Tag Archives: STEM

New Portal for F-1 International Students and an Update on Potential Changes to OPT Rules

International students studying in the U.S. (typically in F-1 nonimmigrant status) must comply with many federal regulations while studying and working in the U.S. Much of their information is coordinated through their school’s designated school official (“DSO”), who reports the F-1 student’s information using the U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement’s (“ICE”) database called the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (“SEVIS”), which stores and reports information about the F-1 student’s immigration status.… More

Is “Merit-Based” Immigration Code for Something Else?

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) hosted a DHS stakeholders call entitled “H-1B Cap and Filing Tips Stakeholder Engagementthat I participated in on March 6. It made me think about “merit-based” immigration and how we have not seen movement of any real proposals by the Trump administration – or his supporters in Congress.  I wondered what they have in mind for merit-based immigration and would it actually work for my clients,… More