The COVID-19 pandemic has put a spotlight on the importance of immigrants to medical research and health-care in the U.S. More than 11,000 immigrants on H-1B visas and green cards are working on treatments and vaccines for COVID-19 at major major biotech and pharmaceutical companies in the U.S., according to a new analysis by the…
Last year New Zealand joined the list of countries with a trade treaty with the U.S. New Zealand does not yet appear on the Department of State’s list of treaty countries. However, a DOS fact sheet on the Knowledgeable Innovators and Worthy Investors (KIWI) Act states that New Zealanders are eligible for the E-1 Visa…
By Sophie Alcorn and Valerie Dagama Pereira How can visas in the Land Down Under benefit U.S. companies? Australia offers a few visa options, including a pilot program that began last month, aimed at attracting specialized workers, established companies, and startups. U.S. employers could use these options to transfer foreign workers who cannot renew or…
The volume of H-1B applications submitted to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and subject to the annual cap dropped for the second consecutive year under the Trump administration. Cap-subject H-1B filings have dropped nearly 20% since 2016. Each year since 2014, the number of cap-subject H-1B petitions submitted had steadily risen, reaching a high…
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) plans to impose new restrictions making it more difficult to attract and retain highly-skilled foreign nationals and international students who attend a U.S. university. In a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley last month, USCIS Director L. Francis Cissna outlined a series of measures that the agency…
Relax. Every year the Alcorn Immigration Law team helps employers and foreign professionals devise immigration strategies that fit their needs. Those strategies may include a backup plan in the event that a job candidate fails to get an H-1B specialty occupation visa in the annual H-1B lottery in April. Several other visa options exist for…
If you have been working at a foreign company, how can you move to the US? If you’re a manager or executive, such as a startup founder, or an employee with specialized knowledge, you might have an opportunity to come to the United States with an L-1A or L-1B visa or even possibly an EB-1C…