guam (until Dec. 31, 2029). Filing Dates for Second Half of FY 2024 Supplemental Visas The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Labor (DOL) jointly published a temporary final rule on Nov. 17, 2023, increasing the numerical limit (or cap) on H-2B nonimmigrant visas by up to 64,716 additional visas for all of FY 2024. These supplemental visas are available only to U.S. businesses that are suffering irreparable harm or will suffer impending irreparable harm without the ability to employ all the H-2B workers requested in their petition, as attested by the employer on the DOL Form ETA 9142-B-CAA-8 (PDF). These supplemental H-2B visas are for U.S. employers seeking to petition for additional workers at certain periods of the fiscal year. Below are the filing start dates for each of the remaining supplemental visa allocations under the temporary final rule: For employers seeking workers who are nationals of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Haiti, Colombia, Ecuador, and Costa Rica, regardless of whether such nationals are returning workers: USCIS will begin accepting petitions for employers requesting an employment start date from April 1, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2024, on March 22, 2024. USCIS began accepting petitions from employers with employment start dates from Oct. 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024, in November 2023. A cap count for this country-specific allocation is available on the Temporary Increase in H-2B Nonimmigrant Visas for FY 2024 page. For employers seeking returning workers for the early second half of FY 2024 (April 1 to May 14): USCIS will begin accepting petitions for the additional 19,000 visas made available to returning workers regardless of country of nationality on March 22, 2024. For employers seeking returning workers for the late second half of FY 2024 (May 15 to Sept. 30): USCIS will begin accepting petitions for the additional 5,000 visas made available to returning workers regardless of country of nationality on April 22, 2024. USCIS will stop accepting petitions under this temporary final rule received after Sept. 16, 2024, or after the applicable cap has been reached, whichever occurs first. USCIS has already announced that we have received enough petitions to reach the cap for the additional 20,716 H-2B visas made available for returning workers for the first half of FY 2024 with employment start dates on or before March 31, 2024. Additional information on the FY 2024 supplemental visas is available on the Temporary Increase in H-2B Nonimmigrant Visas for FY 2024 page. 

As previously announced, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ new inflation-adjusted premium processing fees take effect today, increasing the filing fee for Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing. USCIS published a final rule announcing the change on Dec. 28, 2023. The USCIS Stabilization Act established the current premium processing fees and the authority for the Department of Homeland Security to adjust the premium fees on a biennial basis. After leaving these fees unchanged for the three years following passage of the Act, DHS is now increasing the premium processing fees USCIS charges for all eligible forms and categories to reflect the amount of inflation from June 2021 through June 2023 according to the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers. The adjustment increases certain premium processing fees from $1,500 to $1,685, $1,750 to $1,965, and $2,500 to $2,805. If USCIS receives a Form I-907 postmarked on or after Feb. 26, 2024, with the incorrect filing fee, we will reject the Form I-907 and return the filing fee. For filings sent by commercial courier (such as UPS, FedEx, and DHL), the postmark date is the date reflected on the courier receipt. DHS will use the revenue generated by the premium processing fee increase to provide premium processing services; make improvements to adjudications processes; respond to adjudication demands, including reducing benefit request processing backlogs; and otherwise fund USCIS adjudication and naturalization services.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is issuing policy guidance regarding the F and M student nonimmigrant classifications, including the agency’s role in adjudicating applications for employment authorization, change of status, extension of stay, and reinstatement of status for these students and their dependents in the United States. This guidance consolidates existing policy. USCIS expects that this will provide welcome clarity to international students and U.S. educational institutions on a wealth of topics, including eligibility requirements, school transfers, practical training, and on- and off-campus employment. For example, the guidance clarifies that F and M students must have a foreign residence that they do not intend to abandon, but that such students may be the beneficiary of a permanent labor certification application or immigrant visa petition and may still be able to demonstrate their intention to depart after a temporary period of stay. In addition, the guidance specifies how F students seeking an extension of optional practical training (OPT) based on their degree in a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) field may be employed by startup companies, as long as the employer adheres to the training plan requirements, remains in good standing with E-Verify, and provides compensation commensurate to that provided to similarly situated U.S. workers, among other requirements. The nonimmigrant academic student (F-1) classification allows a noncitizen to enter the United States as a full-time student at a college, university, seminary, conservatory, academic high school, elementary school, or other academic institution, or in a language training program. The nonimmigrant vocational student (M-1) classification includes students in established vocational or other recognized nonacademic programs, other than language training programs. For more information about the USCIS guidance, see the Policy Alert (PDF, 312.06 KB) and Volume 2, Part F of the Policy Manual. For more information about the role of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in administering these nonimmigrant student programs, see the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVIS).