US Immigration News

Due to concerns over terrorism and rogue terrorist cells possibly operating in the USA, the US House of Representatives and US Government is attempting to add new restrictions to the US visit visa waiver program. It may no longer be possible in future for certain groups of people from around the World to come under the visa waiver program.

US Senators Bill Nelson of the Democratic Party and Jeff Sessions of the Republican Party have filed legislation that will cut the H-1B visa quota by 15,000. The legislation if passed would also mean that H-1B visas from the quota are granted to the highest earning H-1B visa applicants first.

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced the expansion of the H-2A and H-2B temporary non-immigrant work visa to include Colombian citizens from 18 January 2016. The H-2 visa permits US companies to recruit foreign workers on a temporary basis, provided they complete temporary labor certification to show that there are no American workers to take up certain short-term job vacancies.

The number of South Korean citizens applying for a US work visa has risen sharply according to reports from the country's Ministry of Employment and Labor. Over the last three years - 2012-2015 - the number of applications made by South Korean nationals for a US immigrant work visa has surged, increasing by about 80 per cent.

The US E-2 Treaty Investor visa is worth considering both for business investors and for those just looking for a E-2 employee work visa. Nationals of eligible Countries which include UK nationals can gain entry based on investments of say as little as US$50,000 in some cases. Compared to the average London house price of about £500,000 (about US750,000) this is not really that much. This is also much lower than the minimum requirement of US$500,000 for the US EB-5 immigrant investor program which also requires you to create employment for ten people.

Legislation signed by US president, Barack Obama, on June 11, 2012 placed Israel on a list of nations eligible for non-immigrant E-2 treaty investor visas. After three years it seems that finally the E-2 Treaty Investor visa will be made available to nationals of Israel by the end of 2015. Israel will also need to create an equivalent visa that will enable US nationals and companies to invest money and live in Israel.