As of 6/19/09, 44,500 H-1B cap-subject petitions have beenr received by USCIS for FY 2010 and 20,000 petitions seeking the advanced degree exemption. As of this writing, USCIS will continue to receive cap subject and advanced degree petitions until the cap is met.
Reviews: The inspection process, what does the law say, what can I expect to happen at a US port of entry and more….
http://www.ilw.com/immigdaily/news/2009,0624-admission.shtm
BusinessWeek‘s 4th article in its Immigration in the Recession series concerns the extreme shortage of nurses in the USA. The article addresses that proponents of foreign nurse recruiting feel that the nurse shortage is negatively affecting patient health; that expanding into government-funded healthcare will escalate the situation. Other points of view assert that domestic nurses should be utilized and trained to put US workers back on the job; however, there is no such system in place for educating and training nurses on a mass scale in the USA to make a dent in the shortage that will only continue to increase with time. This debate must culminate in nurse legislation being passed by Congress.
Notes address Premium Processing, changes to the H-1B program, changes in how to contact USCIS by telephone, amongst other matters.
Recent panel discussions at the AILA Conference in NV focused on the H-1B program. The $500 anti-fraud fee collected for H-1B and L-1 visas is being used to hire more investigators. Business practices once considered “the norm” and perhaps not perfect – are being scrutinized and employers are being penalized for document violations and overall inattention to detail. Consular offices and USCIS are asking for photos of premises, employment agreements, business licenses and organizational charts. These requests are way out of bounds, and considerably prolong case processing creating tremendous stress for all parties concerned – the employer, the employee and the immigration practitioner.
A recent posting on AILA of a Fraud Summary Sheet (that wasn’t posted for very long!) for H-1B and L-1 cases, presumes fraud if one meets 2 out of 3 criteria: doing business for fewer than ten years, has fewer than 25 employees, and/or has less than $10 million in revenue. Many high-profile, very reputable organizations are receiving these Requests for Evidence based on the Fraud Cheat Sheet without any basis in reality.
This preoccupation with fraud in the H-1B and L-1 programs is likely to continue in the upcoming year. So, in terms of supporting evidence….a word to the wise…
For those of you who are not aware, AILA is the abbreviation for the American Immigration Lawyer’s Association.
We will be reporting the next few days on some of the highlights and pertinent information from the NV AILA Conference.
…How about the return of Premium Processing (expedite service) for I-140’s: EB-1for outstanding professors and researchers ONLY; EB-2 (does not include National Interest Waivers) and EB-3. No exact date was offered, but it was stated that this would be implemented toward the end of the summer 2009. Please remember to discuss this thoroughly with an expert attorney in immigration law to determine if this is a viable option for you.
This week several organizations will launch a campaign to Reform Immigratin FOR America in cities across the country – from LA to Miami. Today a large coalition of allies from business to community groups, will officially kick off this campaign in Washington, DC. We link to the Notice from the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA):
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/6764009/AILA
The company used false information for H-2B work visas and charged workers fees ranging from $400 to $3,000 and allegedly threatened workers with a $5,000 fee if they returned to their home country, the Attorney’s Office said.
Advance Parole (I-131 Application for Advance Parole) must be obtained in the following circumstances:
Advance Parole is permission to reenter the USA after traveling abroad. If you are planning travel you need to plan ahead and allow at least 90 or more days for processing. We link to the USCIS Update.
USCIS through its International Division recently opened up an adjudications office in Anaheim, CA for paper-based applicaton processing received from its international offices referred to as the International Adjudication Support Branch (IASB). The branch office will provide USCIS with greater flexibility in handling to seasonal and periodic fluctuations in the worklod of the international office throughout the year.
Initially the office will focus on processing I-601 non-health related waivers of inadmissibility for USCIS’ office in Ciudad Juarez. We link to Q&A