Domestic Visa Renewal
In early 2023, the U.S. Department of State announced a new plan that allows for domestic (“stateside”) visa stamp renewal for H and L visa holders. Restoring stateside visa stamp renewals- which were discontinued in 2004- means that visa holders will no longer have to return to their home country to renew their visa stamps. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there were long waits for visa stamp appointments and approvals abroad, with many foreign nationals getting stuck abroad while attempting to renew their visa stamps This change to stateside renewal processing would allow for more flexibility for workers to travel overseas with their visa documents in hand. This stateside visa stamp renewal option will be available to H-1B, H-4, L-1 and L-2 with the possibility of this program expanding to other visa types. Stateside renewals are expected to start at the end of this year, with full implementation by 2024.
July 2023 Visa Bulletin Updates
The Visa Bulletin for July 2023 for employment based immigrant visas remains largely unchanged from the Visa Bulletin for June 2023 with a few exceptions.
We have seen a retrogression in all country EB-2 and EB-3 categories since the May 2023 Visa Bulletin was published. The EB-1, EB-2, and EB-5 Final Action priority dates remain the same between June and July 2023. EB-3 has retrogressed by 4 months to February 1, 2022, for all countries except China and India. Due to continued high demand, EB-3 China has retrogressed to April 1, 2019, and EB-3 India has further retrogressed to January 1, 2009.
USCIS has stated that Adjustment of Status applicants in employment-based categories should use the Final Action Dates chart for both June and July 2023, while applicants in the family-based categories should use the Dates for Filing chart.
Individuals who now have backlogged priority dates may have the opportunity to secure additional H-1B extensions as needed while awaiting visa bulletin advancement. In addition, those with pending Adjustment of Status applications that are now backlogged can continue to renew employment authorization documents (EADs) and Advance Parole travel documents as needed and may have opportunities to port employment. Consult with your Parker Gallini attorney if you have any questions about these options.
Immigration at Work 