Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC

08/27/2026

Weekly Newsletter: September 2026 Visa Bulletin; F-1 OPT Cap-Gap Rule for H-1B Candidates; Upcoming Public Charge Rules – Vol. XIX, No. 27 -

The U.S. State Department has released the September 2026 Visa Bulletin, which is the twelfth and final Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in this month’s Visa Bulletin is the lack of any change across both Employment and Family categories, typical for the final month of the fiscal y...

08/27/2026

The U.S. State Department has released the September 2026 Visa Bulletin, which is the twelfth and final Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in this month’s Visa Bulletin is the lack of any change across both Employment and Family categories, typical for the final month of the fiscal year, as well as the [...]

The post September 2026 Visa Bulletin – USCIS Continues to Use Final Action Dates for EB Filings; Status Quo Across Employment Categories appeared first on Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC .

The U.S. State Department has released the September 2026 Visa Bulletin, which is the twelfth and final Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in this month's Visa Bulletin is the lack of any change across both Employment and Family categories, typical for the final month of the fiscal year...

07/30/2026

Weekly Newsletter: $100K H-1B Visa Fee Status; New Rule Imposes F-1 Status Restrictions; Public Charge Rule Also Changed – Vol. XIX, No. 26 -

Following the June 8, 2026 District Court decision striking down the $100,000 H-1B fee requirement in State of California v. Mullin (PDF copy), a major appellate development has occurred.  On July 24, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit officially DENIED the federal government...

07/24/2026

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has published a final rule in the Federal Register (8 CFR Parts 214, 248, and 274a) officially replacing the longstanding “Duration of Status” (D/S) framework with fixed-date periods of authorized admission for F academic students, J exchange visitors, and I representatives of foreign information media. Historically, nonimmigrants in F, [...]

The post USCIS Eliminates Duration of Status for F, J, and I Nonimmigrants; Mandatory Fixed Admission Periods and Extension of Stay Required Effective Sept. 15, 2026 appeared first on Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC .

07/23/2026

USCIS has announced that they have reached the H-1B cap limit for fiscal year 2027 (FY 2027) after the initial (and only) selection round. This means that they will not be conducting additional lottery rounds of selection after the first round. This also means that all H-1B cap registrants who were not selected under the first [...]

The post FY2027 H-1B Cap Update: Cap Reached and Closed After the Initial Selection Round appeared first on Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC .

USCIS has announced that they have reached the H-1B cap limit for fiscal year 2027 (FY 2027) after the initial (and only) selection round. This means that they will not be conducting additional lottery rounds of selection after the first round. This also means that all H-1B cap registrants who were....

07/23/2026

The U.S. State Department has released the August 2026 Visa Bulletin which is the eleventh Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in this month’s Visa Bulletin is the continued unavailability of the EB-2 category for India, contrasted with minor advancements in the EB-3 category for the Rest of the World (ROW) and EB-1 [...]

The post August 2026 Visa Bulletin – USCIS Continues to Use Final Action Dates for EB Filings; Minor Advancements in EB-3 ROW and EB-1 China appeared first on Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC .

The U.S. State Department has released the August 2026 Visa Bulletin which is the eleventh Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in this month's Visa Bulletin is the continued unavailability of the EB-2 category for India, contrasted with minor advancements in the EB-3 category for the Res...

07/23/2026

Our office has observed a troubling trend of the Department of Labor (DOL) issuing denials of PERM Labor Certifications (Form ETA-9089) based on allegedly "incomplete" explanations in Appendix C. This action frequently stems from how employers answer Section G.10 regarding the use of a credentialing service to qualify a foreign worker's education (and experience). The [...]

The post Overcoming Recent DOL PERM Denials Related to Section G.10/Appendix C Foreign Degree Credentials appeared first on Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC .

Our office has observed a troubling trend of the Department of Labor (DOL) issuing denials of PERM Labor Certifications (Form ETA-9089) based on allegedly "incomplete" explanations in Appendix C. This action frequently stems from how employers answer Section G.10 regarding the use of a credentialing...

07/16/2026

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a final rule officially rescinding the 2022 Biden-era regulation regarding public charge determinations. The now-rescinded Biden-era regulation restricted which public benefits DHS could consider, limiting officers’ ability to review all relevant factors as intended by Congress. With this final rule, USCIS officers are instructed to evaluate all [...]

The post DHS Rescinds 2022 Public Charge Rule; New Discretionary Framework and New Form I-485 Required on Sept. 18, 2026 appeared first on Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC .

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a final rule officially rescinding the 2022 Biden-era regulation regarding public charge determinations. The now-rescinded Biden-era regulation restricted which public benefits DHS could consider, limiting officers’ ability to review all relevan...

06/18/2026

The U.S. State Department has released the July 2026 Visa Bulletin which is the tenth Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in this month’s Visa Bulletin is the continued retrogression in the EB-1 category and the complete unavailability of the EB-2 category for India, contrasted with solid advancements in the EB-3 and EB-1 [...]

The post July 2026 Visa Bulletin – USCIS Continues to Use Final Action Dates for EB Filings Causing Further Retrogression for India appeared first on Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC .

The U.S. State Department has released the July 2026 Visa Bulletin which is the tenth Visa Bulletin for the fiscal year. The headline in this month's Visa Bulletin is the continued retrogression in the EB-1 category and the complete unavailability of the EB-2 category for India, contrasted with soli...

06/09/2026

On June 8, 2026, a federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued a sweeping decision (PDF copy) striking down the $100,000 H-1B visa payment requirement originally instituted under Presidential Proclamation 10973. The court declared the policy implementing the fee to be unlawful and vacated it in its entirety. This [...]

The post URGENT UPDATE: Federal Court Strikes Down $100,000 H-1B Fee Requirement appeared first on Capitol Immigration Law Group PLLC .

On June 8, 2026, a federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued a sweeping decision (PDF copy) striking down the $100,000 H-1B visa payment requirement originally instituted under Presidential Proclamation 10973. The court declared the policy implementing the fee...