For Immediate Distribution

Immigration Solutions Announces Relaunch to Immigration Compliance Group and New Websites to Assist Employers with Business Immigration

Employers concerned about U.S. business immigration issues, as well as I-9 employment eligibility verification and compliance are getting help from new websites announced by Immigration Compliance Group.

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Long Beach, CA, September 29, 2011 – Immigration Compliance Group has announced the launch of its new name and websites to help employers faced with business immigration and compliance issues.

Their websites are located at www.immigrationcompliancegroup.com and www.I-9audits.com, and offer help with business immigration issues, corporate employment verification compliance, I-9 employment eligibility audits and training, as well as help in developing a comprehensive employment authorization and immigration-related compliance program.

Business managers and human resource professionals know the value of degreed, skilled worker foreign nationals, especially in the science, technology, engineering and healthcare occupations.  As the workforce becomes more global in scope, employers are increasingly learning that it is essential to understand and effectively adhere to immigration compliance laws and regulations.

“Employer immigration compliance is becoming more complex because enforcement through investigations and audits by USCIS, ICE, SSA and DOL is increasing.  In order to effectively deal with these issues and avoid the very severe consequences for non-compliance, employers must take the time to develop a strategy and be prepared in advance with an immigration compliance program,” explained Leslie Davis, Managing Director of Immigration Compliance Group.

“Immigration Compliance Group offers customized programs that meet the unique business immigration needs of our clients.  We provide onsite or offsite audits, training, policy development, and ongoing consultation and  compliance news and updates,” she added.

With the demise of immigration reform in Congress, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is stepping up enforcement of existing laws prohibiting the employment of illegal workers and fining employers for I-9 violations. These recent developments have made it even more critical that employers maintain a strong immigration compliance profile.

Press Contact:

Leslie Davis | Immigration Compliance Group | 562 612.3996 | info@immigrationcompliancegroup.com

The highest civil penalty paid through settlement since the enactment of the INA anti-discrimination provisions in 1986 was assessed today against Farmland Foods in the amount of $290,400.

This is a very strong reminder that any request for specific documentation is unlawful if it is made for the purpose or with the intent of discriminating against an individual on the basis of national origin or citizenship status. Employers, however, who make such requests to clarify ambiguity or conflicts in the employee’s presented documents should not be held liable for document abuse.  The employer’s discrimination must be knowing and intentional.

An employer SHOULD NOT:

1. Set different employment eligibility verification standards, or require that different documents be presented by employees, because of national origin and citizenship status.  For example, employers cannot demand that non-U.S. citizens present DHS-issued documents.  Each employee must be allowed to choose the documents that s/he presents from the list of acceptable Form I-9 documents. For example, both citizens and work authorized aliens may produce a driver’s license (List B) and an unrestricted Social Security card (List C) to establish identity and employment eligibility.

2. Request to see employment eligibility verification documents before hire and completion of the Form I-9 because the employee looks or sounds “foreign” or because someone states that s/he is not a U.S. citizen.

3. Refuse to accept a document, or refuse to hire an individual, because a document has a future expiration date.

4. Request during reverification that an employee present a new unexpired employment authorization document (EAD) if s/he presented an EAD during initial verification. For re-verification each employee must be free to choose to present any document either from List A or from List C. Refugees and asylees may possess EADs, but they are authorized to work based by virtue of their immigration status and may present other documents that prove work authorization from List A or List C to show on re-verification, such as an unrestricted Social Security card.

5. Limit jobs to U.S. citizens unless U.S. citizenship is required for the specific position by law, regulation, executive order, or federal, state, or local government contract. On an individual basis, an employer may legally prefer a U.S. citizen or national over an equally qualified alien to fill a specific position, but the employer may not adopt a blanket policy of always preferring citizens over non-citizens.

6. Refuse to accept documents during the employment eligibility verification procedure that are acceptable documents under the law, that relate to the individual, and that appear on their face to be genuine (also called “document abuse”). An employer cannot be held liable for document abuse unless the employer’s refusal to honor documents is made for the purpose or with the intent of discriminating against an individual on the basis of national origin or citizenship status. For example, an employer should not be held liable if it refuses to honor documents that conflict with statements made by the employee.

7. Engage in intimidation, threats, coercion, or retaliation, including discharge, against an employee who exercises his/her rights under IRCA’s anti-discrimination provision. This protection extends not only to an employee who is the target of discrimination, but also to an employee who may speak up in support of the targeted employee.

Should you have any questions concerning this “balancing act”, please do not hesitate to contact our office for more information.

Our August 2011 InFOCUS immigration newsletter is now available.  We encourage you to sign up to receive our monthly news and Blog posts that report on immigration issues, employer compliance, policy and legislative issues, as well as Department of State and visa updates.

We invite you to continue to visit our website and our Employer Compliance Resource Center for the latest developments on key issues.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced a final rule adjusting fees for immigration applications and petitions.  The final rule will increase overall fees by a weighted average of about 10 percent but will not increase the fee for the naturalization application. The final rule will take effect on November 23, 2010.

The final fee rule establishes three new fees for:

• Regional center designation under the Immigrant Investor Pilot Program (EB-5) (Form I-924);
• Individuals seeking civil surgeon designation (with an exemption for certain physicians who examine service members, veterans, and their families at U.S. government facilities); and
• Recovery of the USCIS cost of processing immigrant visas granted by the Department of State.

The final fee rule adjusts fees from $1000 to $1225 for the premium processing service.

The following schedule lists the adjusted fees that will take effect on November 23, 2010, alongside the existing fees in effect until that date.  For Q&A on the new fees, we link here.

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Immigration Solutions provides US and global visa services to individuals and employers throughout the USA and abroad.  We specialize in business immigration and have a depth of experience in the IT, healthcare, arts & entertainment, and sports industries, amongst others.  Our services include complex business visas for investors, multinational managers, skilled professionals and outstanding individuals in science, business, education, athletics and entertainment.  We additionally provide employer compliance consulting services on proper I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) auditing, training, and work with our clients to develop compliant immigration policies and procedures.  We offer these services, as well, to government contractors and advise on FAR E-Verify enrollment and compliance issues.

You can access the Immigration Solutions free monthly news and podcast for July 2010 here.

Make sure to sign up for our news and media if you’d like to receive our information through email.  You can sign up on our blog to receive blog posts through email, as well.

For Immediate Release

Immigration Solutions is proud to now offer Global Immigration Services. Our new Global Immigration Services offers a comprehensive yet streamlined approach to fulfilling corporate global immigration needs.  When making a choice for a global partner many organizations feel they have two choices:

• Choose the firm that fits your budget; or
• Choose the firm that offers personalized services

Through our international network of global immigration experts, Immigration Solutions can offer services that are low cost – high touch.  Gone are the days of compromising your budget for a high touch service.

Our Global Immigrations Services focus on visas for foreign countries.  We secure all the appropriate immigration documents so your employee can legally live and work in a foreign country.  We secure the work permit, entry visa, and residence permit (as applicable) for each location.  We offer personalized services such as accompanying employees to medical exams and local registration appointments.  If you’re sending an employee to a country that requires legalizations, not to worry… our experts are well versed in securing Apostilles and Authentications. Additional services also include business visa assistance to meet your short term travel needs.

In the forthcoming days and months, we will be adding global immigration material to our website, a global corner to our newsletter, and global immigration updates on our current blog.  We are excited to offer this new product line and look forward to assisting you with your global immigration needs.

If you have an immediate need or would like to consult with our office, or request a proposal for services, please email us directly at  global@immigrationsolution.net.    We’re looking forward to doing business with you.

California-based client receives FAR E-Verify contract language and waits until the 11th hour to get their I-9’s in order:

In order to properly enroll in the DHS FAR E-Verify free Internet-Based program, or a vendor-based Designated Agent program, the contractor must rely upon the accuracy of their I-9’s and the information provided by their employees on the I-9 form.  We recommend a proactive approach to this issue by obtaining a pre-EVerify I-9 audit (can be a random audit or a complete audit depending upon the condition of your I-9s) to pinpoint reoccurring issues and correc them – with accompanying I-9 compliance training and the establishment of policy and procedure around how your company will handle this function – then you’re ready to enroll in E-Verify.

If you have questions or require any of the above services, our distinguished team of attorneys and specialists are available to work with you on your compliance needs.

Leslie Davis, Managing Director
Immigration Solutions

• Date: Thursday, March 18, 2010
• Time: 11am – 12 Noon  PST.  For the time in your area: http://www.timezoneconverter.com/cgi-bin/tzc.tzc
• RSVP:      info@immigrationsolution.net
• Who should Attend:  Employers who sponsor L-1A employees and employees who are going through the L-1A adjudication process
• Agenda:

1. What is the Intracompany Transferee L-1A Manager/Executive Visa?
2. What are the requirements?
3. What is the eligibility criteria to obtain an L-1A visa?
4. Why is it so difficult to obtain an L-1A visa in today’s business climate?
5. The insidious RFE’s and Intensified Scrutiny
6. Open Q&A

The regulations have not changed for obtaining L-1A visas, but the good old days are certainly over when entrepreneurs told you how easily they had obtained their L-1A visas and green-cards via the L route.  Now, you are more likely to hear people who have received L-1A visa approvals talk about what good jobs their attorneys did in ensuring compliance with the stringent standards that are being meticulously enforced by the USCIS.

Our Speaker for this Event will be:  Thomas J. Joy, Esq, Supervising Attorney, Immigration Solutions.  Formerly, Managing Partner Hirson Wexler Perl, Los Angeles, CA; Senior Attorney, Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy; Supervising Attorney, Law Office of Bernard Wolfsdorf

This is a free teleconference for our clients and readership.  Dial in and access information will be provided a few days in advance of the conference call.  RSVP now to reserve your place on the call.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) last week provided AILA (the American Immigration Lawyers Association) with information regarding enforcement issues at Newark Airport.  The CBP have been assisting ICE with an investigation of certain H-1B non-immigrants and particular employers who hire H-1B workers.  This created events where H-1B visa holders were detained as a result of  employers being under investigation by ICE.

This incident has been a strong reminder that non-immigrants in work-related status such as H-1B, L-1, E and O-1 classification should be prepared for the potential of additional scrutiny when entering the United States after travel abroad.  CBP will question arriving non-immigrants about their employer, and may request documentation to prove that the nonimmigrant is still employed according to the petition that was filed on their behalf.

The above-mentioned incident where CBP engaged in more extensive questioning, has caused many H-1B visa holders and their employers to have concern about documentation that their employees will need to re-enter the USA following foreign travel.

CBP does have the authority to inquire about these issues, however, recent events indicate that their line of questioning may become more extensive and may result in more situations where arriving employees will be put in secondary inspection.  Secondary Inspection is where CBP officers wish to question the alien concerning their intent in the USA and conduct a more thorough interview and review any additional documentation that the individual may have brought with them, as well as information on electronic devices (cellphones and laptops).  They may even conduct Internet searches on the individual and the employer.  Therefore, employees entering the USA in H-1B classification or other employment based visas should be prepared for the possibility of additional scrutiny, and for the possibility of secondary inspection, regardless of where and when they enter – be it an airport or a land border.

We highly recommend that entering non-immigrants bring the following additional information with them in the event they are asked to produce evidence of their employment:

1)      Copies of 2 recent paycheck vouchers

2)      A copy of the USCIS petition that their status is based upon

3)      Current/Original I-797 approval notice

4)      A current letter of employment verification from a company officer or HR professional confirming job title and dates of employment  on business letterhead – is an excellent idea, as well.

We have heard recent reports that employers may also be contacted by CBP to confirm information related to the employment relationship and job duties.

We will provide updates to you on this issue and intend to monitor it very closely.  If you or your employees have encountered any additional scrutiny and would like to relay your experiences, please contact Immigration Solutions.

Details

When: Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Time: 11:00 a.m. – 12 noon PST
Click Here to view time conversion for your area

RSVP: info@immigrationsolution.net

Reserve your space now | This will be a most informative teleconference that you will not want to miss.

Our Agenda will be as follows:

• How to prepare for H-1B quota issues
• Tougher standards (difficult RFEs)
• We will review the new 19-page USCIS Memo regarding employer-employee relationships
• Critical new information for Healthcare and IT staffing agencies
• New Documentation Requirements
• Comprehensive Immigration Reform and expectations for 2010
• Open Q&A

In this conference, we will convey critical and comprehensive information to our clients and readership which we are making public and are offering at no charge.

In the last year, signs have been in place concerning greater enforcement and over-burdensome Requests For Evidence (RFE’s) by USCIS, including site visits by 4 federal agencies (USCIS, DHS, FDNS and DOL).  Higher standards are being imposed with each filing season for all employers who file H-1B petitions for degreed professionals.

We are seeing that this is not just taking place with H-1B initial filings, but with extensions, L visas and we have even heard of site visits to employers who filed O-1 petitions.

Our Featured Speaker: Thomas Joy, Supervising Attorney | Immigration Solutions

Immigration Solutions’ supervising attorney, Thomas Joy, will moderate this conference.  Mr. Joy has over 25 years’ practicing immigration law with some of the leading firms in the nation.  Mr. Joy has been interviewed on television regarding current immigration issues, has published articles on various current immigration concerns, and has conducted seminars for corporations, law firms and professional organizations, both in and outside of the USA. He travels throughout the USA and the world representing clients at USCIS offices and US embassies and consulates. In addition, he advises and accompanies employers and recruiters on international recruitment drives who seek the top candidates in the IT and healthcare industries.

About Us

Immigration Solutions continues to be at the cutting edge of developments in business immigration. We are dedicated to providing our clients with the solutions required today to circumvent the complexities of immigration law. We understand the challenges that you deal with on a daily basis and design practical and strategic business models to answer your needs. This focused approach produces win-win results for everyone!

If you are not yet a client of Immigration Solutions, we would be pleased to speak further with you concerning your needs, our services & solutions, and our newly developed corporate rates.