For a time, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) took up to two years to process applications for the spouses of H-1B visa holders who needed work authorization. Attorneys blamed it on Trump administration policies which appears were designed to prevent spouses from working in the United States. A new legal settlement with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in Edakunni v. Mayorkas should help many spouses of H-1B and L-1 visa holders.

The Settlement

“The government and plaintiffs have signed off on a settlement in which USCIS would agree to return to bundling the adjudication of I-539s and I-765s for H-4 and L-2 derivatives along with the underlying I-129 when these forms are filed together,” according to a statement from Jonathan Wasden of Wasden Law and Steven Brown from Reddy & Neumann, P.C. Also involved in the settlement was Jesse Bless on behalf of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and Kripa Upadhyay of Karr Tuttle Campbell. (Form I-539 is for applications to extend/change nonimmigrant (temporary) status, and Form I-765 is for applications for employment authorization.)

“The class action settlement in Edakunni focuses on what plaintiffs demanded in April of 2021 when this case was initiated; bringing back the concurrent processing methodology that even USCIS officials have stated in depositions was more efficient for adjudicators,” said Wasden and Brown. “Most importantly, when using this methodology, dependent spouses...

Read Full Story: https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMieGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmZvcmJlcy5jb...