Legal News

Domestic H-1B Visa Renewal Pilot Begins January 29, 2024

Overview Program Scope: H-1B principal visa holders only. Purpose: To assess the impact of domestic visa renewals on visa processing capabilities. Selected Missions: Mission India and Mission Canada, representing a global population sample. Eligibility Criteria Time Frame: January 29, 2024 – April 1, 2024. Prior Visa: Issued by Mission Canada (Jan 1, 2020 – Apr 1, 2023) or Mission India (Feb 1, 2021 – Sep 30, 2021). Other

USCIS to Introduce Online Filing for H-1B Petitions in FY 2025

USCIS to Introduce Online Filing for H-1B Petitions in FY 2025 In February, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will launch online organizational accounts, allowing H-1B petitioners to file Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, for fiscal year 2025. Key details include: • Enhanced Features: Organizational accounts will feature improved design and case management tools for legal representatives and organizations with H-1B registrant accounts. • Filing Options: H-1B petitioners

Somireddy Law Group Welcomes New Team Member: Jibran Muhammad, Expert in Criminal and Family Law

Somireddy Law Group is Excited to Announce the Newest Addition to Our Team We are delighted to welcome Mr. Jibran Muhammad, an established litigator with extensive experience in both criminal and family law, to the Somireddy Law Group. Mr. Muhammad’s joining marks a significant expansion of our legal services and reinforces our commitment to providing top-tier legal representation. About Jibran Muhammad: A Blend of Expertise in Criminal and Family Law

New regulations Affecting California Employers Starting January 01, 2024!!

Employers based in California and those conducting in business in the state must be aware of the several new laws and amendments that will come into effect in 2024. These changes will significantly impact employers’ operations in California. 1. Creation of Rebuttable Presumption of Retaliation: The State of California has broadened employee protections against disciplinary actions or termination within 90 days of engaging in a certain protected activity. Additionally, such

Q & As regarding the DOS Stateside Visa Renewal Pilot Program that Begins January 29, 2024

On December 20, 2024, the Department of State (DOS) shared an unpublished version of a Federal Register notice announcing that the greatly anticipated stateside visa renewal pilot will begin on January 29, 2024, and end on April 1, 2024. It will be published at the same link in the Federal Register on December 21, 2023. The notice describes, among other things, the requirements for participation, the application process, and how applications

Attention International Students: Urgent Advisory on OPT Application Deadlines

Attention students completing your academic programs in the winter session: the OPT application process requires careful timing, particularly due to the unique schedule of winter course completion. Somireddy Law Group is committed to ensuring you are well-informed to avoid pitfalls that may jeopardize your OPT application success. Winter Session Considerations: Early Planning: If you complete your courses in the winter, start planning your OPT application early to account for holiday

New Washington State Laws Affecting Employers Nationwide with Job Postings!

Equal Pay and Opportunity Act In a recent judgment, the Superior Court of the State of Washington held employers like Insight Global LLC liable for violating the “Pay Transparency” requirements. The court awarded $5,000 in damages plus attorney fees to each applicant who applied to a non-conforming posting. Effective January 1, 2023, Washington State’s “Pay Transparency” Law requires all employers with more than 15 employees, including at least one Washington-based

H-1B Workers Won’t have to go out of the United States to get a visa anymore!

Domestic Visa Renewal Pilot Program, starting Jan 2024. A limited number of H-1B specialty occupation workers will be able to renew their visas in the US. The rollout of the H-1B domestic visa renewal pilot will be limited to just 20,000 participants at first. This would allow those H-1B holders to renew their visas by mailing them to the State Department rather than travel outside the US and face uncertain wait

The Holiday Shopping Season and Rising Shoplifting Concerns

The Impact of Shoplifting Charges on Foreign Students and H-1B Workers in the U.S. Sunila Bali, Esq. As the holiday season approaches, shopping malls and stores become bustling centers of activity, filled with excitement and the spirit of gift-giving. However, this period also sees a notable rise in shoplifting incidents, a trend that carries significant legal and immigration implications, particularly for foreign students and H-1B workers in the United States.

EMPLOYERS: Have you complied with the new I-9 requirements effective November 1, 2023, yet?

Here are the top 10 things to consider Streamlined Form: The new Form I-9 has been streamlined and shortened. Employers must start using this new form from August 1, 2023. Transition Period: The older Form I-9 (Rev. 10/21/19) could only be used through October 31, 2023. After this date, penalties apply for using the older form. You need to do the new form for ALL employees, old and new. Alternative

Top 10 reasons why students fall out of status and what to do

Failure to Enroll Full-Time: F-1 students are generally required to be enrolled as full-time students. Falling below the minimum credit/course load without proper authorization can lead to a loss of status. Unauthorized Employment: Working off-campus without the required authorization or working more hours than allowed on-campus can result in status violations. Failure to Extend I-20: If a student’s program end date on their Form I-20 is approaching, and they haven’t

Top 10 take aways from the proposed H-1B Modernization

Federal immigration authorities recently published long-awaited revisions to the H-1B visa process intended to modernize the H-1B visa process and tighten the annual lottery system. The notice was published by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the proposed rule will be available for public comment until December 22, 2023. We expect that the resulting regulations will be finalized and implemented in the coming months. 1. H-1B CAP Registration process: The

US Supreme Court Justices Refuse Challenge To H-1B Spouses’ Work Permits (H-4 EADs)

The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit from tech workers who said a policy from when Barack Obama was President, allowing some highly skilled foreign workers’ spouses to work, was not approved by Congress. This is good news for many H-4 spouses. This decision means that the previous ruling by a judge in Washington, D.C., stays in place. That judge said the workers’ concerns that they were losing jobs to

USCIS Launches Online Appointment Request Form

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has launched a new online form for individuals, attorneys, and accredited representatives to request an in-person appointment at their local field office without having to call the USCIS Contact Center. This online appointment request form allows individuals or legal representatives to request an in-person appointment at a field office only, for ADIT stamps, Emergency Advance Parole, Immigration Judge Grants, and more. It is not a

Former F-1 Students from India File Lawsuit Against DHS for Visa Denials Based on Employers’ Fraud

The plaintiffs, a group of former F-1 students from India, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington alleging that DHS unlawfully made a blanket finding of inadmissibility against them because they had sought employment or had worked on Optional Practical Training (OPT) for one of four fraudulent companies—Andwill Technologies, AzTech Technologies LLC, Integra Technologies LLC, and WireClass Technologies LLC—while on a student visa.