According to AILA, the USCIS has confirmed the following with the new three-year TN regulation:

• All the TN petitions received before October 16, 2008, will be granted for the requested period or one-year, whichever is less.
• All TN petitions on or after October 16, 2008, will be granted for the period requested, or three years, whichever is less.
• The Canadian Border Patrol has also confirmed that the filing fee for TN border applications, even those requesting a three year period of TN visa status, will remain at $56.

*Please be advised: USCIS cannot grant up to three years if the anticipated length of stay, as stated in the application, is less then that period. Please be sure to review all your filings to ensure that all documents are requesting the three year period.

From AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 08102261 (posted Oct. 22, 2008)

By Thomas J. Joy, Esq.

October 2008 Newsletter

October 1, 2008 marks the start of the new government Fiscal Year 2009 (“FY 2009”). At this time the new annual quota of immigrant visa numbers becomes available. Unfortunately, retrogression is still with us.

The anxiously awaited State Department October Visa Bulletin indicates EB-3 cutoff dates as follows: China (October 1, 2001), India (July 1, 2001), Mexico (July 1, 2002), Philippines (January 1, 2005), all other countries (January 1, 2005). Earlier visa bulletins had predicted that FY 2009 would start with the more favorable cutoff dates that had existed in June 2008 just before the EB-3 category became totally unavailable from July through September 2008. 

However, heavier demand from USCIS than anticipated has caused the State Department to establish cutoff dates further back than those that existed for June 2008. Finally, a note in the October Visa Bulletin states that little if any forward movement is likely until the extent of the USCIS backlog of old priority dates can be determined. As a result, at this time, it is impossible to predict or even guess how soon immigrant visa numbers will become available for later filed cases. We will keep you advised of any new information as it is released by the State Department. 

In the area of proposed new laws to increase the immigrant visa quotas for nurses and to recapture unused immigrant visa numbers from previous annual quotas, significant progress has been made as previously reported here. The nurse legislation and the recapture legislation introduced in the House of Representatives has been repeatedly postponed for further hearings and the recapture legislation introduced in the Senate has not yet been scheduled for hearings. 

This proposed legislation is the result of bipartisan efforts. With Congress leaving for the upcoming national elections and the ongoing problems with the US economy, it is unlikely that this pending legislation will be enacted this year. 

However, due to the bipartisan support for and the significant progress of this pending legislation this past year, we are optimistic that same or similar legislation will be reintroduced in the new Congress which will start in early 2009.

As stated here previously, we advise and encourage you to continue to file your Schedule A immigrant visa petitions for nurses. This initial step in the immigrant process is not prevented by the presence of retrogression. 

By filing now, you will be ahead of the competition when retrogression is lifted by the enactment of the proposed nurse and recapture legislation.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently completed a multi-year redesign of the naturalization test. This newly revised test will help encourage citizenship applicants to learn and identify with the basic values Americans share. The test will emphasize the fundamental concepts of American democracy and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

The redesign process is to ensure that the applicants have a meaningful understanding of the U.S. government and its history. The redesigned test will serve as an important instrument to encourage civic learning and patriotism.

Some new sections of the test that have been overhauled is the English reading and writing section, as well as new history and government questions – now testing in ten sites across the country. The redesigned test was introduced on September 27, 2007. Naturalization applicants will begin taking the revised test on October 1, 2008.

To find out more about what test you might take:
Read this article from the USCIS

USCIS has decided that the new US Passport Card may be used for I-9 verification purposes.

The new card provides a less expensive and more portable alternative to the passport book and expedites document processing at US land and sea ports-or entry for US citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda; however, it is limited in its usage for international air travel.  Thus, it can be used for I-9 processing and also for employers participating in the
E-Verify Program.

It will be considered a “List A” document that can be presented by newly hired employees.

For more information on the new Passport Cards:
Read this article from USCIS