"BridgeUSA" is the brand identity of the Department of State's Exchange Visitor Program (EVP). The re-branding was introduced on October 27, 2020. BridgeUSA's page Introducing BridgeUSA: A New Brand Identity for the Exchange Visitor Program contains a short video introducing the brand, and text that

NAFSA has made available to NAFSA members these slides from the Government Current Issues sessions at the 2023 NAFSA Annual Conference & Expo. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS): Current Issues (May 31, 2023). Slides . Department of Labor (DOL): Current Issues (May 31, 2023). Slides

Summary In the employment-based second preference (EB-2) category, the requirement of a job offer from a U.S. employer can be waived if an individual's services "in the sciences, arts, professions, or business" are determined to be in the "national interest." This is known as a "national interest

On September 18, 2023, the CIS Ombudsman posted a revised tip sheet titled How F-1 Students Seeking Optional Practical Training (OPT) Can Avoid Form I-765 Delays . The revision corrects an error in the prior (May 8, 2023) tip sheet that NAFSA brought to the office's attention. An Ombudsman's office

A Department of State (DOS) interim final rule published at 88 FR 18249 (March 28, 2023) allows digital signing and electronic transmission of exchange visitor Form DS-2019, effective April 27, 2023 . Forms DS-3036, DS-3037, and DS-7002 may also be digitally signed and electronically transmitted

A Department of State (DOS) final rule published at 88 FR 18243 (March 28, 2023) raises key visa processing fees, effective June 17, 2023 . For example, the Machine Readable Visa (MRV) fee for F-1, J-1, and other non-petition-based visas rises 15.6%, and the MRV fee for petition-based categories

On February 22, 2023, USCIS added basic content on F-1 Special Student Relief (SSR) off-campus employment authorization to the USCIS Policy Manual. The new content confirms that Form I-765 code (c)(3)(iii) should be used when requesting SSR off-campus employment authorization, and that USCIS should

In February, 2023, the Department of State (DOS) revised its policies to now allow consular officers to issue an F or M student visa up to 365 days in advance of a new student's I-20 program start date. See: A February 21, 2023 DOS tweet , and content on the DOS Student Visa Page (updated on

From January 29 to April 1, 2024, the Department of State will run a pilot program to resume domestic visa renewal for H-1B applicants who are renewing an H-1B visa that was issued by: Mission Canada with an issuance date from January 1, 2020, through April 1, 2023; or Mission India with an issuance