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In early 2015, the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the Department of Labor will begin exercising its authority to certify applications for trafficking victims seeking T visas. In addition, WHD will expand its existing U visa program by certifying such requests when it detects three additional qualifying criminal activities in the course of its workplace investigations: extortion, forced labor, and fraud in foreign labor contracting.

On November 20, 2014, the President announced a series of executive actions to crack down on illegal immigration at the border, prioritize deporting felons not families, and require certain undocumented immigrants to pass a criminal background check and pay taxes in order to temporarily stay in the U.S. without fear of deportation.

WASHINGTON— Due to the outbreak of Ebola virus disease in West Africa, Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson has announced his decision to designate Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months.  As a result, eligible nationals of Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone who are currently residing in the United States may apply for TPS with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

WASHINGTON — The Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) deployed 14 additional field representatives to territories across the country this week. The field representatives serve as liaisons between the nearly 9,000 U.S. schools that enroll international students and SEVP. The program, housed within U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), certifies schools to enroll international students and protects national security by overseeing those students for compliance with U.S. laws.

Special provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) authorize U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to expedite the application and naturalization process for current members of the U.S. armed forces and recently discharged servicemembers. Generally, qualifying military service includes service with one of the following: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and National Guard. In addition, spouses of members of the U.S. armed forces who are or will be deployed may be eligible for expedited naturalization.

The National Visa Center (NVC) will cease collecting original civil documents in support of immigrant visa (IV) applications as of November 12, 2014. Most applicants will be required to submit photocopies of supporting documents (such as birth, marriage, and police certificates) and will be instructed to take their original documents to their interviews for review. This does not include Affidavit of Support forms, which petitioners will still submit to NVC for initial evaluation. 

Effective immediately, the reciprocity schedule for Chinese nationals is revised for the B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2, F-1, F-2, J-1, J-2, M-1, and M-2 nonimmigrant visa (NIV) categories. All other visa validities for nationals of China will remain unchanged. 

For the Reciprocity Schedule please click here.

On Nov.12, USCIS will make Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card, temporarily available in the

The United States will begin issuing visas in accordance with a new reciprocal arrangement on November 12, 2014. Chinese applicants who qualify for a B-category nonimmigrant visa (NIV) may now be issued multiple-entry visas for up to 10 years for business and tourist travel. Qualified Chinese students and exchange visitors and their dependents who qualify for F, M, or J-category visas are now eligible for multiple-entry visas valid for up to five years or the length of their program. U.S.

USCIS recently began transferring some casework from the Vermont Service Center to the California Service Center to balance workloads. The affected casework includes:

• Form I-751, Petition to Remove the Conditions of Residence

How You Will Be Affected

If USCIS transferred your case, USCIS will send you a transfer notice. Your original receipt number will not change and the transfer will not delay the processing of your case. Please note: