Employment Based

The immigration laws and regulations provide some avenues to apply for lawful status from within the U.S. or to seek relief from deportation.  The eligibility requirements for these benefits and relief can be stringent, and the immigration agencies often adopt overly restrictive interpretations of the requirements.  Learn about advocacy and litigation that has been and can be undertaken to ensure that noncitizens have a fair chance to apply for the benefits and relief for which they are eligible.  

All Employment Based Content

  • Special Report

New American Fortune 500 in 2024

Publication Date: 
September 9, 2024
Our report reveals that 46% of America’s largest companies were founded by immigrants or their children, contributing over $8.6 trillion in revenue and employing more than 15 million people globally.
  • Fact Sheet

New Americans in Greater Salem

Publication Date: 
October 10, 2023
New research from the American Immigration Council shows that immigrants in Greater Salem paid over $200 million in taxes and held over $536 million in spending power in 2019. The new report, New...
  • Fact Sheet

New Americans in Allen County

Publication Date: 
September 6, 2023
New research from the American Immigration Council shows that immigrants in Allen County paid over $160 million in taxes and exceeded $496.0 million in spending power in 2019. The new report, New...
A landscape of several tall buildings with a bridge in the foreground
  • Special Report

New American Fortune 500 in 2023

Publication Date: 
August 29, 2023
See our updated web report on the largest American companies and their immigrant roots.
  • Research and Analysis

Coalition Urges Department of Labor to Update Schedule A Occupation List to Meet Current Labor Market Needs

Publication Date: 
June 28, 2023
The American Immigration Council joined a coalition letter to encourage the Department of Labor (DOL) to annually update its Schedule A Group I occupation list to better reflect the conditions facing...
  • Special Report

The Growing Demand for Healthcare Workers

Publication Date: 
April 18, 2023
A new research series from the American Immigration Council, The Growing Demand for Healthcare Workers, highlights the crucial role immigrants are playing to help address critical workforce shortages...
  • Fact Sheet

The Growing Demand for Physicians in Nevada

Publication Date: 
March 9, 2023
This research brief highlights the crucial role immigrants in Nevada are playing to help address critical physician shortages.
  • Fact Sheet

The Economic Benefits of the Empire State Licensing Act

Publication Date: 
February 16, 2023

New research from the American Immigration Council, Economic Benefits of the Empire State Licensing: Immigrants in New York State’s Workforce, highlights the crucial role of immigrants and...

  • Fact Sheet

Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2021

Publication Date: 
August 27, 2021
This fact sheet provides an overview about the legalization program through which certain undocumented farmworkers in the United States could earn legal status.
  • Fact Sheet

Employment-Based Visa Categories in the United States

Publication Date: 
July 8, 2021
Current U.S. immigration law provides several paths for foreign workers to enter the United States for employment purposes on a temporary or permanent basis. This fact sheet provides basic...
  • Litigation

Employment Authorization Documents Adjudication Delays

Faced with increasing reports from immigration lawyers of Employment Authorization Documents adjudication delays, the Council and several partners filed this lawsuit against USCIS and DHS.
  • Litigation

Challenging USCIS’ Arbitrary Rejections of H-1B Petitions Filed After October 1

This lawsuit challenges USCIS' arbitrarily rejected H-1B petitions filed after October 1 simply because the H-1B worker’s intended employment start date—naturally—also fell after October 1.
  • Comments

Comments Filed To Address Substantive Flaws in Proposed H-1B Regulatory Changes

December 9, 2020

The American Immigration Council and the American Immigration Lawyers Association filed comments to address the substantive flaws in the Department of...

  • Amicus Briefs

Council Submits Amicus Brief Challenging Agency Failure to Undergo Notice and Comment Rulemaking

Publication Date: 
November 11, 2020
The Council filed an amicus brief supporting plaintiffs’ preliminary injunction and summary judgment motion that the government did not satisfy the stringent requirements necessary to sidestep notice and comment rulemaking.
  • Letters

Letter Opposing the Department of Labor’s High-Skilled Wage Rule

November 10, 2020
The letter explains why the Interim Final Rule does not protect U.S. workers and directly interferes with an employer’s ability to obtain the H-1B workers it needs and outlines six reasons why the Interim Final Rule should be rescinded.
  • Advocacy

Comment on DHS Proposed Rule to Drastically Expand the Definition and Collection of Biometrics

October 13, 2020
The American Immigration Council, the Immigration Defense Clinic at Colorado Law, and the American Immigration Lawyers Association, submitted a comment in opposition to the Department of Homeland Security proposed rule on the "Collection and Use of Biometrics by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services."
  • Advocacy

Summary of Proposed Changes to Student and Exchange Visitor Admissions Process by DHS

October 6, 2020

This document provides a summary of the Department of Homeland Security's September 25, 2020, Proposed Rule, "...

  • Litigation

USCIS’ Unlawful Denial of H-1B Petitions Spurs Class Action Lawsuit

This nationwide class action lawsuit challenges U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ pattern and practice of arbitrarily denying H-1B nonimmigrant employment-based petitions for market research analyst positions filed by United States businesses.
  • Advocacy

Regulatory Comment on Establishing a System for Secretarial Review Over Cases Before the Department of Labor Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals

April 7, 2020
These comments were submitted on the regulatory changes in the Department of Labor’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Direct Final Rule, published in the Federal Register on March 6, 2020 by the American Immigration Council and the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
  • Amicus Briefs

Council Submits Amicus Brief Supporting Reversal of USCIS’ Misinterpretation of the First Regulatory Test for an H-1B Specialty Occupation

Publication Date: 
December 16, 2019
The American Immigration Council filed this brief in support of a U.S. employer’s challenge to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service’s denial of a computer programmer H-1B petition.
  • Practice Advisories

Litigation for Business Immigration Practitioners

Publication Date: 
January 8, 2024
This Practice Advisory has information practitioners need to assess whether filing suit in federal court is the right option for challenging an employment-based petition denial.
  • Practice Advisories

Practice Tip: Opposing a Motion to Dismiss Asserting the Consular Nonreviewability Doctrine in Agency Delay Cases

Publication Date: 
December 16, 2022
Practitioners who challenge delays in visa processing often face a motion to dismiss based on the consular nonreviewability doctrine. This practice tip examines the scope of the doctrine. It provides arguments, with supporting documentation, to oppose common situations that the government claims are final, nonreviewable decisions.
  • Practice Advisories

Whom to Sue and Whom to Serve in Immigration-Related District Court Litigation

Publication Date: 
September 14, 2022
This Practice Advisory addresses who is, or who may be, the proper respondent-defendant and recipient for service of process in immigration-related litigation in district court.
  • Practice Advisories

Immigration Lawsuits and the APA: The Basics of a District Court Action

Publication Date: 
October 4, 2021
This Practice Advisory discusses the primary issues involved in a suit brought under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) to challenge an unlawful agency action.
  • Practice Advisories

Court Decision Ensures Timely Adjudication of Employment Applications Filed by Initial Asylum Applicants

Publication Date: 
March 1, 2021
This Frequently Asked Questions document addresses the status of the case and explains options for first time asylum seekers applying for employment authorization.
  • Practice Advisories

Practice Tip: The Government Answered a Complaint Alleging Administrative Procedure Act Violations – Now What?

Publication Date: 
November 20, 2020
This practice tip responds to a frequent question from attorneys new to federal court litigation who filed a lawsuit claiming the government violated the Administrative Procedure Act.
  • Practice Advisories

Requesting Attorneys' Fees Under the Equal Access to Justice Act

Publication Date: 
August 14, 2020
In the immigration context, Equal Access to Justice Act fees generally are available in petitions for review, mandamus actions, Administrative Procedure Act suits, habeas corpus actions, and naturalization actions.
  • Practice Advisories

Agency Delay Litigation: Opposing a Motion to Dismiss

Publication Date: 
October 4, 2019
This practice advisory summarizes the most common grounds raised by the government in motions to dismiss federal court agency adjudication delay lawsuits and outlines arguments that can be made in response.
  • Practice Advisories

Failure to Appeal to the AAO: Does it Bar all Federal Court Review of the Case?

Publication Date: 
September 26, 2016
This Practice Advisory discusses whether and how a person can get review of a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services decision in federal court if he or she did not appeal the decision to the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO). The Advisory addresses the Supreme Court case Darby v. Cisneros, holding that a plaintiff is not required to exhaust non-mandatory administrative remedies in certain situations, and how it may apply to cases involving appeals to the AAO.
  • Practice Advisories

Practice Tip: Mandamus May Get Results When Nothing Else Works

Publication Date: 
September 14, 2016

This Practice Tip demystifies mandamus by explaining how and when to ask a court for this remedy when a client has been waiting too long for USCIS to make a decision.

  • Blog

Seasonal Immigrant Workers Are in High Demand. America’s H-2B Visa Program Isn’t Keeping Up.

November 1, 2024

Foreign workers have long provided critical support to American businesses in the busy seasons—filling temporary, seasonal jobs when domestic workers were not available. This support—almost always...

  • Blog

Collective Action Protections for H-2A Workers Face Uphill Legal Battles

October 25, 2024

In April, the Department of Labor (DOL) published an expansive regulation aimed at increasing protections for the growing number of temporary agricultural workers entering the United States on H-...

  • Blog

Business Leadership on Immigration During an Election Year

October 25, 2024

At a time when anti-immigrant rhetoric is splashed across the news, it can be easy to get lost in the whirlwind of misplaced fear politicians continue to foster. But this year’s eighth annual...

  • Blog

State Department Streamlines Temporary Visas for College-Educated Noncitizen Workers—But Questions Remain About Its Impact

July 19, 2024

Some immigrants who have graduated from college in the United States and have a pending job offer will have an easier time receiving a temporary employment-based visa, thanks to recent changes...

  • Blog

Immigrants Do Not Displace US Workers or Reduce Wages

July 9, 2024

By Robin Lundh, Research Manager and Karen Aho, Consultant A new National Bureau of Economic Research working paper confirms that immigration continues to benefit American workers. The study finds...

  • Blog

Immigrants Are Key to Filling US Labor Shortages, New Data Finds

July 2, 2024

Almost one in every seven people in the United States is an immigrant, according to the American Immigration Council’s new analysis of the 2022 American Community Survey. The updated state-level...

  • Blog

Biden’s New H-2A Rule Expands Protections and Increases Oversight for Migrant Workers

May 9, 2024

On April 29, the Department of Labor (DOL) published a new rule aimed at protecting workers on temporary H-2A visas and strengthening the agency’s oversight of their employers. The rule is set to...

  • Blog

On International Women’s Day, We Celebrate the Important Contributions of Immigrant Women in the American Workforce

March 8, 2024

Since its conception in 1977, International Women’s Day has evolved into a global celebration highlighting women’s achievements and the challenges they face. The holiday’s origins can be traced...

  • Blog

DHS Changes H-1B Registration Process to Give Noncitizens an Equal Chance of Selection

February 16, 2024

Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently issued a final rule that changes H-1B registration selection and makes other changes related to the...

  • Blog

Labor Shortage Can Be Fixed by Letting Asylum Seekers Get Work Permits Sooner, Business Leaders Say

November 20, 2023

When asylum seekers come to the United States, they want to work—but an outdated immigration statute is making that more difficult than it needs to be. After filing an asylum application, asylum...

  • Press Release

NEW REPORT: Immigrants are Fueling Economic Growth, Revitalizing Communities in Great Lakes States

October 15, 2024
A new report describes how immigrants are key to the economic success and future viability of communities across the Great Lakes region.
  • Press Release

Amid Deadly Heat, Migrant Farm Workers are Keeping Americans Fed

July 2, 2024
New data analysis by the American Immigration Council found that migrant farm workers are playing a key role in feeding Americans, even as they are increasingly vulnerable to extreme heat.
  • Press Release

New Report Shows Immigrants in Androscoggin County, Maine Paid Over $24 Million in Taxes and Held Over $74 Million in Spending Power in 2019

April 4, 2024
Immigrants play a crucial role in the labor force in southern Maine, according to data in a new report.
  • Press Release

New Report Reveals Immigrant Roots of Fortune 500 Companies

August 29, 2023
In an annual review of the most successful companies in the United States, the American Immigration Council unveiled today (August 29, 2023) a report that sheds light on the contributions of immigrant entrepreneurs and their children to the U.S. economy.
  • Press Release

New Research Shows Immigrants Account for Nearly 13 Percent of Utah Physicians as Demand for Bilingual Workers Jumps 38.8 Percent

February 7, 2023
The American Immigration Council released new research, The Growing Demand for Healthcare Workers in Utah, which underscores the crucial role immigrants play in some of the state’s fastest growing and most in demand healthcare fields.
  • Press Release

New Research Reveals Role of Immigrants in America's Meat and Dairy Industries

July 20, 2022
The American Immigration Council released a report that examines the impact and contributions of immigrant workers in the United States’ meat and dairy industries.
  • Press Release

U.S. House Moves Immigration Reform in Bill Aimed at Increasing American Competitiveness and Helping Economy

February 4, 2022
The U.S. House of Representatives passed an economic competitiveness bill focused on advancing the United States’ innovation and global competitiveness, which also proposes reforms to U.S. immigration law to help attract and retain immigrant talent.
  • Press Release

Biden’s Plan to Attract Foreign STEM Talent Recognizes Immigration’s Importance in the Global Economy

January 21, 2022
The Biden administration announced new efforts to modernize parts of our immigration system, and remove barriers to legal immigration. DHS will add 22 new fields of study in the STEM Optional Practical Training program through the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, and will implement a series of additional changes to allow foreign students, scholars, and researchers to come to the United States and make meaningful contributions to America’s scholarly, research and development, and innovation communities.
  • Press Release

U.S. Employers Settle Lawsuit Challenging USCIS’ Unlawful Denial of H-1B Petitions Filed by American Businesses

October 28, 2021
The federal district court in the Northern District of California approved a settlement in a class action lawsuit challenging USCIS' pattern and practice of arbitrarily denying H-1B petitions for market research analyst positions filed by businesses in the United States.
  • Press Release

U.S. Businesses Sue USCIS for Rejecting H-1B Petitions for not Backdating the Employment Start Date

March 12, 2021
A federal lawsuit filed on behalf of seven U.S. businesses challenges USCIS arbitrary rejection of H-1B nonimmigrant employment-based petitions filed after October 1 solely because the H-1B worker’s intended employment start date falls after October 1.
  • Blog

Seasonal Immigrant Workers Are in High Demand. America’s H-2B Visa Program Isn’t Keeping Up.

November 1, 2024

Foreign workers have long provided critical support to American businesses in the busy seasons—filling temporary, seasonal jobs when domestic workers were not available. This support—almost always...

  • Blog

Collective Action Protections for H-2A Workers Face Uphill Legal Battles

October 25, 2024

In April, the Department of Labor (DOL) published an expansive regulation aimed at increasing protections for the growing number of temporary agricultural workers entering the United States on H-...

  • Blog

Business Leadership on Immigration During an Election Year

October 25, 2024

At a time when anti-immigrant rhetoric is splashed across the news, it can be easy to get lost in the whirlwind of misplaced fear politicians continue to foster. But this year’s eighth annual...

  • Press Release

NEW REPORT: Immigrants are Fueling Economic Growth, Revitalizing Communities in Great Lakes States

October 15, 2024
A new report describes how immigrants are key to the economic success and future viability of communities across the Great Lakes region.
  • Special Report

New American Fortune 500 in 2024

Publication Date: 
September 9, 2024
Our report reveals that 46% of America’s largest companies were founded by immigrants or their children, contributing over $8.6 trillion in revenue and employing more than 15 million people globally.
  • Blog

State Department Streamlines Temporary Visas for College-Educated Noncitizen Workers—But Questions Remain About Its Impact

July 19, 2024

Some immigrants who have graduated from college in the United States and have a pending job offer will have an easier time receiving a temporary employment-based visa, thanks to recent changes...

  • Blog

Immigrants Do Not Displace US Workers or Reduce Wages

July 9, 2024

By Robin Lundh, Research Manager and Karen Aho, Consultant A new National Bureau of Economic Research working paper confirms that immigration continues to benefit American workers. The study finds...

  • Blog

Immigrants Are Key to Filling US Labor Shortages, New Data Finds

July 2, 2024

Almost one in every seven people in the United States is an immigrant, according to the American Immigration Council’s new analysis of the 2022 American Community Survey. The updated state-level...

  • Press Release

Amid Deadly Heat, Migrant Farm Workers are Keeping Americans Fed

July 2, 2024
New data analysis by the American Immigration Council found that migrant farm workers are playing a key role in feeding Americans, even as they are increasingly vulnerable to extreme heat.
  • Blog

Biden’s New H-2A Rule Expands Protections and Increases Oversight for Migrant Workers

May 9, 2024

On April 29, the Department of Labor (DOL) published a new rule aimed at protecting workers on temporary H-2A visas and strengthening the agency’s oversight of their employers. The rule is set to...

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