On Dec. 1, 2024, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) will fully decommission the legacy Permanent Online System.

Key Points:

• The system will no longer be accessible to account holders on this date, and the general public will be redirected to the Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) System.
• Stakeholders who require documents from their Permanent Online System accounts are strongly encouraged to access and download those documents well in advance of Dec. 1, 2024.
• Permanent Online System account holders who need to upload documents or request a specific case action on an application submitted in the Permanent Online System should complete actions in the system by Nov. 30, 2024, at 7 p.m. EST.
• Applications still pending in the Permanent Online System after Nov. 30, 2024, will continue to be processed by OFLC.
• Starting Dec. 1, 2024, stakeholders who need to submit a response to the department, upload documents, or request a specific case action on an application that was submitted in the Permanent Online System must do so by email, sent to the PLC Help Desk at PLC.Help@dol.gov.

Additional Information: The FLAG System was implemented to replace the legacy Permanent Online System, improve customer service and modernize the administration of foreign labor certification programs.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

 

 

In January 2024, two decades after the 9/11 terrorist attacks led to the discontinuance of domestic nonimmigrant visa renewals, the U.S. Department of State conducted a domestic visa renewal pilot program. The limited-time initiative allowed certain H-1B visas to be renewed in the U.S. instead of in a foreign country. The pilot program was used to assess the viability of a domestic visa renewal program and its efficacy in reducing visa wait times.

From Jan. 24, 2024, until April 1, 2024, certain H-1B visa holders were able to apply to renew their H-1B visa in the U.S. Prior to the pilot, BAL created a pre-assessment questionnaire to help applicants determine whether they might qualify to participate in the pilot. The State Department also released its own pre-assessment questionnaire on travel.state.gov.

Reaction to the program was largely positive, with experiences exceeding expectations related to timing and ease of participation. BAL subsequently provided program feedback, as did the American Immigration Lawyers Association, including recommendations for program improvements, expansion and permanence.

The status and possible future of domestic visa renewals

Although the Visa Office has indicated that it is actively pursuing a broader, long-term program to provide domestic visa renewals, it does not anticipate being able to launch a program until 2025. The result of the 2024 presidential election may change the program’s trajectory entirely.

Under the current Biden administration, the government plans to implement a domestic visa renewal program, with a program launch expected in 2025. The program would include H-1B visa holders who were not originally included in the pilot (e.g., someone whose H-1B visa was issued somewhere other than in Canada or India). Moreover, unlike the pilot, family members on H-4 visas would be eligible to apply for domestic visa renewal. The program is also expected to include other visa categories. (Note: Current regulations already permit the government to issue E, H, I, L, O or P visas in the U.S., so the Visa Office can expand domestic renewal to all of these categories without changing its regulations.)

If Vice President Kamala Harris is elected, the government will likely continue to move forward with its plans to create a domestic visa renewal program, though it is unclear if any particular visa categories or other visa policies may be prioritized over others.

If former President Trump is elected, the future of the domestic visa renewal program may be in jeopardy. During the prior Trump administration, the government limited interview waiver authorities, requiring visa applicants to be interviewed at a U.S. embassy or consulate for visa renewal. As any domestic visa renewal program requires the individual to qualify for interview waiver, should Trump return to office, the program may never get off the ground — at least for another four years.

Whether the Biden administration tries to push domestic visa renewal forward before inauguration is not known. If they do, and if the program is operational before President Biden’s term officially ends, dismantling it might prove difficult for the next administration, as businesses would surely apply a great deal of pressure to keep the program in place. If a domestic visa renewal program isn’t in place prior to the 2025 inauguration, it is unlikely that a second Trump administration would revive it — even if all planning and details were already in place and an announcement were imminent.

Three challenges for the domestic visa renewal program to overcome

BAL sees three challenges that need to be overcome before a new domestic visa renewal program could successfully be implemented:

1. As pointed out in a previous BAL article, a new consular division would have to be established in Washington, D.C. — an undertaking that would not be a small endeavor.
2. Resources are another hurdle. After 20 years of not renewing visas domestically, the Visa Office needs time to build up its capacity to handle a large volume of adjudications.
3. A domestic visa fee payment mechanism would have to be established. For the pilot, the Visa Office tapped into existing fee payment platforms in Canada and India. A single fee payment process is needed for a longer-term domestic visa renewal program.

Timeline and eligibility criteria for domestic visa renewals

Due to the election, any projected timeline in connection with the current administration’s plan for a domestic visa renewal program is up in the air. Should the government move forward with implementing a new domestic visa renewal program in 2025, BAL expects that some of the eligibility criteria for visa renewals would be similar to that of interview waiver applicants applying for visas abroad and the pilot criteria, with some exceptions. For example, during the pilot, applications and materials had to be submitted to the Visa Office within a specific period, whereas in a new program, applicants should be able to apply whenever the need would arise.

Criteria limiting visas issued within a certain time frame and at certain consular posts also is unlikely to apply. The State Department may not immediately open the program to all eligible visa classes but may gradually add applicants over time.

To get the latest updates on domestic visa renewals, immigration news and more expert analysis, subscribe to BAL’s newsletter.

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken announced that the U.S. State Department issued a record-breaking 11.5 million visas in fiscal year 2024.

Key Points:

• Of the 11.5 million visas issued in FY 2024, 8.5 million were visitor visas — a 10% increase over FY 2023.
• Visa wait times are down by nearly 60% since the height of the pandemic backlogs, with the median wait time for a first-time visitor visa interview now less than 60 days.
• The State Department intends to provide an additional 1 million visa appointments in FY 2025.

Additional Information: Secretary Blinken also stated that a record-setting 24.5 million U.S. passport books and cards were issued in FY 2024, half a million more than in FY 2023, and that passport wait times continue to trend down, currently now at just 4-6 weeks.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

In this week’s episode, BAL’s David Wagner and Nathan McKinlay-Roy discuss when employers should consider treaty visas as viable options for their immigration programs. Plus, the latest immigration news.

Explore more episodes of the BAL Immigration Report podcast, available on Apple, Spotify and the BAL immigration news page.

This podcast has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

The State Department issued a correction of the Diversity Visa (DV) 2026 Federal Register notice.

Key Points:

• The Federal Register notice listed incorrect dates for the DV 2026 entry period. The correct entry period for the DV 2026 lottery is from Oct. 2 to Nov. 7, 2024.
• Information at travel.state.gov and the DV 2026 instructions website has also been corrected to reflect the correct entry dates.

Additional Information: The Diversity Visa Program offers up to 55,000 immigrant visas each year to individuals from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. Further information is available here.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

The State Department has resumed full immigrant visa processing at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut for Lebanese family members of U.S. citizens.

Key Points:

• The resumption of immigrant visa processing at U.S. Embassy Beirut is intended to help facilitate family reunification of Lebanese nationals with their U.S. citizen family members.
• Routine nonimmigrant visa processing is not available at U.S. Embassy Beirut at this time. Nonimmigrant visa applications pending in Beirut cannot be transferred and applicants must reapply at another U.S. embassy or consulate.

Additional Information: Further details about immigrant visa processing at U.S. Embassy Beirut is available here.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators urged the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Labor to release the maximum allowable number of additional H-2B visas for fiscal year 2025.

Key Points:

• The effort is led by Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) and Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), with 38 more senators from both parties signing the letter submitted to DHS and DOL.
• The request is being made in an effort to support seasonal employers whose peak seasons are in late fall and winter but who have not obtained H-2B visas for temporary workers due to the cap already being met. The H-2B cap for the first half of FY 2025 was reached on Sept. 18, approximately three weeks earlier than in FY 2024.
• Sens. King and Rounds successfully pushed DHS and DOL for the early release of H-2B visas in 2022.
• DHS and DOL previously released the maximum allowable number of additional H-2B visas for FY 2024.

Additional Information: The H-2B visa program allows employers to hire temporary nonagricultural workers to meet seasonal employment needs. The congressionally mandated cap on H-2B visas currently stands at 66,000 per fiscal year, split into 33,000 for the first and second halves of each fiscal year.

BAL Analysis: Because DHS has released additional H-2B visas in the past, a release within the next month is anticipated. BAL is monitoring the situation and will post updates accordingly.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

President Biden released an extensive memorandum on the United States and artificial intelligence, providing further guidance on the Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence issued on Oct. 30, 2023.

Key Points:

• The memorandum fulfills directives established in last year’s AI executive order. Highlights from that executive order related to the hiring of foreign national employees included taking appropriate steps to streamline visa processing and facilitate the availability of visa appointments for non-U.S. citizens seeking to come to the U.S. to work on, study or conduct research in AI or other critical and emerging technologies.
• The memorandum provides further direction on how the U.S. can advance its leadership in AI, harness AI to fulfill national security objectives and foster its safety, security and trustworthiness.
• The memorandum requires the following:
  • On an ongoing basis, the Department of State, the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security shall each use all available legal authorities to assist in attracting and rapidly bringing to the United States individuals with relevant technical expertise who would improve U.S. competitiveness in AI and related fields, such as semiconductor design and production.
  • Within 180 days of the date of this memorandum, the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers shall prepare an analysis of the AI talent market in the United States and overseas, to the extent that reliable data is available.
  • Designated executive departments and agencies shall convene within 90 days and explore actions for prioritizing and streamlining administrative processing operations for all visa applicants working with sensitive technologies.

Additional Information: Read the complete memorandum with itemized directives here. A classified annex to the memorandum was also created to address additional sensitive national security issues, including countering adversary use of AI.

BAL Analysis: No immediate change in visa processing or procedures is expected at this time. BAL will continue to monitor for updates related to how the government might prioritize and streamline visa and administrative processing for high-skilled applicants working in AI and other critical and emerging technologies.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

In this week’s episode, BAL’s Tiffany Derentz and Brendan Kinne discuss an updated travel program from the U.S. State Department and travel tips for foreign nationals planning to go abroad during the winter holiday season. Plus, the latest immigration news.

Explore more episodes of the BAL Immigration Report podcast, available on Apple, Spotify and the BAL immigration news page.

This podcast has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

The Labor Department has posted updated processing times for permanent labor certification (PERM) applications and prevailing wage determination (PWD) requests.

PERM Processing Times: As of Oct. 15, the department was adjudicating PERM applications filed in August 2023 and earlier, conducting audit reviews on applications filed in December 2022 and earlier, and reviewing appeals for reconsideration filed in April 2023 and earlier.