Table of Contents
- Decline in EB-5 Visas Issued to Indian Citizens
- Congress Introduces Bill to Add Ireland to E3 Visa
- USCIS Instituted a 250% Visa Fee Increase for Global Musicians
- Immigration is Powering US Growth
- US Consulate in Mumbai Screens 1,500 Applicants
- US Declares Visa Ban on those who Misuse Commercial Spyware
- New Immigration Rules Increase Visa Approvals for STEM workers!
- Paperless US Visas Planned - No Visa Stamps!
- US Visa Backlog Clears for Indian Applicants
- EB-5 Visa - Migration Agents must Register with USCIS
- Revived Semiconductor Manufacturing in the US
- Indians are Fourth biggest Source market for Overseas Visitor to the US
- EB-1 Indian Visa Applicants Now Face 10 Year Processing Time
- Decrease in Student Numbers due to Visa Refusals
- Proposed Changes to the E-3 Visa for Australians
12 July 2024
Decline in EB-5 Visas Issued to Indian Citizens
Despite the increase noted for the US EB-5 visa program in the last 8 months, visa issuance rates for Indians through consular processing have declined by 22 percent. During the period from October 1, 2023, to May 31, 2023, a total of 7,173 EB-5 visas were issued through consular processing, accounting for an increase of 42 per cent year-over-year increase compared to the statistics from the same period in FY2023. However, during the same period, or in the first eight months of FY 2024, the number of issued EB-5 visas to Indian applicants was 512, accounting for a decline of 22 per cent year over year. Consequently, the monthly visa issuance to the Indians at the US Consulate in Mumbai, India, revealed that a decline was registered in productivity with just 50-60 visas processed per month, and only 4 EB-5 visas issued in May. However, the statistics from the US Department of State also reveal that May 2024 was recorded the second-highest monthly visa issuance rate so far for a period from October 1, 2023, until May 31, 2024, after that month alone, 1,222 EB-5 visas were issued. Of the total 7,173 EB-5 visas issued in the first eight months of FY2024, over 1,990 belong to the adjustment of status side, all as part of the Unreserved category.
17 May 2024
Congress Introduces Bill to Add Ireland to E3 Visa
This week, the US House of Representatives has introduced two bills seeking to add Ireland to the E3 nonimmigrant visa program. The first bill is sponsored by Representative Richard Neal (D-MA) and cosponsored by Representative Mike Kelly (R-PA). The two, who are co-chairs of the Congressional Friends of Ireland Caucus, formerly introduced similar legislation in 2022. The second bill is sponsored by Representative Mike Lawler (D-NY) and is cosponsored by Representative Kevin Mullin (D-CA). Both bills have been referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. Attempts to include Ireland in the E3 Visa program have been running for years. Legislation nearly passed in 2018 but was narrowly defeated. In May 2019, Neal re-introduced legislation to grant Irish access to the E3 visa, and it unanimously passed the House in March 2020, but was never voted upon in the US Senate. In 2022, Neal and Kelly again reintroduced legislation, however, it lapsed when Congress concluded. The E-3 Visa Program was introduced in 2005 as part of the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA), and makes 10,500 visas available to skilled Australian nationals annually.
22 April 2024
USCIS Instituted a 250% Visa Fee Increase for Global Musicians
On April 1, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services instituted a 250% visa fee increase for global musicians hoping to tour in the U.S. Artists, advocacy groups and immigration lawyers are concerned it could have devastating effects on emerging talent worldwide and local music economies in the United States. If you’re a musician from outside of the United States hoping to perform stateside and you filed visa paperwork before April 1, the cost per application was $460. After that date? $1,615 to $1,655. Bands and ensemble groups pay per performer. A standard rock band of four members went from paying $1,840 to around $6,460. And if you can’t wait a few months for approval, add $2,805 per application for expedited processing. If the application is declined, that money is not refunded — on top of losses from a canceled tour and missing out on “significant, potentially career-changing opportunities,” says Jen Jacobsen, executive director at The Artist Rights Alliance. If a musician has support staff, a backing band or other employees to bring on the tour, these individuals need visas, too. “Even if you’re Capitol Records and you have all the money in the world to throw at it, you still can’t get rid of U.S. bureaucracy,” says immigration attorney Gabriel Castro. All international musicians require work visas to perform in the U.S. There are a few exemptions: Those are reserved for “showcases” through the Visa Waiver Program — like what is often used at South by Southwest, where international artists perform exclusively at official showcases, without pay and for exposure. Currently, there are few obstacles for U.S. musicians looking to enter other countries for the specific purpose of earning money through live performances. According to Castro, American performers are able to enter most countries without a visa and under an exception to tourism rules.
26 March 2024
Immigration is Powering US Growth
In February, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) calculated that immigration will generate a $7 trillion boost to gross domestic product over the next decade. The agency came to that conclusion after incorporating the recent surge in immigration. The CBO release spurred a flurry of fresh number-crunching among investment bank economists, to account for the boost those immigrants are giving to the labor force and consumer spending. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. revised up its near-term economic growth forecasts Sunday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. and BNP Paribas SA were among banks that acknowledged the economic impact from surging immigration in recent weeks. “Immigration is not just a highly charged social and political issue, it is also a big macroeconomic one,” Janet Henry, global chief economist at HSBC Holdings Plc, wrote in a note to clients Tuesday. No advanced economy is benefiting from immigration quite like the US, and “the impact of migration has been an important part of the US growth story over the past two years.” Morgan Stanley economists Sam Coffin and Ellen Zentner noted that in February, that faster population growth fueled by immigration lends itself to stronger employment and population estimates than initially thought — though added that the full effect might not be captured by official statistics.