On April 1, 2020, USCIS announced the opening of the 90 day window for filing H-1B cap petitions. Registrants selected in the Pre-Registration lottery may now file full petitions. This announcement was met with discouragement by many immigration attorneys whose registrations were erroneously denied as “duplicate” registrations.
In time of economic downturn, employers with H-1B workers in their workforce are placed in a difficult position. To weather the economic storm, employers may need to cut hours or temporarily furlough workers. Many workers would prefer to accept lower wages to retain employment benefits, such as health insurance. Unfortunately, costly H-1B Department of Labor (DOL) wage regulations require that the employer continue H-1B workers’ work schedules and payment of wages as set forth in the original H-1B petition.
This note regards our preparations in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. Inhabitants of six counties of the San Francisco Bay Area were instructed at 1pm on Monday 16 March to remain at home and “Shelter in Place” through Tuesday 7 April. We are taking appropriate steps to ensure the safety of our staff and our clients. The situation is fluid, and current exceptions permit us to provide essential services from our office and to facilitate the activities of our remote workers. We plan to meet all deadlines.
On January 30, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security announced the publication of a Final Rule making changes to the H-1B program. As E&M Mayock predicted, this year’s H-1B cap season will be the same as in seasons past.
