Weekly Immigration Update: April 8–14, 2022
April 14, 2022
In immigration news this week:
- Worldwide: Jurisdictions around the world continue to adapt their coronavirus-related travel restrictions and health requirements based on several factors, including fluctuating infection rates and growing vaccination initiatives. Visit Fragomen’s COVID-19 website for the latest immigration updates.
- European Union/Ukraine: Many EU Member States have implemented the EU Temporary Protection Directive, offering expedited stay, residence, and work status for Ukrainian citizens and eligible Ukrainian residents leaving Ukraine. Some other European countries are implementing their own national versions of the Directive. See our consolidated alert for more information.
- United States: According to the State Department’s May Visa Bulletin, most employment-based final action dates show modest or no movement, while EB-5 final action dates take effect immediately in April. U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will accept employment-based adjustment of status applications from foreign nationals with a priority date that is earlier than the Dates for Filing listed in the State Department’s May 2022 Visa Bulletin.
- Canada: The recently announced Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) Workforce Solutions Road Map introduces improvements to the TFWP to address labor shortages throughout the country.
- Australia: The Australian government has granted concessions that take effect July 1 in order to help employers retain foreign workers in the country.
These items and other news from Argentina, Canada, France, Italy, Latvia, Poland, and Spain follow in this edition of the Fragomen Immigration Update.
Important updates in immigration this week
United States, April 14, 2022
May 2022 Visa Bulletin Update – USCIS to Honor Filing Dates for Employment-Based Categories
Next month, USCIS will accept employment-based adjustment of status applications from foreign nationals with a priority date that is earlier than the Dates for Filing listed in the State Department’s May 2022 Visa Bulletin.
To view entire article, click here.
United States, April 13, 2022
May 2022 Visa Bulletin – Some EB-2 India Movement, Other Categories Hold Steady; EB-5 Final Action Dates Effective Immediately
- Most employment-based Final Action dates show modest or no movement in May.
- The EB-2 India Final Action date will advance by almost two months, to September 1, 2013. EB-2 China will remain at March 1, 2019.
- EB-3 India and EB-3 China Professional/Skilled Worker Final Action dates will remain unchanged from the previous month, at January 15, 2012 and March 22, 2018, respectively.
- Worldwide EB-1/EB-2/EB-3, and EB-1 China and India will remain current next month.
- EB-5 Final Action Dates in the May Visa Bulletin are effective immediately in April. EB-5 China (Non-Regional Center program) remains current. EB-5 (Regional Center) is current for all countries except China under the “Unreserved” category, which holds a November 22, 2015 final action date.
- The Date for Filing for EB-2 India will advance three months, to December 1, 2014. All other Dates for Filing for EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3 Professional/Skilled Workers will remain unchanged in May.
To view entire article, click here.
Canada, April 11, 2022
Temporary Foreign Worker Improvements Forthcoming
The government of Canada is implementing improvements to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) to address labour shortages throughout the country. Key policy changes include:
- The permanent elimination of caps for seasonal industry workers to work in Canada for a longer period;
- Longer validity for Labour Market Impact Assessments;
- The extension of employment duration for High-Wage Stream and Global Talent Stream workers; and
- Relaxed hiring and application policies for low-wage occupations.
To view entire article, click here.
Australia, April 8, 2022
Removal of Onshore Renewal Restrictions and Other Concessions to Retain Foreign Workers Forthcoming
- Starting July 1, 2022, certain Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa holders who fall under the onshore renewal restriction for TSS visas granted in the ‘short-term’ stream, will have the ability to apply for a further TSS visa from within Australia if they have remained in Australia for at least 12 months between February 1, 2020 and December 14, 2021.
- Also starting July 1, 2022, certain Temporary Work (Subclass 457) and TSS visa holders currently working in Australia will be able to apply for permanent residency under the Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) visa program’s Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) stream.
- Lastly, the government has extended an age exemption to certain current and former Subclass 457 visa holders who will no longer be subject to the standard age limit of 45 years.
To view entire article, click here.
Other weekly news briefs
Argentina: Humanitarian Visa for Ukrainian Citizens Introduced – Argentina has introduced a humanitarian visa for Ukrainian citizens and their direct family members (of any nationality) to reside and work in Argentina for three years. Applicants must have been outside Argentina on March 8, 2022 and must apply for the visa at an Argentinian consular post. There are no government fees for this visa.
Canada: Improvements to the Temporary Foreign Worker Quebec Pilot Program Forthcoming – The government of Canada introduced the next phase of the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program Quebec Pilot Program which will run until December 31, 2023. Beginning May 24, 2022, National Occupational Classification (NOC) level C occupations (intermediate-skilled work) will be included in the pilot project, which will allow employers seeking to fill level C positions in Quebec to obtain faster processing of their Labor Market Opinion (LMO) applications, among other benefits. Currently, the TFW Program in Quebec only applies to higher-skilled occupations. Employers utilizing this program will continue to be required to have their representative and the TFW sign the employment contract and to provide round-trip transportation, adequate housing and medical insurance coverage for TFWs.
Canada: Increased Permanent Residence Filing Fees – On April 30, 2022, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will increase fees for all permanent residence applications to account for inflation. The changes are as follows: Right of Permanent Residence fee will increase to CAD 515, up from CAD 500; Federal High Skilled, Provincial Nominee Program, Quebec Skilled Workers and most economic pilots fees will increase to CAD 850, up from CAD 825; Live-in Caregiver Program and Caregivers Pilots fee will increase to CAD 570, up from CAD 550; the Business category (Federal and Quebec) fee will increase to CAD 1,625, up from CAD 1,575; Family Reunification fee will increase to CAD 490, up from CAD 475; Protected Persons and Humanitarian and Compassionate/Public Policy fees will increase to CAD 570, up from CAD 550; and Permit Holders fee will increase to CAD 335, up from CAD 325. Fees will also increase for accompanying spouses and partners as well as children. IRCC had not increased permanent residence fees from 2002 until 2020. At that time, it was announced that fees would increase every two years to compensate for inflation.
Canada: New Application Centers for Ukrainian Citizens – On April 14, 2022, a new temporary Visa Application Centre (VAC) location serving Ukrainian nationals and their family members opened in Warsaw, Poland. Since April 9, 2022, biometrics appointments have been able to be booked at the new location. Additionally, new temporary VACs will soon be open in Bratislava, Slovakia; Budapest, Hungary; and Krakow, Poland.
Italy: Upcoming Ministry of Interior Portal Outage to Affect Work Permit Submissions – Between April 22 and May 10, 2022, the Ministry of Interior's website will not be operational due to website updates. During this period, applicants will not be able to submit new work permit applications; users will only be able to view previously submitted applications. In addition, there may be appointment and processing delays at immigration offices across the country. On May 11, 2022, the new version of the portal for submitting family reunification applications will be released and new application forms will be accessible.
Latvia: Golden Visa to be Suspended – A draft law that is likely to be adopted by the Latvian Parliament will suspend the residence by investment (Golden Visa) program. The draft bill also proposes to suspend the issuance of temporary residence permits to Russian and Belarusian citizens until June 30, 2023, with some exceptions for family reunification and humanitarian cases. We will publish an update when the law is adopted.
Poland: Temporary Visa Suspension for Russian Nationals – The Polish government has temporarily suspended the issuance of standard national visas to Russian nationals. It is expected that when the Polish authorities lift the suspension, there will be additional scrutiny and security clearances for Russian nationals. An official announcement is expected soon.
Spain/France: Dual Citizenship Now Possible – French citizens can now obtain Spanish citizenship without renouncing their French citizenship, and vice versa, under a new agreement that took effect April 1, 2022. France is the first country outside of Latin America with which Spain has signed such an agreement.
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.
