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Comes
April every year and
the discussion on H-1B
visas seems never ending!!
This month the buzz
on the Immigration Front
is needless to say on
the H-1B’s and the prediction
on how soon the quota
would get over? Last
year the quota of 65,000
H-1B’s got over by the
end of May. Like every
year, the petitioning
for H-1B’s would start
on the 1st April 2007,
but 1st April being
a Sunday, the processing
would start only from
2nd April 2007. One
thing is for sure the
H-1B’s would surely
sell like hot potatoes
this year!
Apart from the H-1B
front, the USCIS has
made lot of changes
at the immigration end
too; they have revised
the form for EAD and
have announced direct
filing instructions
for form
I-129 and form
I-539. The U.S.
has begun a ferocious
debate over immigration.
Since, there may be
more common ground between
Congress and the President,
as the Democrats who
now control both houses,
hopes are high that
the reforms will actually
become law this year.
We will keep you abreast
with the developments
on this front in our
subsequent issues of
Immigration
Monitor.
In this issue, we bring
to our dedicated readers
the last of our Attorney’s
experiences during the
Immigration
Seminars and Workshops
in India. From his diary
entry we present his
last event – A Question
and answer round in
the City of Nawabs (as
they call it) – Hyderabad!!
We were overwhelmed
with the response generated
by the readers on the
experiences of the Attorney.
We hope to bring the
same in the near future
too. Keep watching!!
After H-1B’s this season
the next hot topic is
H-2B visas, the Immigration
Article in
this issue throws light
on the latest happening
on the H-2B front. Don’t
miss out!!! Keep sharing
your immigration
experiences with
us so that we can include
your experiences in
our articles for the
benefit of our other
friends.
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Adding
further to our
endeavors in bringing
the one-stop global
immigration service
to all our readers,
this month VisaPro
has added immigration
services to two
more European
countries. I invite
our readers to
visit our new
Netherlands
and |
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Denmark
websites for information
and queries related
to immigration
needs for these
countries.
Last month’s poll
question seemed
to have generated
mixed reactions
from our readers
again. The opinion
was equally divided.
More than half
of the participants
believed that |
the fee hike by USCIS
would discourage lot
of people intending
to immigrate to US and
hence having an adverse
effect. While some thought
that this hike would
not cause any change
in the rate at which
people immigrate hence
not having any effect
at all. This month we
have an interesting
question for you to
express Your
Opinion. So
don't miss casting your
vote.
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Tania
Logan deserves
all the Congratulations
for winning last
month’s Immigration
Quiz.
A significant
number of participants
confused on the
fact that on a
business conference,
one may travel |
on a B-1 Visa and may
also extend the stay
if needed. Make sure
you gear up and research
well for this month's
question. Who knows,
your name might feature
in the next newsletter.
All the Best!!
There are some exciting
projects and country-specific
websites in store for
you. We will bring you
a lot from the U.K.
Immigration Front in
the forthcoming issues.
Let me know what you
think of our initiatives.
Stay tuned as we unfold
for you the new additions
and happenings in the
coming year!
Don’t forget to add
our address Immigration-Monitor@VisaPro.com
to the list of your
contacts so that you
see the Immigration
Monitor in your email
Inbox every month and
you will not miss the
latest immigration activity.
See
you next month with
a lot more noise from
the Immigration World!
Till then CIAO!!
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USCIS releases preliminary number of FY 2008 H-1B Cap Flings
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a preliminary number of filings today as the tallying of H-1B petitions received on April 2 and April 3 continues. On April 3, USCIS announced that it had received enough petitions to meet the congressionally mandated cap for fiscal year 2008 (FY 2008) and that it would conduct a computer-generated random selection of cap-subject petitions filed on Monday (April 2) and Tuesday (April 3) to determine which cases USCIS will accept for processing.
USCIS Reaches FY 2008 H-1B Cap
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received enough H-1B petitions to meet the congressionally mandated cap for fiscal year 2008 (FY 2008). USCIS will use a random selection process (described below) for all cap-subject filings received on April 2, 2007 and April 3, 2007. USCIS will reject and return along with filing fee(s) all petitions received on those days that are not randomly selected.
USCIS Reaches H-2B Cap For Second
Half of FY 2007
U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services
(USCIS) has announced today that
it has received a sufficient number
of petitions to reach the congressionally
mandated H-2B cap for the final
six months of fiscal year 2007 (FY
2007). The USCIS has notified the
public that March 16, 2007 is the
“final receipt date” for new H-2B
worker petitions requesting employment
start dates prior to October 1,
2007. The “final receipt date” is
the date on which USCIS expects
that it would have received enough
cap-subject petitions to reach the
limit of 33,000 H-2B workers for
the second half of FY 2007.
USCIS announces Employment Authorization
update for TPS
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) announced today
that certain Hondurans, Nicaraguans
and Salvadorans will be eligible
for Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
re-registration. Those who have
applications pending with USCIS
and are awaiting an employment authorization
document (EAD), will receive a letter
giving them the opportunity to have
an extension sticker affixed to
their EAD while USCIS completes
their TPS application.
USCIS
announces direct filing instructions
for Forms I-129 and I-539
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) announced new Direct
Filing instructions for a variety
of immigration forms that were transitioned
into the Bi-Specialization initiative.
Effective April 2, 2007, all Forms
I-129 and I-539 are to be filed
directly with the California Service
Center or the Vermont Service Center,
whichever is applicable.
Finally
in the last leg of my travel – Q
& A in Hyderabad!!
This month's IN FOCUS section we
bring to you the last pages from
our attorney’s travelogue to India
for the immigration events series
last year. With this we bring to
an end our five month long series
which gave you an insight of our
events and the experiences the attorney
had in India. Watch out for next
month’s newsletter to know what
we have in stored for you!!
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The
Roving H-1B employee: Dealing
with multiple changes in job
locations
Roving
H-1B employees require special
attention and analysis. In
general, if an employer sends
an H-1B worker to a new worksite,
not listed on the Labor Condition
Application (LCA), the employer
must act to maintain compliance
with the regulations.
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| QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS |
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| 1. |
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I am hiring a
person to come
to the US on a
J-1.
Would I have to
pay him while
he is here as
an intern since
he will be coming
for training as
a Pharmist. Is
that included
in pharmacology?
Generally speaking
you will have
to pay a salary.
Much of it depends
on the requirements
of the J-1 program
that you would
bring the intern
to the US on.
The question becomes
whether a pharmacist
falls within the
definition of
pharmacology.
We cannot tell
whether it would
include or not.
Whether the internship
would be allowed
would depend on
the parameters
of the J-1 program
that you bring
him/her to the
US on. Some of
the programs are
short term work
experience programs
that would probably
qualify. The issue
is more of a licensing
issue -- if he
is not dispensing
medicine and not
consulting patients
I would think
that the position
would not require
licensing. |
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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
recently got married
to my husband who
is a US citizen. I
was told by someone
that he could file
for a K-3
visa for me which
is suppose quicker.
Is it correct? How
much time does it
usually take? Could
you tell me the procedure
for K-3? Thanks in
advance.
Under US immigration
law, a US citizen
can petition the US
Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) to
permit his or her
spouse to be admitted
into the US as a permanent
resident or, if the
spouse is already
in the US, to allow
the spouse to adjust
their status to permanent
resident. However,
because it takes a
long time for someone
living outside of
the US to be processed
for an immigrant visa,
the law allows a spouse
of a US citizen to
be admitted into the
US on a nonimmigrant
(K-3) visa and then
complete the process
of becoming a permanent
resident while in
the US. Obtaining
the K-3 visa first
requires the filing
of an I-130 Relative
Petition followed
by filing and approval
of an I-129F petition.
Given the information
you provided, the
K-3 visa is the best
option for you and
since your husband
has already filed
an I-130 petition,
then the next step
is to file the I-129F
petition. Once the
I-129F petition is
approved, you will
be able to obtain
your K-3 visa at the
US Embassy in London
and enter the US under
K-3 visa. |
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"I
would like to
thank you for
your patience
with us in this
'journey' of sorts.
Your patience
and professionalism
along the way
helped us get
comfortable with
processing papers
without meeting
the people we
entrust our future
to.
I sincerely hope
that we are able
to work together
on more projects.
I would hope that
our E2
application
for [Beneficiary]
is successful
... regardless,
i know that you
put forth your
best efforts into
the process and
that counts a
lot !!!"
Thank You !
Annie
Barrientos,
Secretary
BARZ Corporation
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