IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: MARCH 2014 VISA BULLETIN UPDATED

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: MARCH 2014 VISA BULLETIN UPDATED: Posted by Norka M. Schell, NYC Immigration Lawyer Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC Tel. (212) 564-1589 www.lawschell.com FAMILY-SPO...

MARCH 2014 VISA BULLETIN UPDATED

Posted by Norka M. Schell, NYC Immigration Lawyer
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
Tel. (212) 564-1589
www.lawschell.com


FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES

Family-Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	01FEB07	01FEB07	01FEB07	15OCT93	15AUG01
F2A	08SEP13	08SEP13	08SEP13	15APR12	08SEP13
F2B	01SEP06	01SEP06	01SEP06	01MAY93	08JUN03
F3	15JUN03	15JUN03	15JUN03	08JUN93	15FEB93
F4	08NOV01	08NOV01	08NOV01	15NOV96	01SEP90

EMPLOYMENT- BASED PREFERENCES

Employment- Based	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	China - mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
1st	C	C	C	C	C
2nd	C	15FEB09	15NOV04	C	C
3rd	01SEP12	01SEP12	15SEP03	01SEP12	01MAY07
Other Workers	01SEP12	01SEP12	15SEP03	01SEP12	01MAY07
4th	C	C	C	C	C
Certain Religious Workers	C	C	C	C	C
5th Targeted EmploymentAreas/ Regional Centers and Pilot Programs	C	C	C	C	C

FEBRUARY 2014 VISA BULLETIN

Posted by NYC Attorney Norka M. Schell
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC - 11 Broadway, Ste. 615 - New York, NY 10004
Tel. (212)564-1589 - Website www.lawschell.com


FAMILY-BASED CATEGORY

Family-Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	01JAN07	01JAN07	01JAN07	01OCT93	15AUG01
F2A	08SEP13	08SEP13	08SEP13	01SEP13	08SEP13
F2B	08JUL06	08JUL06	08JUL06	01MAY93	22MAY03
F3	15MAY03	15MAY03	15MAY03	01JUN93	08FEB93
F4	22OCT01	22OCT01	22OCT01	08NOV96	08AUG90

EMPLOYMENT-BASED CATEGORY

Employment- Based	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	China - mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
1st	C	C	C	C	C
2nd	C	08JAN09	15NOV04	C	C
3rd	01JUN12	01JUN12	01SEP03	01JUN12	15APR07
Other Workers	01JUN12	01JUN12	01SEP03	01JUN12	15APR07
4th	C	C	C	C	C
Certain Religious Workers	C	C	C	C	C
5th Targeted EmploymentAreas/ Regional Centers and Pilot Programs	C	C	C	C	C

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: BULLETIN VISA 2013

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: BULLETIN VISA 2013: Posted by NYC Attorney Norka M. Schell Law Office of Norka M. Schell, LLC-11 Broadway, Suite 615, New York, NY 10004- Tel. (212)564-1589 We...

BULLETIN VISA DECEMBER 2013

Posted by NYC Attorney Norka M. Schell
Law Office of Norka M. Schell, LLC-11 Broadway, Suite 615, New York, NY 10004- Tel. (212)564-1589 Website www.lawschell.com


FAMILY-BASED CATEGORY

Family-Sponsored	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA-mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	15NOV06	15NOV06	15NOV06	22SEP93	01JUL01
F2A	08SEP13	08SEP13	08SEP13	01SEP13	08SEP13
F2B	01MAY06	01MAY06	01MAY06	01APR94	22MAR03
F3	08MAR03	08MAR03	08MAR03	01JUN93	22JAN93
F4	08SEP01	08SEP01	08SEP01	22OCT96	01JUN90

EMPLOYMENT-BASED CATEGORY

Employment- Based	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	China - mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
1st	C	C	C	C	C
2nd	C	08NOV08	15NOV04	C	C
3rd	01OCT11	01OCT11	01SEP03	01OCT11	08JAN07
Other Workers	01OCT11	01OCT11	01SEP03	01OCT11	08JAN07
4th	C	C	C	C	C
Certain Religious Workers	C	C	C	C	C
5th Targeted EmploymentAreas/ Regional Centers and Pilot Programs	C	C	C	C	C

Trusted Traveler Program Denials

Posted by Norka M. Schell, NYC Business Immigration Lawyer
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com

To qualify for one of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Trusted Traveler Programs, all applicants must voluntarily undergo a thorough background check against criminal, law enforcement, customs, immigration, agriculture, and terrorist indices to include biometric fingerprint checks, and a personal interview with a CBP Officer.

 

In the event you are denied or revoked from the SENTRI, NEXUS, FAST or Global Entry programs, you will be provided information in writing detailing the reason for this action.

Individuals who feel that their trusted traveler application was denied due to inaccurate or incomplete information may provide additional documentation to the CBP Trusted Traveler Ombudsman and request reconsideration. Additional information should be sent to the CBP Trusted Traveler Ombudsman at:

 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection
P.O. Box 946
Williston, VT 05495
Attention: CBP Ombudsman

Calls to the Enrollment Centers or correspondence to the Trusted Traveler Ombudsman should contain supporting information that can demonstrate the denial or revocation was based on inaccurate information. 

Having a criminal record or past violation of CBP laws/regulations/policies may render you ineligible for participation in the NEXUS, SENTRI, and Global Entry programs. 

For more information about the Trusted Traveler Program Denials, visit www.cbp.gov.
 

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: USCIS REPORTS THAT A HALF MILLION COMPANIES PARTIC...

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: USCIS REPORTS THAT A HALF MILLION COMPANIES PARTIC...: Posted by Norka M. Schell, NYC Business Immigration Attorney Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC Tel. (212)564-1589 www.lawschell.com R...

USCIS REPORTS THAT A HALF MILLION COMPANIES PARTICIPATE IN E-VERIFY

Posted by Norka M. Schell, NYC Business Immigration Attorney
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
Tel. (212)564-1589
www.lawschell.com

Release Date: January 23, 2014

WASHINGTON - More than 500,000 companies now use E-Verify, the free online service that allows United States employers to confirm their new employees’ eligibility to work. "Since it was established, E-Verify has experienced exponential growth, increased accuracy and high customer-satisfaction ratings," said Lori Scialabba, Acting Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). "Participation in E-Verify is largely voluntary, so the fact that half a million companies have signed up demonstrates significant confidence in the program.

Employers using E-Verify find it helps them maintain a legal workforce in a quick, secure and accurate way." Employers who use E-Verify receive a response on an employee’s work authorization status within seconds. 98.8 percent of work-authorized employees are automatically confirmed instantly or within 24 hours, requiring no further employee or employer action. Users gave E-Verify a score of 86 out of 100 on the 2012 American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) survey. The average score for all government agencies was 67. USCIS has worked over the years to strengthen the system’s integrity. These efforts have led to E-Verify agreements with select states' departments of motor vehicles to ensure the authenticity of driver's licenses that employees use as identity documents; the introduction of Self Check, which allows workers to look up their own employment eligibility status and correct their records before they seek employment; and a program that combats identity fraud by locking Social Security numbers suspected of being misused for employment eligibility verification.
E-Verify has experienced significant growth since its establishment in 1996. Annual enrollments increased tenfold during the program’s first 16 years, from 11,474 in fiscal year (FY) 1996 to 111,671 in FY 2012. During FY 2013, employers used E-Verify more than 25 million times.

To commemorate the half-million-participant milestone, USCIS has released "E-Verify for Business Leaders ," a new video that introduces the program’s benefits to prospective users. USCIS has also launched an updated E-Verify website that has more plain-language content and easy-to-follow graphics. The site's new E-Verify History and Milestones page shows the program’s advances through the years.

Contact us at (212)564-1589 for information on the E-Verify Program or visit www.uscis.gov/E-Verify.

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: Making the Case for Comprehensive Immigration Refo...

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: Making the Case for Comprehensive Immigration Refo...: Posted By Attorney Norka M. Schell Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC Tel. (212)564-1589 www.lawschell.com Reform of the permanent...

Making the Case for Comprehensive Immigration Reform in 2014

Posted By Attorney Norka M. Schell

Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC

Tel. (212)564-1589

www.lawschell.com

Reform of the permanent employment-based visa program in 2014 is urgently needed in order for U.S. employers to hire the foreign talent necessary for the American economy to strive and compete in the global economy.There simply are not enough American workers available to meet U.S. employer demands for high-skilled labor in this country. Over half of all science, technology, engineering, and mathematics graduates of American universities are foreign born. Our current system, however, forces most of these graduates to leave the U.S. and apply their valuable skills in other countries, a scenario that is beneficial to all but the United States. Needless to say,foreign countries are not complaining, but are instead poised to take advantage in their increasingly successful attempts to surpass us. Simply put, Congress must pass immigration reform in 2014, so the United States does not lose the competitive economy edge that generations of Americans have worked so hard to achieve. 

 

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: VISA BULLETIN FOR JANUARY 2014

IMMIGRATION AND POLICY BY NYC BUSINESS IMMIGRATION LAWYER - Phone (212) 564-1589: VISA BULLETIN FOR JANUARY 2014: Posted by Norka M. Schell, Esquire Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC Phone: (212)564-1589 Website: www.lawschell.com HAPPY 2014! ...

VISA BULLETIN FOR JANUARY 2014

Posted by Norka M. Schell, Esquire
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
Phone: (212)564-1589
Website: www.lawschell.com

HAPPY 2014!

FAMILY-SPONSORED UPDATE

Family-Sponsored	All Charge -ability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
F1	08DEC06	08DEC06	08DEC06	22SEP93	01JUL01
F2A	08SEP13	08SEP13	08SEP13	01SEP13	08SEP13
F2B	01JUN06	01JUN06	01JUN06	01APR94	01MAY03
F3	15APR03	15APR03	15APR03	01JUN93	01FEB93
F4	01OCT01	01OCT01	01OCT01	01NOV96	01JUL90

EMPLOYMENT-BASED UPDATE

Employment- Based	All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed	CHINA- mainland born	INDIA	MEXICO	PHILIPPINES
1st	C	C	C	C	C
2nd	C	08DEC08	15NOV04	C	C
3rd	01APR12	01APR12	01SEP03	01APR12	15FEB07
Other Workers	01APR12	01APR12	01SEP03	01APR12	15FEB07
4th	C	C	C	C	C
Certain Religious Workers	C	C	C	C	C
5th Targeted EmploymentAreas/ Regional Centers and Pilot Programs	C	C	C	C	C

DUTY-FREE EXEMPTIONS

Posted by Attorney Norka Schell

Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLCTel. (212)564-1589
Website: www.lawschell.com

While you are planning your holidays trip to another, here is some information on Duty-Free Exemption which you should remember.

 

Duty-Free Exemption also called the personal exemption, is the total value of merchandise you may bring back to the United States without having to pay duty. You may bring back more than your exemption, but you will have to pay duty on it. In most cases, the personal exemption is $800.00, but there are some exemptions to this rule.

 

Depending on the countries you visited, your personal exemption will be $200.00; $800.00; or $1,600.00.  There are limits on the amount of alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, cigars, and other tobacco products you may include in your duty-free personal exemption.  

 

Duty-Free Exemptions ($200.00; $800.00; $1,600.00) apply if (a) the items are for personal or household use or intend to be given as gifts; (b) they are in your possession, that is, they accompany you when you return to the United States. Items to be sent later may not be included in your $800.00 duty-free exemption; (c) they are declare to Customs Border Protection (CBP). If you do not declare something that should have been declared, you risk forfeiting it. In in doubt, declare it. (d) you have not used all of your exemption allowance, or used any part of it, in the past 30 days; (e) the items are not prohibited or restricted. Note the embargo prohibition on products from Cuba.

 

Final note. Family members who live in the same home and return together to the United States may combine their personal exemptions. Children and infants are allowed  the same exemption as adults, except for alcoholic beverages and tobacco products.  

 

BIRTH ABROAD OF A U.S. CITIZEN

Posted by Attorney Norka Scheell

Law Offices of Norka M Schell, LLC

Phone: (212)564-1589

 

Birth Abroad of a U.S. Citizen

Most children born abroad to a U.S. citizen parent or parents acquire U.S. citizenship at birth.  As soon as possible after the birth, the U.S. citizen parent should contact the nearest U.S.  Embassy or Consulate.  If the consul determines that the child has acquired U.S. citizenship, a consular officer prepares a Consular Report of Birth Abroad of a Citizen of the United States of America (Form FS-240).  This document is recognized in the United States as proof of acquisition of U.S. citizenship, and it is acceptable evidence of citizenship for obtaining a passport, entering school, and most other purposes.  Failure to document a child promptly as a U.S. citizen may cause hardship for the parents or child later on when attempting to obtain a passport or register for school. 

Religious Discrimination Lawsuit Settled

PRESS RELEASE
11-18-13

 

Albuquerque Hotel Refused Muslim Woman's Request to Wear Head Scarf, Federal Agency Charged

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - 704 HTL Operating, LLC and Investment Corporation of America, doing business as MCM Elegante Hotel in Albuquerque, has agreed to settle a religious discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for $100,000 and other relief, the agency announced today.

The settlement resolves an EEOC lawsuit filed on Sept. 21, 2011, EEOC v. 704 HTL Operating, LLC, and Investment Corporation of America, d/b/a MCM Elegante, 11-cv-00845 JCH/LFG, for alleged religious discrimination against Safia Abdullah, who was hired for a housekeeping position at the hotel. The EEOC's lawsuit charged that this employer would not allow Abdullah to work unless she removed her religious head covering, and fired her when she declined to do so.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which makes it unlawful to refuse to hire or discharge any applicant or employee because of religion or religious practices including requesting religious accommodation. The law further provides that employers have a duty to provide reasonable accommodation for sincerely held religious beliefs and practices of applicants and employees, unless doing so would cause an undue hardship. Such accommodations, for example, may include allowing individuals to wear religious clothing or take time off for religious observances.

The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation voluntary settlement through its conciliation process. The case was set for trial to commence on Dec. 2, 2013.

In addition to monetary relief for Ms. Abdullah, the consent decree settling the suit provides for other important relief, including an injunction prohibiting future discriminatory practices; institution of policies and procedures to address religious discrimination and retaliation; training for employees of MCM, and managers and human resource officials of both defendants on religious discrimination; and posting a notice advising employees of their rights under Title VII.

"Employers should be aware that they have a duty to provide reasonable accommodation to employees' religious beliefs and practices," said Regional Attorney Mary Jo O'Neill of the EEOC's Phoenix District Office, which has jurisdiction over Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico and Utah. "Wearing a religious head covering is a common religious practice which employers can usually accommodate without any undue hardship."

EEOC Area Director Derick Newton of the Commission's Albuquerque office said, "Religious discrimination continues to be a high priority for the EEOC, and we take this issue very seriously."

The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on its web site at www.eeoc.gov.