Tina R. Goel

President Donald Trump signed a proclamation last week, “Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers,” purportedly to reduce the use and abuses of the H-1B non-immigrant classification and adjust the prevailing wage threshold in order to prioritize petitions for highly compensated and highly skilled H-1B workers. While the situation is fluid, here is what we know: The proclamation became effective Sept. 21. The Department of State, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services and the White House have

The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) released an updated policy manual at the end of September for the 2025 Conrad 30 Waiver Program application cycle, which opened Oct. 1. Changes include an online-only submission process, flexibility for the three-providers- per-practice-site limitation, and guidance regarding telehealth. The Conrad 30 program is one avenue for an immigrant physician to obtain a waiver of the two-year home residency requirement and help alleviate the physician shortage in the United States. (For an overview of the

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced Friday key changes to the H-1B lottery for Fiscal Year 2025, including a beneficiary-centric selection process for H–1B registrations; start-date flexibility for certain H–1B cap-subject petitions; and codification of the agency’s ability to deny or revoke H-1B petitions where the underlying registration or petition contained a false attestation or was otherwise invalid. The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is authorized to grant up to 85,000 H-1B cap-subject petitions per fiscal year, of

Maryland health care employers and J-1 physicians who commit to serve the underserved in Maryland and who missed Conrad 30 waiver application deadline Dec. 1 are in luck: The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) has reopened its application period! Physicians who completed graduate medical education in J-1 status now have additional time to secure a clinical service waiver of the two-year home residence requirement to provide medical services in Maryland. MDH received fewer than 30 Conrad waiver applications prior to the

Miles & Stockbridge is preparing for what we hope will be a fortuitous H-1B lottery season for cap-subject petitions. The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS” or the “Service”) announced last week the H-1B cap registration period for FY 2024 (Oct. 1, 2023 to Sept. 30, 2024) will run from March 1 through March 17. The H-1B registration program, as it has been administered since FY21, allows employers to register with USCIS for the H-1B lottery without incurring substantial

Maryland health care employers and J-1 physicians who commit to serve the underserved in Maryland and who missed the Dec. 1 J-1 Conrad 30 waiver application deadline are in luck: The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) has reopened its application period! Physicians who completed graduate medical education in J-1 status now have additional time to secure a clinical service waiver for the two-year home residence requirement to provide medical services in Maryland. MDH received 24 Conrad waiver applications prior to the

Earlier this year, the Southeast Crescent Regional Commission (SCRC), a federal-state partnership to alleviate economic and poverty issues, opened a J-1 waiver program, accepting applications for physicians of all medical specialties and subspecialties for positions at sites in designated underserved areas across the southeastern United States. This program significantly increases access to medical care in all of Florida and parts of Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. Selection for a waiver spot is the first step to securing

The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) recently released its July 2022 Maryland Conrad 30 (J-1 Visa Waiver) Program Policy and Procedures. This policy is effective October 1, 2022 for the 2023 fiscal year. The Conrad 30 (J-1 Visa Waiver) program allows qualified foreign medical graduate (FMG) physicians to apply for a waiver of the 2-year foreign residence requirement. Recipients of a Conrad waiver remain in the United States to provide essential healthcare services in underserved areas of the United States. The

J-1 exchange visitors, often Foreign Medical Graduates ("FMGs"), who receive graduate medical education or training in the U.S. are subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement under Section 212(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ("INA"). This requirement means that, upon completion of medical training, the J-1 physician must return to their country of nationality (or country of last permanent residence) for a period of at least two years in the aggregate before becoming eligible for certain nonimmigrant work visas, such

On May 4, 2022 a Temporary Final Rule (TFR) published by the US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) increased the automatic extension period for certain categories of work authorization to up to 540 days. This is a welcome relief for certain categories of foreign nationals who are at risk of losing work authorization due to USCIS’s processing delays.  Below is a summary of this important rule: Who: This rule applies to foreign nationals whose employment

Nearly one year ago to the date, I wrote in my blog post that the “the path to qualifying in [for the O-1A visa classification] is far from transparent.” At that time, I noted that the request for evidence (“RFE”) rate was on an upward swing in this temporary, non-immigrant visa classification. Today, we are pleased to discuss the Biden Administration’s recent steps to increase clarity and predictability for foreign nationals seeking this classification, with a focus upon those in

J-1 exchange visitors who received graduate medical education or training in the U.S. are subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement under Section 212(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).  This requirement means that, upon completion of medical training, the J-1 physician must return to his/her home country (or country of last permanent residence) for a period of at least two years in the aggregate before being eligible for certain nonimmigrant work visas, such as H-1B, or legal permanent

In early 2021, pursuant to INA § 212(f) the President of the United States issued a proclamation continuing the suspension of entry of certain travelers located abroad in an effort to control the spread of COVID (the “novel coronavirus” or “COVID-19”). We have previously discussed COVID-related travel and visa issuance restrictions issued in 2020 here (IV ban) and here (NIV ban). The landscape of restrictions has changed dramatically over the last 16 months. At this time, there are multiple COVID-related geographic

The O-1A is a nonimmigrant classification that allows employers and agents to temporarily employ individuals who have “extraordinary ability” in the areas of science, education, business, or athletics in the United States. It initially allows up to three years of employment in the US, and it can be extended in one year terms. The category is reserved for those who have “sustained national or international acclaim and recognition” and are acknowledged as “one of the small percentage who have arisen to

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will implement a new fee schedule on October 2, 2020 to account for increased costs in adjudicating immigration applications and petitions. The new fee schedule also ushers in new versions of certain immigration forms, including those for work visa categories, as well as a longer timeframe for premium processing. Fees for USCIS petitions and applications increased most recently in December 2016 and 2019, and they are slated for another increase in October 2020. On August