Articles Posted in Work Visas

We just updated our readers a few days ago about the new I-9 form, when the recent notice from the government came out. Federal officials Wednesday notified more than 650 businesses around the country, including nearly 50 in Los Angeles, that their records will be audited as part of a widening effort to find companies that hire illegal immigrants. The number of notices issued is the largest ever in a single day and exceeds the total sent out in all of fiscal 2008.

Is this Obama’s new plan on cracking down on employers, well that remains to be seen. The notices are the government’s first step in what could be a lengthy investigation. Immigration agents plan to review the I-9 forms and identification documents at all 652 companies. Those with significant numbers of undocumented workers may be fined. And if agents believe the businesses knowingly hired illegal immigrants or find “a pattern of egregious violations,” criminal investigations could be launched.

The message is clear, Employers who hire illegal workers are going to be on the hook as well, not just the illegal employees.

As of June 19, 2009, approximately 44,500 H-1B cap-subject petitions and approximately 20,000 petitions qualifying for the advanced degree cap exemption had been filed. USCIS will continue to accept both cap-subject petitions and advanced degree petitions until a sufficient number of H-1B petitions have been received to reach the statutory limits, taking into account the fact that some of these petitions may be denied, revoked, or withdrawn.

Employers thinking of hiring visa workers have more flexibility this year to interview and choose the best candidates as visas will be open for at least 2 more months.

USCIS kept on updating the total number of cases received for H-1B for FY 2009-10. However, the recent USCIS H-1B cap count indicates decline in number of cases than what had been previously reported. The updated count reports the receipt of 44,400 ‘Regular’ cap cases, by June 12, 2009 which is lesser than the prior count of 47,700, given as of May 22, 2009. There is no explanation too from USCIS for this decline in trend. Thus, this reduced number may reflect either withdrawals by employers, denials by the USCIS, duplicate filings, or an error in the prior cap counts.

As of this writing, both the Advanced Degree and Regular caps remain open. We will continue to provide updated H-1B cap count information.

Last week I attended the Annual Immigration Lawyers conference in Las Vegas. During the conference, government officials spent some time to update the attendees of the most recent information and upcoming changes.

It seems that the collection of the $500 fraud fee for new H1B or L-1 petitions is being used to invest in hiring more investigators. One recent trend is that business practices that were standard and went unchallenged previously, now are being viewed as “fraud.” Many companies must revise their practices to meet current standards. This does not mean that these practices of employers or businesses are necessarily fraudulent.

The biggest frustration for lawyers dealing with H1B’s are the unreasonable RFE’s being issued by the service since the April 1 filing. USCIS is making requests for photos of the premises, copies of contracts between all involved parties, and evidence of doing business including leases, licenses, and other proof. These requests are onerous for employers, as well as disruptive and harmful to both the employer and the employee when the H1B petition is often denied without valid justification.

The Department of Labor published a final rule, effective on June 29, 2009, that suspends the H-2A final rule published on December 18, 2009. DOL is republishing and reinstating regulations in place on January 16, 2009, for 9 months, after which the Department will either have engaged in further rulemaking or lift the suspension.

The Department of Labor released FAQs regarding the May 29, 2009, suspension of a December 18, 2009, final rule on H-2As. Read more below

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As of May 29, 2009, approximately 45,800 H-1B cap-subject petitions and approximately 20,000 petitions qualifying for the advanced degree cap exemption had been filed. USCIS will continue to accept both cap-subject petitions and advanced degree petitions until a sufficient number of H-1B petitions have been received to reach the statutory limits, taking into account the fact that some of these petitions may be denied, revoked, or withdrawn.

Since it is probable that there will still be H-1B numbers available after June 30, U.S. employers should submit H-1B petitions for potential workers as soon as possible.

BusinessWeek featured an excellent story about O1 visas, often known as the Genius visas. While the spotlight is now on H1B visas or the debate on Immigration Reform, it is important to cover this important and often overlooked visa.

O1 visas are awarded to immigrants with extraordinary abilities in the arts, sciences, education, business, or athletics. The program, for what are officially called O-1 visas, began in 1990 as lawmakers sought to separate these applicants from the pool of those seeking H-1B visas, the visa program for skilled immigrants used by many technology companies. While H-1B applicants must hold at least a bachelor’s degree and possess some specialized skill, O-1 visas are allotted to a more elite crowd: those who can prove to U.S. immigration officials that they are the very top in their fields.

According to the U.S. State Dept.—which makes the grants to successful applicants—9,014 O-1s were awarded in 2008, up 40% from 2004. Among current O-1 visa holders are Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki, Canadian author Jennifer Gould Keil, Israeli concert pianist Inon Barnatan, and members of the New York dance companies Merce Cunningham and Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane.

Truly sign of the times. According to USCIS As of May 11, 2009, approximately 45,000 H-1B cap-subject petitions and approximately 20,000 petitions qualifying for the advanced degree cap exemption had been filed. USCIS will continue to accept both cap-subject petitions and advanced degree petitions until a sufficient number of H-1B petitions have been received to reach the statutory limits, taking into account the fact that some of these petitions may be denied, revoked, or withdrawn.

In this pace, there will be plenty of H1B visas to carry us through September.