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Here
we are in July; half
the year is already
gone. Many think that
this being the middle
of the summer, and in
the middle of an election
cycle, for the US Presidential
and control of the legislature,
that this month was
a period of tranquility
in the world of immigration.
Well if you too think
so, then you need to
think twice. There have
been many new developments
this month. One of the
most controversial was
the US Department of
Labor’s announcement
that it is initiating
measures to supervise
the recruitment of Permanent
Labor Certification
Applications (LCA) filed
by Immigration Law Firms.
This brought a great
outcry from many sectors.
The DOL stated that
the sole intention behind
the decision was only
to protect the employment
activities for American
Employees.
Indian and Chinese citizens
have reason to celebrate
this month. For individuals
from those countries
in the Employment-Based,
Second Preference (EB-2)
category, the U.S Department
of State (DOS) Visa
Bulletin has good news
for you. This category
has now moved forward
to a cutoff date of
June 1, 2006, meaning
that those who have
priority dates prior
to June 1, 2006, will
be eligible to obtain
their immigrant visas,
now may file their I-485s
in August 2008.
This month the USCIS
announced its plan to
extend the validity
period of certain EADs,
giving us an insight
into what they may be
thinking for the future.
The USCIS stated that
in order to provide
better customer service
to refugees, reducing
the financial burden
on them and eliminating
the need for many refugees
to apply for renewal
of work documents before
they are able to adjust
status to permanent
residency, they announced
that they would extend
the validity of initial
work authorization documents
for refugees to two
years after arrival
in the United States.
In our view definitely
a move in the right
direction.
And as we do every month,
we strive hard to bring
you what you want to
see and take the initiative
to introduce exciting
services to make your
visa processing even
more Fast, Easy and
Economical. Your support
and feedback paves the
way for us to improve
even more and bring
our valuable services
to you. And now as we
promised last month,
this month we continue
our series on possible
alternatives to the
H-1B
Visa. In this article
we strive to bring you,
in the most eloquent
way, an introduction
to another alternative
to the H-1B visa. We
hope that these articles
will give you a way
to explore how these
alternatives to the
H-1B may work for you
and your employer.
Now, on
to "Other Developments
in Immigration Law"
H-2B Cap Count
Updated
On The USCIS on June
26th, 2008 released
the cap count annual
numerical limitations
set by Congress on H-1B
and H-2B
nonimmigrant visas.
But again on July 1st,
2008, the USCIS updated
the Cap Count for the
H-2B Seasonal Workers
which showed an increment
in the number of approved
beneficiaries for the
fiscal year by 1, 396
USCIS Announces
New Special Immigrant
Visa for Certain Iraqis
The USCIS announced
guidelines for a new
special immigrant visa
category for certain
Iraqi nationals who
worked for, or were
contractors of the United
States government in
Iraq for at least one
year after March 20,
2003. Section 1244 of
the Defense Authorization
Act for Fiscal Year
2008 authorizes 5,000
special immigrant visas
for Iraqi employees
and contractors each
year for fiscal years
2008 through 2012. This
section also has provisions
for the spouses and
children of qualifying
special immigrants.
We will address this
new category in more
detail in a future issue
of Immigration Monitor,
but we can tell you
that there are no filing
or biometric fees associated
with this petition.
This new program is
not the same as the
Section 1059 special
immigrant visa program
for Afghan and Iraqi
translators.
USCIS Biometric
Changes for Re-entry
Permits and Refugee
Travel Documents
USCIS has issued revised
instructions for Form
I-131,
Application for Travel
Document. The instructions
include changes that
were effective March
5, 2008, that require
all applicants for re-entry
permits and refugee
travel documents to
provide biometrics (e.g.,
fingerprints and photographs)
at a USCIS Application
Support Center (ASC).
These biometrics will
be used for background
and security checks,
and to meet requirements
for secure travel and
entry documents containing
biometric identifiers.
USCIS
Reverts to Prior Edition
of Form I-9
On July 8, 2008, USCIS
announced that it has
withdrawn the June 16,
2008 version of the
Form I-9,
Employment Eligibility
Verification, and has
reinstated the use of
the June 5, 2008 version.
The USCIS is now directing
employers to use the
June 5, 2007 version,
which has been updated
with a new expiration
date of June 30, 2009.
Other than the revision
date, there are no differences
between the two versions.
USCIS Continues
Suspension of Premium
Processing Service for
Religious Workers
The U.S. Citizenship
and Immigration Services
(USCIS) announced today
that the suspension
of premium processing
service for religious
worker (R-1)
nonimmigrant visa petitions
will continue at least
until January 7, 2009.
A previous six-month
suspension was announced
on January 4, 2008.
As you may remember
this move was initially
made to combat widespread
fraud that was found,
or perceived to be,
in the religious worker
category. Because of
the high incidence of
fraud USCIS was investigating
all R-1 petitions and
removed them from the
premium processing program.
Immigration
Articles and Other Fun
Stuff
Now for the regulars
-- this month's Immigration
Article, is
the second in a series
of articles that will
explore alternatives
to the H-1B visa. In
last month’s newsletter
we published the first
in a series of articles
that will take a look
at different visa categories
that can be used instead
of the H-1B, and we
promised that we would
continue to bring you
the best possible alternatives
to the H-1B. Holding
true to our promise
this month we introduce
you to a non-immigrant
visa which is often
overlooked and underutilized,
but is one of the most
feasible alternatives
to the H-1B visa: the
H-1B1.
We continue this theme
(alternatives to the
H-1B) in our In
Focus section.
This month will help
you to learn more about
the TN
Visa, focusing on the
requirements for Mexican
citizens. The TN is
a non-immigrant visa
category available only
to citizens of the United
States, Canada and Mexico.
The primary aim of the
immigration provisions
of this Free Trade Agreement
was to facilitate the
temporary transfer of
professionals from the
United States, Canada
and Mexico, and to support
the entry of Canadian
and Mexican Citizens
to the United States
to engage in professional
activities on a temporary
basis.
Every month we introduce
a new and interesting
question for our opinion
poll. Last month’s poll
results indicate that
73.91% of the respondents
believe that an H-1B
visa holder does not
have to remain outside
the U.S. for a year
to become eligible for
another H-1B visa. We
appreciate that people
take interest to cast
their vote and give
us the feedback. Keep
it up! And continue
to cast your vote to
express Your
Opinion.
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This
month we congratulate
Joel
Boshon
for winning last
month's Immigration
Quiz.
Again, we have
received a significant
number of responses
from our readers
who talked about
various solutions
to the quiz, but
Joel |
gave
the correct answer and
won a free online consultation
to discuss his Immigration
issues. So it’s time
to get ready again for
this month's quiz, if
you know the correct
answer, your name might
be featured in next
month's newsletter.
All the Best!!!
To ensure you receive
your Immigration Newsletter,
please add Immigration-Monitor@VisaPro.com
to your address book
or safe list.
See you next
month with a lot more
noise from the Immigration
World!
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Have
you been waiting for long
to know your Visa process
status? Do you want to know
the usual visa processing
time taken at your USCIS district
office? Click
here.
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Wanted to take part in our
immigration events, but missed
your chance? Check out the
informative library of immigration
law videos from past conferences.
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U.S.
Department of Labor
Initiates Supervised
Recruitment of Permanent
Labor Certification
Applications filed by
Immigration Law Firm
The U.S. Department
of Labor (DOL) today
announced that it has
begun placing pending
permanent Labor Certification
Applications (LCA) filed
by the Cohen & Grigsby
law firm into department-supervised
recruitment. Supervised
recruitment requires
the employer to receive
advance approval from
the DOL for all recruitment
efforts to ensure that
U.S. workers are fully
considered for available
positions. This move
has led to speculation
that DOL supervision
may become more wide
spread in the future.
USCIS
Reverts to Prior Edition
of Form I-9
U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Service
(USCIS) has withdrawn
the June 16, 2008 version
of the Form I-9, Employment
Eligibility Verification,
and has reinstated the
use of the June 5, 2008
version. The USCIS is
now directing employers
to use the June 5, 2007
version, which has been
updated with a new expiration
date of June 30, 2009.
Other than the revision
date, there are no differences
between the two versions.
USCIS
Continues Suspension
of Premium Processing
Service for Religious
Workers
The
U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services
(USCIS) announced today
that the suspension
of premium processing
service for religious
worker (R-1) nonimmigrant
visa petitions will
continue at least until
January 7, 2009. A previous
six-month suspension
was announced on January
4, 2008.
As you may remember
this move was initially
made to combat widespread
fraud that was found,
or perceived to be,
in the religious worker
category. Because of
the high incidence of
fraud USCIS was investigating
all R-1 petitions and
removed them from the
premium processing program.
USCIS
Extends Validity Period
of Employment Authorization
Documents (EAD) for
Refugees
In
an effort to provide
better customer service
to refugees, U.S. Citizenship
and Immigration Services
(USCIS) recently announced
that it would extend
the validity of initial
Employment Authorization
Documents (EAD) for
refugees to two years
after arrival in the
United States. Previous
policy required renewal
of the Employment Authorization
Document (EAD) after
one year.
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TN
(Trade NAFTA) for Mexicans:
A Visa Option for our Friends
from South of the Border
This article is part of our continuing series on alternatives to the H-1B visa for foreign national professionals. So far we have explored the E-3 visa for citizens of Australia, and the H-1B1 for citizens of Singapore and Chile. We turn our attention now to the TN visa, concentrating in this article on the visa category as it applies to citizens of Mexico.
H-1B1,
a feasible alternative to
H-1B for Chileans and Singaporeans
This is the second in a series
of articles addressing alternatives
to the H-1B visa category.
With the limitations on the
H-1B visa category, particularly
the 65,000 cap on new H-1B
visas each fiscal year, it
has become increasingly important
to look at all alternatives
and options for US employers
seeking skilled labor from
outside the US and for foreign
individuals seeking to enter
the US for work. In this article
we will explore the H-1B1
visa, a visa category available
to citizens of Singapore and
Chile.
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QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS
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| 1. |
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I am a
citizen of Canada
and currently
I am in US on
TN visa which
was filed by Company
A and it is valid
for next six months.
Now I have another
job offer from
Company ‘B’. Can
I change my employer
without applying
for a new TN visa?
Or should my new
employer file
a new TN Visa?
If possible can
my new Company
‘B’ file my H-1B
visa at the time
of hiring or do
we have to wait
till April?
The TN
visa is employer
specific so you
cannot change
employers until
you have a new
TN for your new
employer. You
can either process
the new TN at
the border or
you can file for
a change of status
with the USCIS
service center.
If you process
at the border,
you will get the
approval at the
time of filing.
If you file for
a change of employer
with the service
center it will
take 15-75 days
for a response.
Since you do not
currently have
an H-1B
visa you will
have to wait until
you can file for
the 2010 fiscal
year (10/01/2009-09/30/2010).
This filing process
will start on
April 1, 2009. |
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| GOT
A
QUESTION? |
If
you
have
a
short,
simple
query
on
immigration
to
the
U.S.,
send
your
questions
to
us.
We
will
select
and
answer
a
few
of
the
queries
in
every
issue.
Note:
Responses
posted
in
this
section
provide
only
general
information.
Since
immigration
law
is
a
complex
matter,
please
consult
an
immigration
attorney
before
acting
upon
any
responses
provided. |
| Ask
Your
Question |
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| 2. |
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I
am a British Citizen
and two years back,
I was transferred on
L-1
visa from a Foreign
Company to a US Company.
I was issued L-1 visa
for 3 years and it is
still valid for another
one year. I have a friend
who is moving to another
city in US and I am
also planning to shift
along with him. Am I
able to use my L-1 visa
for another company
if I get any job offer
there? If not what are
the options available
for me to stay back
in US? I have master’s
degree and total seven
years of experience. |
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The
L-1B visa is company
specific; it is not
transferable to another
US company. However,
based on your experience
and education, you would
qualify for other visas.
The most commonly used
would be the H-1B visa,
but as you probably
know, there are no H-1B
visas available until
October 1, 2009.
If you find a qualifying
position you may be
able to use a J-1
visa as a stop gap allowing
you to work for the
new employer until you
can get the H-1B. The
J-1 visa can be used
in the right circumstances
for up to 18 months.
Other options that may
also work for you include
the E-2
(if you go to work for
a British owned company
in the US), or an H-2B
(for temporary - seasonal
or one-time occurrence
- positions). |
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| 3. |
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I
am an actor and have
extensive experience
in performing guest
star role, theatre role,
and short films. Currently
I am in the US on a
tourist visa and have
an offer from one organization
who will offer me to
perform guest roles
so I am planning to
get my status changed
to an artist visa. I
would like to know what
options are available
for me? |
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There
are only 2 categories
that actors or entertainers
fall into, the O
and P
visas. The O visa is
for those who have extraordinary
ability, those who have
risen to the very top
of their field (i.e.,
those who have won an
Oscar or Tony award).
The P visa has 3 subcategories:
members of internationally
acclaimed entertainment
groups, individuals
coming under a reciprocal
exchange agreement,
and someone who is coming
for a culturally unique
program. Your qualifications
to date do not place
at the top of your field,
and you are not seeking
to enter the US as part
of an internationally
recognized group, so
the only classification
that you can take advantage
of would be a reciprocal
exchange program.
There are several organizations,
mostly unions that have
exchange agreements
in place. You would
most likely have to
become a member of one
of these organizations
to be able to use their
exchange program. |
|
"Our applicant
did indeed pass
her [J-1]
visa interview.
She will be arriving
in America later
this month.
DisplayCraft appreciates
everything that
you and Visa Pro
have done for
us. We are extremely
satisfied will
your efforts and
I am confident
that DisplayCraft
will come back
to Visa Pro in
the future should
we need to obtain
a visa for another
foreign employee."
Sincerely,
Brent Wingfield,
DisplayCraft,
Inc.
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