Lornet Turnbull has an article in today's Seattle Times entitled Foreign workers' spouses often stuck in limbo, in which she recounts the experiences of several H-4 visa holders who are the spouses of H-1B temporary professional workers. Ms. Turnbull captures the angst mixed status couples face in deciding whether to come to the US at all, and whether to stay and/or pursue permanent residence. Although H-1B visa holding spouses can work for specific employers in specific jobs, the dependent … [Read more...]

On April 16, 2013 the US Senate introduced S. 744, the "Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act" (BSEOIMA), an 844 page comprehensive immigration reform bill. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) produced a detailed summary of the bill, as amended by the sponsors on May 1, 2013, which can be found here. The core features of the bill include: Increased enforcement and funding for enforcement; Reforms to the temporary and permanent legal … [Read more...]

Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) began automating the I-94 arrival documentation process. Until now, individuals received white I94 or green I-94W arrival cards (green for visa waiver tourists), upon admission to the US, often clipped inside the passport. These have been essential for nonimmigrants to track their arrivals and departures. One of the things Congress expects CBP to do is track departures, which have not been tracked as well as arrivals. I94s have been critical to immigration … [Read more...]

I previously wrote about the new I-9 form published by USCIS on March 8. The Handbook for Employers, or M-274, has also been updated. The biggest changes are the additional and expanded pictures of the various documents employers are likely to encounter. However, there are also a number of minor changes that can raise a number of questions by employers as to the appropriate documents that are acceptable or raise questions about the details in completing the I-9s. Today, I attended a … [Read more...]

Today, USCIS published a notice of revised I-9 form in the Federal Register. USCIS states: "Although employers should begin using the 03/08/13 dated form right away, older forms dated 02/02/09 and 08/07/09 will be accepted until May 7, 2013. After May 7, 2013, only the 03/08/13 will be accepted. The revision date is on the lower left corner of the form." USCIS has also scheduled free webinars to help employers understand the new form. Primary changes to the new form include more thorough … [Read more...]

Today's Seattle Times has an article, Gay-Rights Movement's New Focus: Immigrants, discussing how gay rights groups and local immigrant rights groups are working together to fight for immigration reform. Gay rights' groups have advocated for a solution to the problem facing undocumented people in the US, many of whom are LGBT members. At the same time, many immigrant rights groups support reform of the immigration laws to allow US citizens and green card holders to sponsor their gay spouses. … [Read more...]

The provisional waiver procedure starts this week on March 4, 2013. Note the word "procedure." It is not a new law, a new requirement, nor amnesty. It is a change in the location of where to file for a specific type of waiver and when it will be decided. A new form I-601A has been developed for this limited waiver procedure. New Waiver Procedure Just for Unlawful Presence Bar The new provisional or family unity waiver process will allow applicants for immigrant visas abroad to apply for … [Read more...]

It's been 27 years since Congress passed the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) requiring employers to document the work permission status of ALL new hires, including US citizens, on Form I-9. After all those years, employers still contact our office wanting to hire, or continue employing undocumented workers, or they simply want to "help" an employee who they don't realize lacks permission to work. Many employers sound clueless about IRCA requirements, even when there is so much … [Read more...]

It's that time of year again when human resources professionals should be thinking about what positions they plan (or I should say, hope) to fill with foreign national workers in specialty occupations requiring H-1B visas. Now is the time to be extending those offers and preparing applications for filing. In the private sector, which is largely subject to the annual 65,000 visa cap on H-1B visas, the filing season will open up again on April 1, 2013 for jobs that can begin on or after October 1, … [Read more...]

On January 18, 2013, USCIS updated its FAQs on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. USCIS also released updated data on receipts, rejections, approvals and more. To date, it has received 407,899 applications, accepting 394,533 of those and rejecting about 13,000 applications (i.e., not properly filed). It has approved 154,000 and has 371,000 under review. USCIS has not reported on denials. … [Read more...]