A Monthly Bulletin from Immigration Compliance Group -- December 2011

We trust that you enjoyed your Thanksgiving celebration with friends and family. If you're like us, we've started pulling those boxes out of the garage marked Christmas and have begun to untangle the strings of lights! We wish you all a very happy and peaceful holiday season.

So, let's get started with what's new in US immigration.

About Immigration Compliance Group

We focus our practice on corporate employment verification compliance and US and Canadian inbound business immigration, with an expertise in IT, healthcare, arts & entertainment, amongst other industries. Our team also has a depth of experience in providing uniquely tailored services and solutions to assist clients in developing comprehensive employment eligibility verification compliance. We conduct both onsite and offsite I-9 audits for companies of all sizes (both public and private). We design training curriculum to assure that staff is knowledgeable concerning the management of their I-9 program, and we assist with policy development so that our clients have a plan and strategy that assures their compliance in a manner that makes sense for their business and evidences their good faith effort in establishing a compliant workforce.

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The Outmoded H-1B Visa Cap

With all the recent messaging of entrepreneurism coming from USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas, DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano and President Obama's Start Up America Initiative, one has to wonder why we're still honoring an outmoded H-1B visa program that is quota-driven that was recently met for fiscal year 2012 on November 22, 2011. Our office had several last minute filings we were working on for very talented and educated IT professionals, sponsored by start- up employer entrepreneurs that just simply didn't make it in time before the cutoff date.

We agree with the 11/23/2011 AILA, (American Immigration Lawyer's Association) Press Release that aptly expressed the following: "During a time when job creation is the nation's number one priority, why are we still fiddling around with an outmoded quota system that ignores the importance of immigrants to the economic engine?" said AILA President Eleanor Pelta.

"The marketplace dictates the pace and type of demand by business for specialized workers. To be more competitive globally, we really should be smarter about our high skilled visa distribution so that it is related to market needs instead of pinned to a static limit that was determined by Congress in the last decade," continued Pelta. "Congress needs to be working on ways to make the visa system work for fueling the economy. The status quo is no longer acceptable."

If a company now wishes to hire a badly needed engineer from abroad, it will need to wait till October 1, 2012 before this person can come on board. It is obvious that the cap hinders the ability of a company to hire skilled and talented workers when needed in order to grow and compete in the global economy.

Obama recently stated: "Startups are engines of job creation. Entrepreneurs intent on growing their businesses create the lion's share of new jobs, in every part of the country and in every industry. And it is entrepreneurs in all fields including advanced manufacturing, information technology, and other innovative fields who will build the new industries of the 21st century, and solve some of our toughest global challenges." President Obama has called on both the federal government and the private sector to dramatically increase the prevalence and success of entrepreneurs across the country.

This will just not be possible as long as we continue to lock out the world's best and brightest, subjecting them to the worn out and backwards thinking of an H-1B quota system with a static limit. The market must be the regulator - particularly in this competitive global economy, if we are to ever recover from the crippling effect of the jobs crisis and rebuild the infrastructure of our families, as well as that of our nation.

If you're in agreement with this, let your opinion be known -- contact your senators and representatives here

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House Votes to Eliminate Country Limits for Skilled Worker Green-Cards

H.R. 3012, the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act, introduced on September 22, 2011 by Rep. Chaffetz (R-UT), eliminates the employment-based per-country cap entirely by fiscal year 2015 and raises the family-sponsored per-country cap from 7% to 15%.

On 10/27/11, the House Judiciary Committee held a markup and H.R. 3012 was reported favorably out of committee by a voice vote. An amendment from Rep. Lofgren (D-CA) that would make adjustments to the three year phase-in period was accepted. H.R. 3012 must next be scheduled for House floor debate which may occur in the next few weeks.

On 11/29/11 the House passed H.R. 3012, the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act by a vote of 389-15 with no additional amendments. The measure now moves on to the Senate for consideration.

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., who heads the Senate Judiciary panel on immigration, said he planned to move the bill as quickly as possible in the Senate, "where we expect it to find overwhelming support. " He said the legislation would "remove outdated constraints that prevent us from attracting the kind of innovators who can create job growth in America. "

Crystal Williams, executive director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, said the measure "makes the system a tiny bit fairer " and does "demonstrate that Congress can do something on immigration, however small. "  She cited estimates that while someone from England might wait two or three years for a green card, an Indian could conceivably be on the waiting list for decades.

Under current law, no more than 7% of the visas issued per year in any one immigrant visa category can go to natives of any one country. On the employment-based immigrant visa side, natives of India and China face longer waits than natives of other countries, because natives of those countries send more high-skilled immigrants to the US than any other country. On the family-based immigrant visa side, natives of Mexico and the Philippines face longer waits than natives of other countries, because there are more immigrants and US citizens with family ties to those countries than there are to other countries. HR 3012 will eliminate, over a three year period, the per-country limit in the employment-based system, but it will not raise the number of legal immigrants allowed to enter the USA.

We will keep you posted on developments as this bill moves to the Senate.

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Blueseed: A Visa-Free Floating Silicon Valley...really!

Because of the United States' current immigration and regulatory regime, bold and creative entrepreneurs from around the world aren't given the chance to come to Silicon Valley and develop the technologies that could be creating jobs and propelling the economy forward.

The Huffington Post writes, "Uber entrepreneur Elon Musk has launched space flights, created Tesla, the fastest electric car and wants to build colonies on Mars. His former partner at Paypal Peter Thiel aims to build something equally complex but a tad bit lower in the geographic plane: a sovereign nation in international waters. Now, Max Marty, another Silicon Valley founder, wants to build a "visa-free" startup incubator aboard a ship on high seas that he refers to as the Googleplex of the Sea." How crazy can entrepreneurs get?

So, these really smart guys have conceived of an idea that is a high-tech visa-free entrepreneurship and technology incubator on an ocean vessel in international waters some 12 miles from Silicon Valley, outside the jurisdiction of the US. Their facilities will be a short ferry ride away from Silicon Valley so that great ideas and talent from around the world can live, work, and play while having convenient access to the San Francisco Bay Area. We will provide a customized environment centered around smart, proven, cost-effective legal best practices, and modern living and work accommodations.

Scroll down to a video from a recent pitch event

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Application Processing Times: A Conversation with USCIS

USCIS established the Office of Performance and Quality in January 2010, as part of an agency Headquarters' realignment. The Office is responsible for calculating processing times for USCIS field offices and service centers which help them to develop adjudication plans and performance goals, and set staffing levels. OPQ also analyzes data to report on immigration statistics and oversees monthly national quality assurance reviews to ensure USCIS meets quality review standards.

How Does USCIS Calculate Processing Times? For each type of application or petition, USCIS has established processing time goals. Specific processing time calculations are based on the number of months of application or petition receipts that comprise the level of active pending cases on hand within the agency. FAQ's and more here

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Applying for Driver's Licenses and State ID's

This fact sheet provides information to designated school officials (DSOs) and responsible officers (ROs) in order to help F, M or J nonimmigrants (primary and dependent status holders) obtain a benefit such as a driver's license or state identification (ID) card. In addition to the information provided here, DSOs, ROs and nonimmigrants should familiarize themselves with the regulations, policies and other applicable information of the state or territory of residence, as each may have different requirements.

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President Obama Signs the American Invests Act

The America Invents Act was passed with President Obama's strong leadership after nearly a decade of effort to reform the Nation's outdated patent laws. It will help companies and inventors avoid costly delays and unnecessary litigation, and let them focus instead on innovation and job creation. Many key industries in which the United States leads, such as biotechnology, medical devices, telecommunications, the Internet, and advanced manufacturing, depend on a strong and healthy intellectual property system. For more information

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Testimony before the House Judiciary Committee Re the Exodus of STEM advanced Degree Students from US Universities

Here are a few quotes:

The majority of those graduating from U.S. universities with advanced degrees in electrical engineering (EE) are foreign nationals. Of EEs graduating from U.S. universities with Master's degrees, 55% are foreign nationals. Of PhDs, 63% are. TI doesn't choose the pool of graduates, we recruit from it.

-Darla Whitaker, Sr. VP Worldwide HR, Texas Instruments

The week of September 19, I taught classes at Tsinghua University, in Beijing, China, for an entrepreneurship program run by UC-Berkeley's Center for Entrepreneurship, and I met local entrepreneurs at a local technology incubator. The students there were very much like my students here-smart, ambitious, and open minded-but even more hungry for knowledge, more passionate about completing advanced degrees, and more motivated to become entrepreneurs. They were very eager to come to the United States to study. They saw education as the best path from poverty to prosperity. Entrepreneurship, for these students, was a way to rise above "the system" and be their own bosses. It is an opportunity to customize a path to success...But unlike previous generations of Chinese students, the Tsinghua students didn't plan to come and stay in the U.S. They planned to take their knowledge back to China-where they are wanted...They know that many of America's leading companies have stopped interviewing foreign students because it's hard to obtain visas and because they may face a backlash for hiring foreigners. Given this, they see better opportunities in China and have no reason to consider staying in America. This is consistent with the trend in the U.S.

-Vivek Wadha, Director of Research, Center for Entrepreneurship and Research Commercialization

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The Newly Designed EAD card and Certificate of Citizenship

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Alejandro Mayorkas recently announced the launch of an enhanced Employment Authorization Document (EAD) and a redesigned Certificate of Citizenship. We link to samples here

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USCIS Going Electronic

USCIS is developing a simplified, Web-based system that will allow customers to submit and track their applications online and enhance USCIS's ability to process cases with greater accuracy, security and timeliness. This prototype video shows how a customer will be able to set up an online account and submit a request to extend or change nonimmigrant status using the new system. The video also highlights the proposed design and key features of the new system.

This video is for demonstration purposes only. USCIS is continuing to receive and incorporate feedback, so the actual system may look different from this example video.

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USCIS Now Permits Bundled L-1 Petition Filing Related to the Same Project

In order for USCIS to consider the bundle, all included L-1A and L-1B petitions must be related to the employer, jobsite and/or project:

• On the same project
• Who will work at the same location and
• Who have the same specialized knowledge duties

For filing tips please refer here

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OTR Certification Exam Changes July 1, 2013

The National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) has announced that starting July 1, 2013, internationally educated occupational therapists will have new minimum educational standards to be eligible for the OTR Certification Exam. Internationally educated occupational therapists must either:

• Completion of an Entry-Level Bachelor's Degree in Occupational Therapy from a government authorized and/or WFOT approved college or university occupational therapy educational program AND a Post Professional Masters Degree in Occupational Therapy OR

• Completion of an Entry-Level Master's Degree in Occupational Therapy from a government authorized and/or WFOT approved college or university occupational therapy educational program

All internationally-educated occupational therapists approved for exam eligibility under current OTED eligibility standards must take and pass the OTR certification examination prior to July 1, 2013 if they do not hold an occupational therapy master's degree deemed comparable to a U.S. entry-level accredited master's degree in occupational therapy. After July 2013, internationally-educated occupational therapists will not be eligible for the OTR if they do not hold a US equivalent occupational therapy master's degree.

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NEWS Bytes

• USCIS Releases Memo on B-2 Visa Cohabitating partners and other Household Members

• We the People: The White House says 'send us your petitions'

  The White House announced a new way it will keep in touch with public concerns - by promising to consider online petitions that get at least 5,000 supporters.

  The idea behind "We the People" - as the program will be called - is that anyone with an idea or cause can go to the White House website and make a public pitch for support. If the idea gets 5,000 backers within 30 days, said White House spokeswoman Sandra Abrevaya, a "working group of policy officials" will respond. Read more

• MLK Memorial Dedication

• Numbers USA rates the candidates on Immigration

• Citizenship Resource Center. Video on interview and test.

• Lady Liberty's 125th Anniversary

• The 8 Best Innovation Ideas from Around the World

• DHS Releases 'Study in the States' website Fact Sheet

• I-9 Employer Resource Center

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Should you wish to know more about our services or become a client of our office, please contact us at info@immigrationcompliancegroup.com, or call 562 612.3996.

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Disclaimer/Reminder: This newsletter does not constitute direct legal advice and is for informational purposes only.  The information provided should never replace informed counsel when specific immigration-related guidance is needed.  Copyright © 2011 Immigration Compliance Group.

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