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Archive for the ‘Temporary Visas’ Category
Tuesday, April 21st, 2009
Today, USCIS provided an updated cap count stating that, as of last Friday, 44,000 of the 65,000 available H-1B petitions (and 20,000 petitions claiming the additional 20,000 Master’s Degree exemptions) have been received. Based on comparison of today’s announcement with yesterday’s that 43,000 petitions were received as of April 13, it appears that, for the moment, anyway, H-1B availability may continue into the summer for the first time in several years.
Those of us with years of experience in the immigration field will recall the frustrations of advising clients during this “cap watch” – employers need to understand that the cap could be reached at any time, so hiring decisions need to be accelerated and petitions need to be prepared quickly.
Fortunately, it also means that employers can make hiring decisions for the next few weeks without the worry that their petitions will be rejected for lack of available H-1Bs.
Tags: Cap Count, H-1B Posted in Hot Questions, Temporary Visas | Click Here To Comment »
Wednesday, April 15th, 2009
As I metioned previously, DOL is revising the electronic system through which Labor Condition Applications for H-1B workers are submitted. Employers will have to register and have their existence verified through the iCERT portal before being able to file LCAs after May 15.
The iCERT portal is available here for employers to register, even if they do not have an immediate need for an LCA. While the system is optional until May 15, it will become mandatory as of May 15, and it would be best for employers to be registered now so as to avoid delays the next time an LCA needs to be filed.
The iCERT portal will also become the site through which PERM applications are filed, but not until at least September of this year.
Tags: H-1B, Labor, LCA Posted in Temporary Visas | Click Here To Comment »
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009
USCIS has released its first report on H-1B numbers for FY2010. USCIS reports that it received approximately 45,000 petitions toward the “basic” allotment of 65,000 H-1B petitions, and that it received almost 20,000 petitions toward the “U.S. Master’s” cap of 20,000.
Fortunately, the statute provides that the “Master’s cap” is 20,000 extra visas, and it is only the extra visas that are limited to holders of U.S. Master’s degrees. A holder of a U.S. Master’s degree is also eligible for an H-1B petition in the basic quota of 65,000. If the U.S. Master’s cap is exhausted but the “basic” cap is still available, the H petitions for U.S. Master’s degree holders will still be processed, but counted toward the 65,000 “basic” cap.
Tags: H-1B Posted in Temporary Visas | Click Here To Comment »
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009
Today USCIS issued an emailed press release indicating that it would continue to accept H-1B petitions subject to the 2010 cap, meaning that they do not think they received enough petitions to meet the caps yet.
We do not yet know how many petitions USCIS received, nor how long the remainder of the 85,000 H-1B “slots” will last, but will continue to monitor the situation.
Tags: H-1B Posted in Temporary Visas | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, April 7th, 2009
The Federal Reserve recently issued guidance in the form of an FAQ for employers who accept funds under Section 13 of the Federal Reserve Act (FRA) as part of the Employ American Workers Act.
Although the government has published a list of TARP recipients, no such comprehensive list of FRA Section 13 recipients exists. However, in its new guidance, the government explains which entities are considered to be recipients of Section 13 funds. The determination depends upon the type of borrowing arrangement between the entity and the Federal Reserve. Interestingly, the guidance explains that once a recipient has paid back the funds received under Section 13, they are no longer subject to the H-1B additional attestation requirements.
Employers that receive funding under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) or FRA Section 13 funding will be required to take additional steps when filing H-1B temporary worker petitions with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service. Specifically, these employers will be required to make attestations as part of the H-1B application that they took good faith steps to recruit U.S. workers for the position for which the H-1B worker is sought and that no U.S. worker was displaced by the H-1B worker in an equivalent position.
Tags: H-1B, Hot Questions Posted in Agency Updates, Temporary Visas | Click Here To Comment »
Wednesday, April 1st, 2009
There’s a great post by Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith on Microsoft’s public policy blog in favor of increasing the number of H-1Bs in the United States. An amazing statistic:
While the number of visa holders is very small compared to the U.S.
workforce, their contribution is huge. For example, last year 35
percent of Microsoft’s patent applications in the U.S. came from new
inventions by visa and green card holders.
I’ve always said the H-1B visa was for “insourcing,” not “outsourcing” – and each H-1B worker here buys or rents a house, pays taxes, eats out, shops at Best Buy – so that sending talented people home makes no economic or policy sense. The scope of the benefit beyond the immediate economic impact is breathtaking, though – what if 35 percent of Microsoft’s new products were developed in India, instead of Washington?
Posted in Success Stories, Temporary Visas | Click Here To Comment »
Wednesday, April 1st, 2009
I wish this post could be tagged with “April Fool’s,” but now that we are over the hump of the H-1B filing deadline, we can turn our attention to what the Department of Labor will be doing to the Labor Condition Application (LCA) system. DOL is going to be managing the LCA and PERM systems through the same web portal, which they call “iCERT.” The LCA portion of iCERT will be available April 15, and there will be a 30-day transition before iCERT becomes the exlusive means for obtaining an LCA online as of May 15. (more…)
Posted in Agency Updates, Temporary Visas | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, March 31st, 2009
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has a helpful new fact sheet for F-1 nonimmigrant students whose Optional Practical Training will expire before October 1, 2009, and employers filing H-1B petitions today on behalf of those students. The guidance explains the “cap gap” in employment authorization as well as how to get the benefit of the rule.
(more…)
Tags: cap gap, F-1, H-1B, student Posted in Temporary Visas | Click Here To Comment »
Thursday, March 26th, 2009
This year, there is a realistic possibility that the number of H-1B petitions submitted in the first week of the filing period will be less than the total number available for the year. Last year, the government amended the H regulations to modify the “lottery” system for those years where enough applications are received at the very start of the filing season to exhaust the numbers. (more…)
Tags: H-1B Posted in Hot Questions, Temporary Visas | Click Here To Comment »
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