High Skilled Labor
Biden Administration Actions to Attract ‘International STEM Talent’ and Increase Global Competition
The Biden administration recently announced four actions intended to improve immigration “pathways” for noncitizens in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. However, these changes are constrained by the delays at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and congressional limits on immigrant visa numbers. These actions include: Early Career STEM… Read More
Declining Immigration Is Leaving US Jobs Unfilled
The labor shortages currently afflicting many sectors of the U.S. economy are being aggravated by the arrival of fewer and fewer workers from abroad. Although immigration has been slowing since 2016, the biggest declines have occurred since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. According to economists… Read More
Biden’s Plan to Attract Foreign STEM Talent Recognizes Immigration’s Importance in the Global Economy
The Biden administration announced new efforts to modernize parts of our immigration system, and remove barriers to legal immigration. DHS will add 22 new fields of study in the STEM Optional Practical Training program through the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, and will implement a series of additional changes to allow foreign students, scholars, and researchers to come to the United States and make meaningful contributions to America’s scholarly, research and development, and innovation communities. Read More
Coalition Letter Calling for Implementation of the Emergency Stopgap USCIS Stabilization Act provisions
The American Immigration Council and 13 other organizations urged USCIS to expand premium processing to ensure the agency remains solvent while efficiently and effectively adjudicating all immigration benefit applications and petitions. Read More
Changing Cut Off Dates Leave India EB-3 Applicants in an Immigration Limbo
Annual limits on immigrant visa numbers, combined with processing delays and wasted numbers, mean even longer waits for people to become U.S. permanent residents. In November, the “cut off” date for visa eligibility retrogressed (moved backward in time) for people born in India who are in the employment-based (EB) third… Read More
Coalition Effort Advocates for the Inclusion of Visa-Related Provisions in Budget Reconciliation
The Council joined 89 other organizations in a letter calling for Congress to include visa-related provisions in the budget reconciliation. Read More
U.S. Employers Settle Lawsuit Challenging USCIS’ Unlawful Denial of H-1B Petitions Filed by American Businesses
The federal district court in the Northern District of California approved a settlement in a class action lawsuit challenging USCIS' pattern and practice of arbitrarily denying H-1B petitions for market research analyst positions filed by businesses in the United States. Read More
Class Action Settlement Gives Second Chance to Qualifying US Employers for H-1B Petition Approval
A recent class action settlement is expected to result in U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) approving more market research analyst H-1B petitions. The lawsuit was filed by four U.S. employers whose H-1B petitions had been denied when USCIS determined that market research analysts were not a “specialty occupation”… Read More
Immigration Lawsuits and the APA: The Basics of a District Court Action
This Practice Advisory discusses the primary issues involved in a suit brought under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) to challenge an unlawful agency action. Read More
Statement for the House Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee on “How Outdated U.S. Immigration Policies Push Top Talent to Other Countries”
This written statement submitted by the Council to Congress shares our analysis of the archaic U.S. immigration policies which are making the United States a less attractive destination for highly skilled workers from other countries. Read More
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