US Immigration News

Introduced two years ago by former President, Barack Obama, in the closing months of his time in office, the US startup visa scheme was touted as a program that would ‘attract thousands of foreign entrepreneurs, boosting jobs and the US economy. Instead, the program has received just 10 applications, plunging its future into doubt.

A notice issued by the US government on May 18, 2018, terminating Ecuador’s bilateral investment treaty with the United States, will affect E2 visa eligibility for Ecuadorean nationals. The Office of Trade Representative for the US Department of State officially announced the end of the treaty in the Federal Register.

Obtaining work visas for the US is difficult. The H1B visa quota is used up almost as soon as it becomes available in April each year. The L1 visa is only available in limited circumstances where the employee has worked for the same employer outside the US for one year in the last three years.

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently new pilot scheme favors advance planning over border adjudications for Canadian L1 visa holders. The pilot program, launched on April 30, 2018 for a period of six months will reportedly ‘facilitate the adjudication and admission process of Canadians traveling to the US as L1 nonimmigrants.’

Increasing investment in independent films is providing foreign investors with a ticket to an E2 treaty investor visa and access to the United States, according to a Forbes report. Purchasing a US filmmaker’s screen play could lead to a coveted E2 US visa.

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an updated rule recently, clarifying the criteria for certain intra-company transferee L1 visa petitions. Where there are proxy votes employers must now meet additional requirements to show that the US company and the foreign enterprise meets the L1 visa criteria.