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A QUARTERLY UPDATE ON IMMIGRATION Fourth Quarter 2008In this Issue:
Federal Contractors and Subcontractors Now Required To Enroll In E-Verify To Remain Eligible To Contract with The Federal Government Effective January 15, 2009, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) promulgated a new rule which requires Federal contractors and subcontractors to begin using the USCIS’ E-Verify system to verify their employees’ eligibility to work legally in the United States. The new rule requires that each new prime Federal contract awarded or amended after January 15, 2009, with few exceptions, must include a clause committing Federal contractors to use the E-Verify system. The same clause will also be required in subcontracts over $3,000 that flow from such prime contracts. Companies awarded a contract with the Federal Government will be required to enroll in E-Verify within 30 days of the contract award date. If you have any questions with regard to your Company’s E-Verify obligations, please feel free to contact us. To review the “Frequently Asked Questions” on USCIS' Website, please click here: http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/FAR_FAQ_13nov08.pdf USCIS Issues TPS Re-Registration Reminder to Eligible Temporary Protected Status (“TPS”) is a temporary immigration status granted to eligible nationals of designated countries or parts thereof. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) has reminded Honduran, Nicaraguan and Salvadoran nationals, who are eligible for TPS, to file a re-registration application for TPS before the end of the re-registration period (12/1/08 for Hondurans and Nicaraguans; 12/30/08 for Salvadorans). The 18-month extension of TPS for nationals of Honduras and Nicaragua will remain in effect until July 5, 2010, and until Sept. 9, 2010 for nationals of El Salvador. Those who have received TPS previously must re-register for the 18-month extension during the re-registration period. Failure to file a TPS re-registration application during the re-registration period without good cause will result in withdrawal of TPS benefits, including employment authorization and protection from removal from the U.S. For assistance in filing a re-registration application, please contact our office. For the full story, please click here: USCIS Revises Employment Eligibility Verification Form US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) recently announced its submission to the Federal Register an interim final rule that would revise the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) process. Importantly, the current version of Form I-9 (dated 06/05/07) will no longer be valid as of 45 days after publication in the Federal Register (date to be announced). Employers must use the revised Form I-9 for all new hires and to re-verify any employee with expiring employment authorization beginning 45 days after publication in the Federal Register. USCIS’ interim final rule also proposes to narrow the list of acceptable identity documents. The justification for the revisions includes the improved security of the employment eligibility process since a more limited list of acceptable documents would make it easier for employers to verify valid documents from those that are false or invalid. Presently, the list of approved documents that employees can present to verify identity and employment authorization is divided in three sections: (i) List A documents, which verify identity and employment authorization: (ii) List B documents, which verify identity only; and (iii) List C documents, which verify employment authorization only. The interim final rule seeks to eliminate Forms I-688, I-688A, and I-688B (Temporary Resident Card and older versions of the Employment Authorization Document) from List A. It would also add to List A documents such as the new U.S. passport card, foreign passports containing specially marked machine readable visas, and documentation for certain citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). Finally, the interim final rule specifies that expired documents are no longer acceptable. Previously, an expired U.S. passport was an acceptable List A document, and expired identity documents were permissible under List B. After final publication of the interim final rule, that will no longer be the case. The interim final rule also clarifies that Social Security cards with restrictions on employment are not acceptable List C documents. As the Government has substantially stepped up its efforts in worksite enforcement, we’ve been assisting several of our corporate and business clients with I-9 and H-1B public access file compliance to prepare them for the event of an audit. If you have any questions with regard to your Company’s I-9 or H-1B public access file obligations, please feel free to contact us. For more information, please click here: USCIS Increases Period of Stay for Trade-NAFTA Professional U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) has increased the maximum period of time a Trade-NAFTA (TN) professional worker from Canada or Mexico may remain in the United States before seeking readmission or obtaining an extension of stay. This final rule changes the initial period of admission for TN workers from one to three years, making it equal to the initial period of admission given to H-1B professional workers. Eligible TN nonimmigrants may now be allowed to receive extensions of stay in increments of up to three years instead of the prior maximum period of stay of one year. The TN nonimmigrant classification is a visa category available to eligible Mexican and Canadian nationals with at least a bachelor’s degree or appropriate professional credentials who work in certain qualified fields pursuant to the North American Free Trade Agreement (“NAFTA”). For more information on the TN visa category, please click here: International Trusted Traveler Program Now Available At LAX, Miami, Chicago, Atlanta U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently announced that Global Entry enrollment centers are now open at four additional international U.S. airports. Global Entry is a new program which allows approved U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents returning to the U.S. to use a Global Entry kiosk as an alternative to the regular passport control line. Global Entry kiosks were installed at the four expansion airports on October 2 and at additional international terminals at John F. Kennedy International Airport on October 17. For more information, or for an application to enroll in Global Entry, please click here: Various U.S. Consulates Abroad Now Require the Use of U.S. State Department For nonimmigrant visas, U.S. consulates Nuevo Laredo and Monterrey, Mexico, and Montreal and Vancouver, Canada, now require the completion of Form DS-160. Effective November 24, 2008, the U.S. consulate in Hong Kong also mandated use of the Form DS-160 for H, L, O, P and Q visas. DS-160 is a new form issued by the U.S. Department of State (“DOS”). The purpose of Form DS-160 is to streamline and combine several of the current DS application forms such as DS-156, DS-157, DS-158 into one form that can be submitted electronically. Form DS-160, at one point, will also eliminate the need for forms DS-156E, 156K and 156V. Visa applicants submitting applications at the above-named consulates for the affected visa categories must use electronic Form DS-160 when submitting their application. When making visa applications, applicants should carefully review the instructions for their intended consulate. Consular websites can be found at http://www.usembassy.gov/. For more information, please click here: DHS Adds New Countries to the List of Visa Waiver Program Participants A final ruling of the Department of Homeland Security adds the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, the Republic of Korea, and the Slovak Republic to the list of Visa Waiver Program countries. This permits nationals of these recently added countries to travel without a visa for tourist and business travel of 90 days or less, beginning on November 17, provided they possess a biometric passport and register on-line through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). New Third Country National Non-Immigrant Visa Policies Implemented at The U.S. Consular Mission in Mexico has changed requirements for visa applications for Third Country Nationals (“TCNs”) who are nonresidents of Mexico. The new requirements are posted on their website, http://ciudadjuarez.usconsulate.gov/nivtcns.html. Applicants may schedule interviews at one of ten posts through Mission Mexico, on-line at http://www.usvisa-mexico.com/, or by calling 1-900-476-1212. Please note that appointment numbers are limited; therefore, flexibility in post location by applicants will make appointment scheduling easier. New Rule Implemented to Ensure Integrity of the Religious Worker Program The Times-Picayune recently reported that Anh “Joseph” Cao, an eastern New Orleans immigration attorney who fled war-ravaged Saigon as a child, has become the first Vietnamese-American elected to Congress. For the full story, please click here:
Portions of this Newsletter have been
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- Temporary Work Visas
- H-1B Specialty Workers
- TN-1 Professionals
- L-1A and L-1B Intracompany Transferees
- E-1 and E-2 Treaty Traders and Investors
- Immigration Options For Physicians
- F-1 and J-1 Foreign Students
- E-3 Australian Free Trade Agreement
- H-3 Alien Trainees
- H-2A (Agricultural) and H-2B (Non-agricultural) Temporary Labor
- Permanent Residence
- Road to the Green Card through PERM
- Employment Based Preference Categories
- EB-5 Immigrant Investors
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