Articles Posted in Immigrant Visas

The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has issued the Visa Bulletin for May 2009, which announced EB3 unavailability for all countries of chargeability. The EB2 cutoff dates for China and India had been February 15, 2005 and February 15, 2004, respectively, and have not changed for May 2009. The EB3 visa unavailability is due to high demand for immigrant visa numbers and, particularly, a large number of cases with older priority dates.

The EB2 category continues to be current for all countries, except India and China. The cutoff dates for India and China did not change from the prior month. The cutoff date for India remains as February 15, 2004. China’s cutoff date is still February 15, 2005.

Lets see what the summer will hold for all visa categories.

That was a close call for the EB5 program. The House passed legislation that would extend the regional center program. Included in the Fiscal 2009 Omnibus Appropriations bill (H.R. 1105), the law would extend the program only until September 30, 2009. This action means that Congress would need to address the issue all over again by September. The bill still must by passed by the Senate and then signed by the President.

If you check out the rules committee link and language below, you will see that the EB-5 extension language is included at the end of Division J (section 101). The language below doesn’t mention EB-5 explicitly, but it does say that section 144 of the prior continuing resolution is extended until Sept. 30, 2009. Section 144 is the provision that extended EB-5 until March 6, 2009.

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This report was released by the American Immigration Lawyers Association today. AILA’s Business Committee has prepared this list of Frequently Asked Questions about the H-1B provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA or the “Stimulus Bill”) and its impact on H-1B employers. Some of the FAQs do not have clear answers, and the Committee will be working with the USCIS liaison committees to clarify these points in the coming weeks.

What Provision of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Affects H-1B Employers?

Section 1611 of the ARRA, called the Employ American Workers Act, was added to the stimulus bill by Senators Sanders (I-Vt.) and Grassley (R-Iowa) to limit certain banks and other financial institutions from hiring H-1B workers unless they had offered positions to equally- or better-qualified US workers, and to prevent banks from hiring H-1B workers in occupations in which they had laid off US workers.

What Companies Are Covered by the EAWA?

The EAWA places new restrictions on H-1B petitions filed by any company that receives funding under title I of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-343, also known as the “TARP Bill”) or that receives funding under Section 13 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. § 342 et seq., authorizing the Federal Reserve’s “Discount Window” for short-term, secured loans to financial institutions and other companies).

Note that companies receiving funds under the AARA (the “stimulus bill”) itself, such as engineering companies that contract with states to build the transportation infrastructure funded by the bill, are NOT subject to any restrictions – only banks and other companies receiving TARP money, or credit directly from the Federal Reserve System, are covered.

How Do I Find Out Whether An Employer Has Received Funds Triggering Application of EAWA?

Recipients of funding under the TARP program are disclosed publicly by the US Treasury, and weekly reports are available on the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act page of the Treasury Department website.

Recipients of funding through the Federal Reserve’s Discount Window program are not disclosed to the public.

What Restrictions Are Placed On Covered Employers?

The EAWA provides that it will be unlawful for any recipient of funding to “hire” an H-1B nonimmigrant unless the recipient has complied with the extra Labor Condition Application attestations previously imposed on “H-1B dependent employers.” These extra attestations are:
that the employer has, prior to filing the H-1B petition, taken good-faith steps to recruit U.S. workers for the position for which the H-1B worker is sought, offering a wage that is at least as high as that required under law to be offered to the H-1B worker. The employer must also attest that, in connection with this recruitment, it has offered the job to any U.S. worker who applies and is equally or better qualified for the position.

that the employer has not laid off, and will not lay off, any U.S. worker in a job that is essentially equivalent to the H-1B position in the area of intended employment of the H-1B worker within the period beginning 90 days prior to the filing of the H-1B petition and ending 90 days after its filing.

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Good news for those in the Green Card process mess. Beginning March 2, 2009, USCIS will accept Form I-907 (Request for Premium Processing Service) for

alien worker petitions filed on behalf of alien beneficiaries who, as of the date of filing the Form I-907:

Are the beneficiary of a Form I-140 petition filed in a preference category that has been

The Nursing Relief Act of 2009 has been introduced into the House of Representatives as bill HR 1001. The bill is a very good one for nurses and US patients. Unfortunately, we are a little skeptical that such a bill can survive the legislation process because of the economic crisis and other factors. Unlike the 2007 Bill, we hope that the current members of the House will see the urgent need to pass this now. Nevertheless, we are encouraged by activity and we applaud the sponsors and co-cosponsors of the bill and the underlying facilities that pushed for the bill.

The purpose of this Act is to create a new nonimmigrant visa category for registered nurses and establish admission requirements for such nonimmigrants.

The Congress finds the following: