Headlines: 1. FY 2013 H-1B Filing Season Rapidly Approaches β Beginning on April 2, 2012 (because April 1 is a Sunday), employers may file cap-subject H-1B petitions for fiscal year (FY) 2013, for employment starting on October 1, 2012, or later. 2. Witnesses Discuss Controversial DHS OIG Report at House Hearing -The report, which indicates that [β¦]
By Cyrus D. Mehta* Green Card Stories is a gem of a book, and I feel inspired to write about it. Written by award winning journalist, Saundra Amrhein, with stunning photographs by award winning photographer, Ariana Lindquist, the book puts a human face on immigration through the journeys of 50 individuals who got their green [β¦]
Headlines: 1. DOJβs Office of Special Counsel Lists Employer Best Practices During Worksite Enforcement Audits β The Department of Justiceβs Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices released doβs and donβts for employers facing ICE audits. 2. USCIS Announces Several Thousand EB-5 Green Cards Issued So Far in First Quarter of FY 2012, Releases [β¦]
Headlines: ETA Announces 2012 Adverse Effect Wage Rates for H-2A Workers -The AEWRs range from a low of $9.30 per hour in Mississippi and Louisiana to aΠ high of $12.26 per hour in Hawaii. USCIS Changes Stand-Alone I-130 Filing Locations β USCIS announced that effective January 1, 2012, it has changed the filing locations for Form I-130. [β¦]
Headlines: 1. H-1B Cap Reached for FY 2012 β Petitions for new employment of an H-1B will not be accepted again until April 1, 2012. 2. House Votes To End Per-Country Limits on Employment-Based Immigration Visas β The measure could benefit skilled Indian and Chinese workers and high-tech companies in the United States. 3. Labor Dept. Current [β¦]
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on November 14, 2011, that it has accepted (approved or pending) 56,300 H-1B petitions subject to the 65,000 numerical limitation (cap) for fiscal year (FY) 2012. Up to 6,800 visas are set aside from the 65,000 cap during each fiscal year for the H-1B1 program under the terms [β¦]
Headlines: 1. H-1B Numbers Dwindling for FY 2012, File Now! β Once the numbers under the cap are gone, the next opportunity to file will be April 1, 2012, for work to begin in FY 2013. 2. EB-2 India, China EB-2 Visa Numbers Jump; Other Visa News β The November employment-based second preference cut-off date for applicants [β¦]
Headlines: 1. House Judiciary Committee Approves E-Verify Legislation β A date for consideration on the House floor has not yet been set. 2. State Dept. Estimates Employment-Based Visa Availability β The October Visa Bulletin includes estimated visa availability over the coming months. 3. House Holds Hearing on Immigrant Investor Program and Job Creation β The regional center [β¦]
Headlines 1. DOL Suspends Prevailing Wage Determinations β Processing of prevailing wage determinations (PWDs), redeterminations, and Center Director Reviews have been suspended temporarily; prevailing wage requests filed since early June 2011 are still pending. 2. DHS Publishes Regulation To Facilitate Electronic Filing β The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has published the first in a series [β¦]
Headlines 1. Company Held Liable for Back Wages of H-1B Employee Who Never Worked β The failure to prove every element of a bona fide termination left an employer who petitioned for an H-1B workerβs admission liable for the entire period of authorized employment. 2. Labor Dept. Weighs In on Staggered Dates of Need β Can [β¦]
