I thought I would do a mini update as to what the Swine Flu has meant as far as US Immigration is concerned given that the US has had more reported cases than any other country. Additionally despite much of the blame being shifted to Mexico, the disease outbreak also originated in the US.

Some anti-immigrant groups are blaming the swine flu on illegal immigrants and others are going so far as to demand closing of the border. This is of course ridiculous given the outbreak began here and if anything should be a fence to keep people in the US from escaping to spread this elsewhere.

In short however if you are on or applying for the H1B Visa, E3 Visa, J-1 Visa Work & Travel, J-1 Visa Internship, L1 visa or F-1 Student Visa and their related dependent visas there is no change at all. Your requirements are the same and there is no change in processing as a result of the swine flu (H1NI) outbreak.

USCIS offices in the U.S. are open as are Consulates and Embassies globally as normal, so you should plan to attend any scheduled appointments. There was a temporary closure of non-essential services at Consulates and the Embassy in Mexico but that is also back to normal as of today.