On April 27, 2021, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) issued updated guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual effective immediately instructing officers to once again give deference to prior determinations when adjudicating extension of petition validity requests “involving the same parties and facts unless there was a material error, material change, or new material facts.” In doing so, “USCIS is reverting in substance to previous long-standing guidance issued in 2004”, which had been rescinded in 2017.
Read moreMcClatchy: “Under pressure, Trump team backs off proposal to cull foreign tech workforce”
After reports late last month that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was considering a policy change that could have prevented certain H-1B workers who are applying for permanent residency from extending their H-1B status beyond the normal time limit of six years, the agency has reportedly reversed course. Facing intense pressure from the business and technology communities, the Trump administration appears to be no longer considering the policy change that could have potentially forced hundreds of thousands of foreign skilled workers out of the country.
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