In early August, President Trump voiced support for a bill introduced earlier this year by Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR) and David Perdue (R-GA) to effectively overhaul the current immigration system. The Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment (RAISE) Act has similarities to other points-based immigration systems, such as those in Canada, Australia, or the newly implemented system in China. The RAISE Act is "merit-based," focusing heavily on advanced-level, skills-based employment and education (with financial investments also a consideration), and a ...
Most employers have now implemented the use of the highly publicized, newly revised Form I-9 which United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) mandated as the only acceptable Form I-9 version (rev 11/14/16) effective January 22, 2017. Another change is around the corner, however, and USCIS released another Form I-9 version on July 17, 2017. The newest version of Form I-9 must be used beginning September 18, 2017.
Initially, some thought the changes to the most recent version would pertain to a new Department of Homeland Security rule proposed by the Obama ...
Corporate mergers and acquisitions are typically complex and expensive transactions. While financial matters typically comprise the core of an acquiring company's due diligence efforts during a merger or acquisition, immigration compliance should also receive increased attention before a transaction closes, particularly in light of recent enforcement efforts in the area of immigration compliance. Generally speaking, the entity surviving after a merger or acquisition remains liable for I-9 violations caused by the acquired entity. Having solid knowledge of and ...
he United States Supreme Court recently stayed portions of two (2) U.S. Circuit Court opinions and allowed parts of President Trump's travel ban to go into effect. Foreign nationals from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen may be affected by the Supreme Court's order.
The Supreme Court's order relates to the second of two (2) Executive Orders ("EO"), both of which banned nonimmigrants from several predominately Muslim countries from entering the United States for ninety (90) days. The first EO was blocked by federal courts, and the President decided to rewrite the ...
The Trump administration has not been reserved in its mission to not only reinforce but to heighten and enhance current immigration regulations. The President has quickly tried to implement measures to increase national security and border protection and has tasked federal agencies with a series of mandates to review current practices and recommend changes. The U.S. Department of State, for example, has recently implemented tougher vetting of U.S. visa applicants, including a new "Supplemental Questions for Visa Applicants" questionnaire that asks applicants about their ...
For many, the summer is a time for relaxation. For HR professionals, it can be a time of flux. In an academic setting, for example, students and teachers who worked on campus during the fall and spring semesters may be leaving for the summer break. Alternatively, student workers and temporary faculty may come in to fill summer-only positions. Also, students taking a break from classes may be getting summer internships or off-campus jobs to earn extra money. As employers gear up for the summer, it is important to distinguish between a rehire and continuing employment for purposes of I-9 ...
With the increased focus on foreign language programs-particularly the popularity of immersion programs in which the foreign language is used for instruction rather than as the subject of instruction-schools districts are increasingly turning to foreign nationals in order to fill employment needs. There are other hard-to-fill positions in school districts where foreign national hires are more prevalent as well. While positions such as teachers normally qualify for H-1B visas, the uncertainty surrounding whether a petition will be selected in the annual 85,000 H-1B visa ...
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) continues to take action in its efforts to deter fraud. Lawful Permanent Resident cards, more commonly referred to as "Green Cards," have undergone at least 5 changes since their post-World War II debut, and Employment Authorization Cards ("EADs") have borne at least as many. On May 1, 2017, USCIS began issuing redesigned cards with enhanced graphics and fraud-resistant security features that should be generally agreeable to HR staff, yet an impediment to would-be scammers.
The new features on the cards include the ...
USCIS has concluded the H-1B lottery and data entry operations for FY2018. Many hopeful petitioners and beneficiaries have already received the coveted I-797C Receipt Notice confirming their selection; however, some do not yet know their fate. Students on F-1 visas who have neither received a Receipt Notice nor a rejected petition may feel they are at an impasse. For these cases, qualifying students may continue to benefit from the automatic "Cap-Gap" extension until a rejection notice, or, more hopefully, a Receipt Notice, is received.
The Cap-Gap rule allows F-1 students for ...
Each year, thousands of employers file H-1B visa petitions for foreign nationals seeking to obtain temporary work authorization in professional jobs which requires at least a Bachelors' Degree in a specific field. On April 7, 2017, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced it reached the congressionally mandated cap for H-1B visas for the 2018 fiscal year and would institute a lottery to select petitions for adjudication. The number of H-1B petitions filed in 2017 declined for the first time since 2013, but the number of filings were still more than double the number of ...