US Immigration News

A new study by the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) finds that low-skilled immigration to the United States benefits consumers, employers and skilled workers.

"In contrast to the broad consensus that exists regarding the benefits of highly skilled immigration, the economic role of low-skilled immigrants remains one of the most controversial questions in the immigration debate," the MPI said in a press release.

As of 24 December 2010, all 20,000 Master's exemption H-1B visas were used up. As of 31 December 2010 almost 7,000 regular H1B visas remain. Each year, 65,000 H-1B visas are available for United States companies wishing to hire skilled overseas workers. An additional 20,000 H-1B visas are available for applicants who hold an equivalent of a Master's degree or higher.

Before the global financial crisis, the cap on H1B visas was being reached on the first day that visas became available for each fiscal year. In recent years visas have continued to be available throughout the year. The latest USCIS update of 12 November 2011, confirms that over 17,000 H-1B visas are still available under the regular H-1B cap and 2,600 under the Masters Exemption for the current fiscal year.

On 23 November 2010, United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) will be increasing its fees for a number of immigration and non-immigrant related visa applications. For some visa categories fees will actually decrease.

There is little more than a week left if you wish to submit your entry for the Green Card Lottery. The entry period for the Green Card Lottery ends at 12pm EST on Wednesday 3 November 2010. If you are picked for the Green Card Lottery you can then apply for your US Green Card and live in the US indefinitely and work in the US for any employer.

US H-1Bs are still available. It looks as if not all visas will be used for the current fiscal year. There are currently about 14,000 visas left for the regular H-1B visa and about 5,000 visas left under the H-1B masters exemption. In past years all visas have been used up in a single day. You can also start work as soon as your visa is approved. In the past because of lack of availability of visas many people had to wait for many months before being able to start work.