Category: Visas

The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for September 2014 noted that the use of potentially “otherwise unused” employment visa numbers prescribed by § 202(a)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) has allowed the India employment-based second preference cut-off date to advance very rapidly in recent months.  The Visa Bulletin warned, however, that continued forward… Read More

According to reports, the Department of State’s Consular Consolidated Database (CCD), used to print and approve visas and passports, has been having significant problems, including outages, since July 19, 2014. The CCD is back up and running in a limited capacity, the Department said, but the Bureau of Consular Affairs is still working through the… Read More

The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for August 2014 notes that cut-off dates for the China-mainland born employment third preference, and third preference “Other Workers,” categories have advanced for the month of August and could do so again for September. The bulletin notes two reasons for this advance: (1) a decline during the past two… Read More

Immigrant innovators play an important role by bringing in revenue, creating jobs, and contributing significantly to the economy. American businesses seek these highly skilled immigrants to fill job positions, but they are often hindered by current immigration policies. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) H-1B visa programallows American businesses to employ highly skilled foreign… Read More

The U.S. Department of State announced on July 31st, 2014 that its Consular Consolidated Database (CCD) is still performing below its normal operational capacity.  The CCD is the Department of State’s global database for issuing travel documents, including visas. It crashed on July 20th, and although it has been restored to a functioning level, it… Read More