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H-1B cap season 2019

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H1-B cap season is upon us again! That means employers and their skilled workers are seeking one of the coveted numbers in this year’s lottery. (For the basis of the H1-B program, please see our previous post on this topic.)

The current administration has proposed some changes that will affect how USCIS process H1-B petitions that are subject to the cap.

Employers and employees should note that these changes will not affect how H1-B petitions are filed this year. But, it is important to note that USCIS will change its lottery system.

Before, USCIS put all petitions in a lottery system; first, it selected the statutory 20,000 slots earmarked for individuals with a U.S. master’s degree or higher, then placed all petitions–including those with an advanced U.S. degree–in a regular pool.

This year, USCIS will include all advanced-degree petitions in the general lottery first, then conduct a second lottery to exempt 20,000 advanced-degree slots until the annual statutory limit is met.

The new regulation, inline with the current administration’s desire to bring more high-skilled foreign nationals to the U.S., will definitely favor those with a U.S. master’s degree or higher.

USCIS proposed another change this year, but will not apply to this year’s cap petitions: the employer registration system.

Next year, for FY 2021 petitions, employers will be required to register online in order to submit an H1-B petition.

USCIS states that “the electronic registration requirement will require petitioners seeking to file H-1B cap petitions, including those that may be eligible for the advanced degree exemption, to first electronically register with USCIS during a designated registration period. Only those whose registrations are selected will be eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition.”

Have questions? Contact our office today at (916) 613-3553 or email us at info@ranchodlaw.com.

I-612 Waiver Approval and Success Story

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I-612 Waiver Approval Notice (Filed on 1/2/2018, Approved on 2/4/2019)




  • Date Filed: 1/2/2018
  • Date Approved: 2/4/2019

The Ranchod Law Group was able to get the case approved even though there was Government Financing1.

The Facts About this Approval

  • Applicant has two U.S. citizen children from a relationship he had while in the U.S.
  • Is now married to a U.S. citizen
  • He is the stepfather of his wife’s children from her prior marriage.

The Ranchod Law Group argued numerous factors in this case which would contribute to a finding of exceptional hardship whether:

  • applicant returned to his home country on his own for two years;
  • his qualifying relatives (wife and two children) tried to relocate for the two-year period.

Applicant’s wife has received therapy in the past which we argued is relevant in both scenarios

We maintained:

  • If waiver were denied, Applicant would not be able to see his children from his prior relationship.
  • If his wife relocated, she wouldn’t be able to see her own children.
  • If waiver was denied, the wife and children would all lose their health coverage which is provided by Applicant’s employment.
  • Applicant’s wife is a student, unemployed, and completely financially dependent on Applicant, a role he could not fulfill from abroad.
  • Applicant couldn’t meet his child support payments from abroad.

approvals are currently taking around 17.5 months

We were pleased with the comparably quick turnaround.

(1) – The participation in an exchange program financed by an agency of the United States Government or the government of the country of citizenship or nationality or last foreign residence, for the purpose of promoting international education and cultural exchange.Click here to return to the note.

Government Shutdown and Border Protection

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The government shut down has temporarily been suspended – if the government shut down goes back into a fact we expect the following to occur…

The government has been shut down since December 22, 2018 due to Congress not being able to agree on a budget. The Senate passed a budget which did not include funding for a border wall and President Trump declared that he would not sign any budget bill which failed to fund a border wall. Therefore, Congress and the President are at a stalemate, unable to agree on a budget.

This has not been the only time that the Federal Government has shut down under the Donald Trump presidency. It was previously closed from January 20-22 and on February 9th. The longest time that the Federal Government was shut down was during a clash between President Clinton and the Republican Party for a total of 21 days from December 1995 to January 1996.

How does government shutdown affect USCIS?

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and USCIS will remain open

The following immigration programs will be shut down:

Most immigration courts are closed except in urgent deportation cases. If a case is scheduled for a deportation hearing it will be postponed

Where does USCIS gets its funding?

USCIS is funded primarily by immigration and naturalization benefit fees charged to applicants and petitioners.

Fees collected from individuals or organizations filing immigration benefit requests are deposited into the Immigration Examinations Fee Account (IEFA).
USCIS uses fee funding to process applications, petitions, and requests related to immigration.

These include but are not limited to:

  • Family-based petitions for close relatives of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents;
  • Employment-based petitions for current and prospective employees to work in the United States, either on a temporary or permanent basis;
  • Naturalization applications filed by those who wish to become U.S. citizens.

The Immigration Examinations Fee Account also covers the USCIS refugee and asylee programs, because the Federal Government doesn’t collect fees for aliens who seek refuge or asylum, despite evidence of egregious abuse in both programs.

What are the funds used for?

Besides the programs already mentioned a very small percentage goes to cover other very important programs such as:

  • International affairs program: conducts investigations background checks and FBI fingerprint checks;
  • information and records management;
  • legal proceedings: attorneys to represent the ins in asylum naturalization and other cases;
  • inspection personnel at the ports-of-entry;
  • investigations a program: focused on the detection and deterrence of fraud and to protect the integrity of benefits and documents;
  • intelligence programs: provides strategic intelligence supports INS offices and other Federal agencies in addressing national security issues;
  • Training for all the above-mentioned programs.

How will the wall be funded?

President Trump is demanding that Congress give him $5 billion on fund border wall.

Consideration is given to using the $1 billion-plus surplus sitting in the USCIS Immigration Examinations Fee Account (IEFA) account.

In Conclusion

President Trump is not willing to end the Federal Government government shutdown until a favorable agreement can be reached that will give him the finances that he is asking for to cover funding for a border wall. The Federal Government shut down will not slow down the processing of your petition because USCIS is fee funded. Consideration is being given to using a percentage of those fees for border security.

Other relevant information about the Federal Government Shut Down

I-601A waiver for Mexican national – Health Insurance, Psychological and Medical Conditions

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I-601A Waiver Approval Document for Mexican national




Our office is proud of our track record in helping our clients keep their families together through the I-601A Waiver process – including our latest success story – approval in 3 months!

Our client is the husband of a U.S. citizen and father to two U.S. citizen children.

Working with The Ranchod Law Group, we were able to identify numerous exceptional hardships to USCIS to help win the Waivers.

A deep dive into the citizen spouse’s medical history revealed a rare condition and our office researched Mexico’s medical system to show that this condition would not be covered by foreign health insurance.
The citizen spouse, also known as the qualifying relative:

  • has good employment;
  • has a significant student loan debt;
  • depends on our client’s joint income to repay this debt.

Among other hardships, we further highlighted the citizen spouse’s psychological impacts of not just being separated from our client, but also raising 2 children in the U.S. as a single mother.

Because of our dedicated team of attorneys and professionals, we were able to show enough evidence of extreme hardships to secure a successful outcome in under three and a half months, at a time when immigration is averaging five to seven months for these waivers!

Call our office at (916) 613-3553 or fill in the form if you have questions regarding your case.

A Detailed list of other information on I-601A Waivers

The Foundation of Everything: Health and Fitness

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While the recent political climate can be challenging, I look to the silver linings and focus on maintaining habits that keep me healthy, both mentally and physically. I practice daily gratitude, and it reminds me that there is so much to be grateful for! Most mornings, I wake up and make a mental note of a few of the things I appreciate. I also write down what I’m thankful for because journaling helps me process my thoughts more thoroughly.

Another habit that has a big influence on the way I feel is engaging in consistent exercise.

Health and fitness are the foundations of everything, so I make them a priority

I’m taking a yoga class called radiant yoga, which isn’t as hot as Bikram but still gets my blood flowing, and I also do a power flow. It’s tough! I usually attend these classes on the weekends. During the week, I do a workout similar to CrossFit. It features circuit training with rounds of lifting, pushups, burpees, and other exercises. It definitely makes me sweat!

Finding my exercise routine has been a journey in and of itself. Last year, I started a challenge where I aimed to lose 20 pounds in six weeks. I was making great progress with it, but during the fifth week, I broke my foot. It took me three months to recover from the injury. As I started getting back into my exercise routine once my foot was healed, I was reminded how hard it is to get your momentum back after months away. It’s been tough, but I know how much better I feel when I make time for exercise.

I’m aiming to do some type of physical activity six days a week, and so far, it’s going well!

Being outdoors is also a big source of joy in my life, and I often combine that desire with fitness. I love hiking, and in addition to doing a lot of that this year, I’m giving skiing a try! I bought a pair of skis, and we’re making some trips to Tahoe to hit the slopes. I took lessons a couple years ago on the bunny hill, and I’m ready to get back out there!

True to his name, Happy has been bringing much mirth to our lives. He’s becoming more well-behaved thanks to the assistance of a trainer who comes to our home to see how we can best support his growth and learning. The trainer observes his habits and shows us how we can effectively encourage him. As we get to know Happy, he’s getting to know us, and we keep in mind that raising a rescue pet comes with additional effort. But we are more than willing to put in the time for him.

Even with the best habits, I know it can be challenging to see the bright side sometimes. Every day, I work with families who face obstacles as the administration makes it more difficult for them to get through the immigration process by issuing more requests for evidence. Despite these barriers, we are still getting our clients’ cases approved, and at the end of the day, we hold our heads up high, knowing we work hard to find resolutions for them. We’re still getting good results for our clients, despite the challenges we face. Because our team knows that we are overwhelmingly successful, it builds confidence.

You can read about some of the triumphant outcomes we’ve obtained for our clients inside the newsletter. I hope it reminds you that even when the situation seems impossible, there is always hope.

I-601A Waiver for National from Guatemala

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I-601A waiver Approval Document for Mexican national

I-601A Waivers Approval Document for national from Guatemala



Here at The Ranchod Law Group, we take great care to ensure that we put forth the very best case possible we can prepare for each and every one of our clients. This is evident by our high approval rating for I-601a waivers.

Recent Success Story for a Guatemalan national

A recent I-601a success story can be found with a Guatemalan national who is married to a United States citizen, and who has two U.S. citizen children.

By employing our Hardship Matrix, we were able to prepare a strong case for this family.

  • Our client is the main provider for his family, and his absence would have caused certain financial trouble and exceptional hardship for his wife and children.
  • His wife, the qualifying relative, has medical bills due to ongoing medical issues.
  • Additionally, an evaluation of his wife’s mental health revealed that she suffered from depression and psychosomatic symptoms—largely stemming from our client’s lack of status1 in the United States.

We worked closely with this family to gather compelling evidence to demonstrate exactly why our client’s absence from his family would result in exceptional hardship. Our Legal Team worked to ensure the client’s case was filed with no stone unturned. Our hard work and dedication resulted in an approval for this client, and they are one step closer to their green card!

If you would like to find out more about extreme hardship waivers, and if you would qualify, please contact our office today at (916) 613-3553.

definition of “lack of status”:
Lack of status refers to persons who:

  1. Have overstayed a visa for work, visit or study.
  2. Have worked or studied in the United States without authorization
  3. Have entered the United States without a valid passport or travel document

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A Detailed list of other information on I-601A Waivers