DISCLAIMER: THE INFORMATION IN THIS BLOG IS PROVIDED FOR GENERAL INFORMATION ONLY. THE OFFICE OF NORKA M. SCHELL, LLC AND/OR ITS MEMBERS AND/OR EMPLOYEES MAKE NO WARRANTY REGARDING THE ACCURACY OF THIS INFORMATION. WHILE SOME OF THE INFORMATION IS ABOUT LEGAL ISSUES, IT IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE.
April 6, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Homeland: Immigration in America Must See Video
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Homeland: Immigration in America Must See Video: By NYC Immigration Lawyer Norka M. Schell Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC Tel. (212)546-1589 www.lawschell.com As you read this ...
Homeland: Immigration in America Must See Video
By NYC Immigration Lawyer Norka M. Schell
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
Tel. (212)546-1589
www.lawschell.com
As you read this 'blog" I would like you to consider the following questions:
Who are the immigrants anyway?
What are their stories?
Why do we need U.S. Immigration Reform?
How do immigrants and immigration help us and our communities?
IMMIGRATION LAWS BACKGROUND
All stories have two sides and the story of U.S. immigration is not different.
The first one hundred years of our national existence was a period of unimpeded immigration. New settlers were important to the young nation and immigrants were welcomed. The gates were open and unguarded and all were free to come. This national policy paid rich dividends as the immigrants and their descendants contributed heavily to the growth of our nation.
During this period there was little federal legislation. An early attempt at restriction was the Alien Act of 1798, as part of the Alien and Sedition Laws, which authorized the President to expel from the United States any alien deemed dangerous. The legislation was very unpopular and was allowed to expire at the end of its two-year term. Late in 1864, Congress passed legislation designed to encourage immigration, and some of the states had active programs to promote immigration.
Even during this period of tolerance the policy favoring immigration was by no means unopposed. In the earliest days there were groups counseling restriction. As immigration continued to increased these groups gained support of other groups, and they were potent during times of economic depression. Some of the states were disturbed at the influx of immigrants and sought to impose local controls from time to time. However, some of these state statute were declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court as an invasion of the exclusive federal power to regulate foreign commerce.
In 1875, Congress passed a statute barring convicts and prostitutes.
In 882, Congress adopted the first general immigration statute which imposed a head tax of 50 cents and excluded idiots, lunatics, convicts, and persons likely to become a public charge. Also, in 1882 Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act.
In 1885 and 1887, Congress passed the contract labor laws, aimed at the practice of importing cheap foreign labor under labor contracts which depressed the labor market in the United States.
In the first decade of the twentieth century there was a vast increase in immigration, more than doubling the previous decade's arrivals. During four years of this decade annual immigration exceeded a million. In addition, the new immigrants were coming from southern and eastern Europe, instead of the previous migrations from northern Europe. The antagonisms which previously had been directed against the Irish-Catholic and German migrants were transferred to this "new" immigration. The vast tide of immigrants create uneasiness, which was accentuated during periods of economic crisis. The demand for further restrictions increased.
In 1917 Congress passed another comprehensive revision of immigration laws over the veto of President Wilson. The most controversial innovation of this legislation was the literacy test. Another new feature was the creation of an Asiatic Barred Zone to shut out Orientals. Japan alone was not included, since Japanese were dealt with by the so-called Gentleman's Agreement between the Governments of the United States and Japan.
At the conclusion of World War I immigration again began to increase. There was widespread fear of inundation by a flood of immigrants from the war-devastated countries of Europe, which resulted in the Quota Law of 1921, enacted as a temporary measure. This law allocated quotas to each nationality. In 1924, a permanent policy of numerical restriction was enacted.
On June 27, 1952, the Immigration and Nationality Act was enacted. The basic features of the 1952 Act were: "Every alien seeking to enter the United States was deemed an immigrant unless he established that he was a nonimmigrant. A nonimmigrant is one who establishes that he sought to come temporarily and originally included foreign government and international organization officials, visitors, aliens in transit to other countries, students, crewmen, treaty traders and temporary workers.
Every immigrant is deemed subject to the prescribed numerical limitations unless he is exempted from such limitations. The principal classes exempted from numerical restrictions by the Act of 1952 were alien spouses and children of American citizens, returning lawful residents, and natives of Western Hemisphere countries.
The Act established annual based on a system of national origins for immigrants who came from countries except those in the Western Hemisphere, Special racial quotas were established for Asians. The law also established preferences within the quotas for immigrants with specialized skills and certain relatives of American citizens and of resident aliens..."
As the immigration debate continues on, you are invited to listen to the debate and participate on constructive dialogue on immigration issues that will shape our immigration laws once again. http://video.pbs.org/video/2258259814
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
Tel. (212)546-1589
www.lawschell.com
As you read this 'blog" I would like you to consider the following questions:
Who are the immigrants anyway?
What are their stories?
Why do we need U.S. Immigration Reform?
How do immigrants and immigration help us and our communities?
IMMIGRATION LAWS BACKGROUND
All stories have two sides and the story of U.S. immigration is not different.
The first one hundred years of our national existence was a period of unimpeded immigration. New settlers were important to the young nation and immigrants were welcomed. The gates were open and unguarded and all were free to come. This national policy paid rich dividends as the immigrants and their descendants contributed heavily to the growth of our nation.
During this period there was little federal legislation. An early attempt at restriction was the Alien Act of 1798, as part of the Alien and Sedition Laws, which authorized the President to expel from the United States any alien deemed dangerous. The legislation was very unpopular and was allowed to expire at the end of its two-year term. Late in 1864, Congress passed legislation designed to encourage immigration, and some of the states had active programs to promote immigration.
Even during this period of tolerance the policy favoring immigration was by no means unopposed. In the earliest days there were groups counseling restriction. As immigration continued to increased these groups gained support of other groups, and they were potent during times of economic depression. Some of the states were disturbed at the influx of immigrants and sought to impose local controls from time to time. However, some of these state statute were declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court as an invasion of the exclusive federal power to regulate foreign commerce.
In 1875, Congress passed a statute barring convicts and prostitutes.
In 882, Congress adopted the first general immigration statute which imposed a head tax of 50 cents and excluded idiots, lunatics, convicts, and persons likely to become a public charge. Also, in 1882 Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act.
In 1885 and 1887, Congress passed the contract labor laws, aimed at the practice of importing cheap foreign labor under labor contracts which depressed the labor market in the United States.
In the first decade of the twentieth century there was a vast increase in immigration, more than doubling the previous decade's arrivals. During four years of this decade annual immigration exceeded a million. In addition, the new immigrants were coming from southern and eastern Europe, instead of the previous migrations from northern Europe. The antagonisms which previously had been directed against the Irish-Catholic and German migrants were transferred to this "new" immigration. The vast tide of immigrants create uneasiness, which was accentuated during periods of economic crisis. The demand for further restrictions increased.
In 1917 Congress passed another comprehensive revision of immigration laws over the veto of President Wilson. The most controversial innovation of this legislation was the literacy test. Another new feature was the creation of an Asiatic Barred Zone to shut out Orientals. Japan alone was not included, since Japanese were dealt with by the so-called Gentleman's Agreement between the Governments of the United States and Japan.
At the conclusion of World War I immigration again began to increase. There was widespread fear of inundation by a flood of immigrants from the war-devastated countries of Europe, which resulted in the Quota Law of 1921, enacted as a temporary measure. This law allocated quotas to each nationality. In 1924, a permanent policy of numerical restriction was enacted.
On June 27, 1952, the Immigration and Nationality Act was enacted. The basic features of the 1952 Act were: "Every alien seeking to enter the United States was deemed an immigrant unless he established that he was a nonimmigrant. A nonimmigrant is one who establishes that he sought to come temporarily and originally included foreign government and international organization officials, visitors, aliens in transit to other countries, students, crewmen, treaty traders and temporary workers.
Every immigrant is deemed subject to the prescribed numerical limitations unless he is exempted from such limitations. The principal classes exempted from numerical restrictions by the Act of 1952 were alien spouses and children of American citizens, returning lawful residents, and natives of Western Hemisphere countries.
The Act established annual based on a system of national origins for immigrants who came from countries except those in the Western Hemisphere, Special racial quotas were established for Asians. The law also established preferences within the quotas for immigrants with specialized skills and certain relatives of American citizens and of resident aliens..."
As the immigration debate continues on, you are invited to listen to the debate and participate on constructive dialogue on immigration issues that will shape our immigration laws once again. http://video.pbs.org/video/2258259814
April 3, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agricolas et al...
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agricolas et al...: IMMEDIATE RELEASE USCIS has temporarily suspended adjudication of certain Form I-129 H-2B petitions for temporary non-agricultural work...
Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agricolas et al v. Solis, 2:09-cv-00240-LDD (E.D. Pa) - Suspension of Adjudication of Most H-2B Petitions Following Court Order
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
USCIS has temporarily suspended adjudication of certain Form I-129 H-2B petitions for temporary non-agricultural workers while the government considers appropriate action in response to the Court order entered March 21, 2013 in Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agricolas et al v. Solis, 2:09-cv-00240-LDD (E.D. Pa). http://www.dol.gov/eta/regs/unifiedagenda/fall2010/1205-AB61.htmThe Court’s order granted a permanent injunction against the operation of the portion of the 2008 wage rule related to certain prevailing wage determinations and gave the Department of Labor (DOL) 30 days to come into compliance with the Court order. Following the Court’s order, DOL announced that it can no longer make prevailing wage determinations based on the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey four-tier wage system. DOL will, however, continue to process prevailing wage requests not subject to the court order, including prevailing wage determinations using applicable Collective Bargaining Agreements, acceptable private wage surveys, or Service Contract Act or Davis Bacon Act wages. DOL intends to comply with the Court order within 30 days by promulgating a revised wage rule.
Accordingly, USCIS has temporarily suspended adjudication of H-2B petitions that are accompanied by temporary labor certifications (TLCs) issued by DOL when those TLCs are based on OES four-tier prevailing wage determinations. USCIS has also suspended premium processing for all H-2B petitions until further notice. Petitioners who have already filed H-2B petitions using the premium processing service, and who receive no agency action on their cases within the 15-calendar-day period, will receive refunds.
USCIS will be issuing notices on all pending petitions in order to determine the source of the prevailing wage determination (PWD). USCIS will not consider these notices as an "agency action" for premium processing purposes.
If it is determined that your pending petition is accompanied by a TLC that is based on a PWD utilizing applicable Collective Bargaining Agreements, acceptable private wage surveys, or Service Contract Act or Davis Bacon Act wages, USCIS will resume adjudication of your H-2B petition.
In addition, USCIS will adjudicate H-2B petitions that are filed with TLCs issued by DOL on or after March 22, 2013.
Furthermore, USCIS will continue adjudicating H-2B petitions for non-agricultural temporary workers on Guam if the petitions are accompanied by TLCs issued by the Guam Department of Labor (GDOL).
Finally, USCIS may adjudicate an H-2B petition if it can be resolved on issues unrelated to the OES four-tier prevailing wage determination.
Once a revised prevailing wage rule is promulgated, USCIS will resume adjudication of all H-2B petitions.
For information on H-2B petitions, please contact the Law Offices of Norka M. Schell at (212)564-1589 or visit our website at www.lawschell.com
March 21, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: FedEx Settled Charges of Hiring Discrimintation
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: FedEx Settled Charges of Hiring Discrimintation: Posted by Norka M. Schell, Employment Discrimation Attorney www.lawschell.com RELEASE Shipping giant FedEx settled charges of hiring di...
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: USCIS ANNOUNCED THAT IT WILL BEGIN ACCEPTING H-1B ...
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: USCIS ANNOUNCED THAT IT WILL BEGIN ACCEPTING H-1B ...: Posted by Attorney Norka M. Schell, NYC Immigration Attorney Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC www.lawschell.com U.S. Citizenship and...
USCIS ANNOUNCED THAT IT WILL BEGIN ACCEPTING H-1B PETITIONS ON APRIL 1, 2013
Posted by Attorney Norka M. Schell, NYC Immigration Attorney
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announces that it will begin accepting H-1B petitions subject to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 cap on Monday, April 1, 2013 and Premium Processing for Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions will begin April 15, 2013.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will considered cases accepted on the date that USCIS receives a properly filed petition for which the correct fee has been submitted; not the date that the petition is postmarked. The cap (the numerical limitation on H-1B petitions) for FY 2014 is 65,000. In addition, the first 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of individuals with U.S. master’s degree or higher are exempt from the fiscal year cap of 65,000.
USCIS uses the information provided in Part C of the H-1B Data Collection and Filing Fee Exemption Supplement (Form I-129, pages 17 through 19) to determine whether a petition is subject to the 65,000 H-1B numerical limitation (the “cap”). Some petitions are exempt from the cap under the advanced-degree exemption provided to the first 20,000 petitions filed for a beneficiary who has obtained a U.S. master's degree or higher.
Unless otherwise exempt from the cap, petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries who have obtained a U.S. master's degree or higher will be counted against the regular cap once USCIS has received sufficient petitions to reach the advanced-degree exemption. In addition, petitions for new H-1B employment are exempt from the annual cap if the beneficiaries will work at institutions of higher education or related or affiliated nonprofit entities, nonprofit research organizations, or governmental research organizations. Petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries who will work only in Guam or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are exempt from the cap until December 31, 2014. Petitions filed on behalf of current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap also do not count toward the congressionally mandated H-1B cap. Accordingly, USCIS will continue to process petitions filed to:
• extend the amount of time that a current H-1B worker may remain in the U.S.
• change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers
• allow current H-1B workers to change employers
• allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in a second H-1B position
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announces that it will begin accepting H-1B petitions subject to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 cap on Monday, April 1, 2013 and Premium Processing for Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions will begin April 15, 2013.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will considered cases accepted on the date that USCIS receives a properly filed petition for which the correct fee has been submitted; not the date that the petition is postmarked. The cap (the numerical limitation on H-1B petitions) for FY 2014 is 65,000. In addition, the first 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of individuals with U.S. master’s degree or higher are exempt from the fiscal year cap of 65,000.
USCIS uses the information provided in Part C of the H-1B Data Collection and Filing Fee Exemption Supplement (Form I-129, pages 17 through 19) to determine whether a petition is subject to the 65,000 H-1B numerical limitation (the “cap”). Some petitions are exempt from the cap under the advanced-degree exemption provided to the first 20,000 petitions filed for a beneficiary who has obtained a U.S. master's degree or higher.
Unless otherwise exempt from the cap, petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries who have obtained a U.S. master's degree or higher will be counted against the regular cap once USCIS has received sufficient petitions to reach the advanced-degree exemption. In addition, petitions for new H-1B employment are exempt from the annual cap if the beneficiaries will work at institutions of higher education or related or affiliated nonprofit entities, nonprofit research organizations, or governmental research organizations. Petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries who will work only in Guam or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are exempt from the cap until December 31, 2014. Petitions filed on behalf of current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap also do not count toward the congressionally mandated H-1B cap. Accordingly, USCIS will continue to process petitions filed to:
• extend the amount of time that a current H-1B worker may remain in the U.S.
• change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers
• allow current H-1B workers to change employers
• allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in a second H-1B position
USCIS advises that it anticipates that it may receive more petitions than the H-1B cap between April 1, 2013, and April 5, 2013. USCIS will monitor the number of petitions received and notify the public of the date on which the numerical limit of the H-1B cap has been met. This date is known as the final receipt date. If USCIS receives more petitions than it can accept, USCIS will use a lottery system to randomly select the number of petitions required to reach the numerical limit. USCIS will reject petitions that are subject to the cap and are not selected as well as petitions received after it has the necessary number of petitions needed to meet the cap. The lottery for the H-1B cap was last used in April 2008.
In addition, H-1B cap cases can continue to request premium processing concurrently. Due to the historic premium processing receipt levels combined with the possibility that the H-1B cap will be met in the first five business days of the filing season, USCIS has temporarily adjusted its current premium processing practice. To facilitate the prioritized data entry of cap-subject petitions requesting premium processing, USCIS will begin premium processing for H-1B cap cases, including H-1B petitions seeking an exemption from the fiscal year cap for individuals who have earned a U.S. master's degree or higher on April 15, 2013.
For more information on the H-1B nonimmigrant visa program and current Form I-129 processing times, contact us at (212)564-1589 or visit http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=f537eff29cb6d310VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=68439c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD
March 13, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Visa Bulletin For April 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Visa Bulletin For April 2013: FAMILY-BASED PREFERENCES Family-Sponsored All Charge-ability Areas Except Those Listed CHINA- mainland born INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES F1...
Visa Bulletin For April 2013
FAMILY-BASED PREFERENCES
| Family-Sponsored | All Charge-ability Areas Except Those Listed | CHINA- mainland born | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES |
| F1 | 08MAR06 | 08MAR06 | 08MAR06 | 01AUG93 | 15FEB99 |
| F2A | 15DEC10 | 15DEC10 | 15DEC10 | 01DEC10 | 15DEC10 |
| F2B | 08APR05 | 08APR05 | 08APR05 | 22FEB93 | 15JUL02 |
| F3 | 22JUL02 | 22JUL02 | 22JUL02 | 22MAR93 | 01OCT92 |
| F4 | 01MAY01 | 01MAY01 | 01MAY01 | 01SEP96 | 15AUG89 |
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 | 01APR08 | 01SEP04 | C | C |
| 3rd | 01JUL07 | 22APR07 | 08DEC02 | 01JUL07 | 08SEP06 |
| Other Workers | 01JUL07 | 01AUG03 | 08DEC02 | 01JUL07 | 08SEP06 |
| 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 |
March 11, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: New Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: New Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9: By: NYC Immigration Attorney Norka M. Schell Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC www.lawschell.com The E-Verify or Electronic Verificati...
New Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9
By: NYC Immigration Attorney Norka M. Schell
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com
The E-Verify or Electronic Verification system originated in 1996 as the "Basic Pilot" system. This is a program in which employment eligibility of all newly hired employees will be confirmed electronically by access to SSA's and Department of Homeland Security's databases.
The Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published last week a new Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9.
What has changed on the I-9 Form?
The E-Verify or Electronic Verification system originated in 1996 as the "Basic Pilot" system. This is a program in which employment eligibility of all newly hired employees will be confirmed electronically by access to SSA's and Department of Homeland Security's databases.
The new I-9 Form is available immediately. Employers should complete the new I-9 Form for new hires and for reverification purposes. It is not necessary to complete a new form for existing employees if a previously properly completed I-9 Form is being maintained by the employer.
Employers who need to make necessary updates to their business processes to allow for use of the new Form I-9 may continue to use other previously accepted revisions (Rev.02/02/09) and (Rev. 08/07/09) until May 7, 2013 date. After May 7, 2013, all employers must use the revised Form I-9 for each new employee hired in the United States.
For more information, please contact our office at (212)564-1589.
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com
The E-Verify or Electronic Verification system originated in 1996 as the "Basic Pilot" system. This is a program in which employment eligibility of all newly hired employees will be confirmed electronically by access to SSA's and Department of Homeland Security's databases.
The Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published last week a new Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9.
What has changed on the I-9 Form?
- The new I-9 Rorm has English and Spanish versions.
- The instructions to the new version of the I-9 Form are more clear.
- The I-9 Form has extra fields that make the form more friendly.
- The I-9 Form also describe clearly the information employees and employers must provide in each section.
The E-Verify or Electronic Verification system originated in 1996 as the "Basic Pilot" system. This is a program in which employment eligibility of all newly hired employees will be confirmed electronically by access to SSA's and Department of Homeland Security's databases.
The new I-9 Form is available immediately. Employers should complete the new I-9 Form for new hires and for reverification purposes. It is not necessary to complete a new form for existing employees if a previously properly completed I-9 Form is being maintained by the employer.
Employers who need to make necessary updates to their business processes to allow for use of the new Form I-9 may continue to use other previously accepted revisions (Rev.02/02/09) and (Rev. 08/07/09) until May 7, 2013 date. After May 7, 2013, all employers must use the revised Form I-9 for each new employee hired in the United States.
For more information, please contact our office at (212)564-1589.
March 6, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Hearing on “Enhancing American Competitiveness thr...
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Hearing on “Enhancing American Competitiveness thr...: PRESS RELEASE March 5, 2013 Statement of Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security H...
Hearing on “Enhancing American Competitiveness through Skilled Immigration”
PRESS RELEASE
March 5, 2013
But attracting the
world’s best and brightest is decidedly in the interests of all
Americans. Just think of the incredible economic windfall that America
experienced through the arrival of scientists fleeing Nazism in the 1930s and
1940s. This was one of the factors that enabled the post-war economic
boom. Today, talented individuals have many options worldwide as to where
to relocate. America needs to regain its place as the number one
destination for the world’s best and brightest. That should be our goal.
March 5, 2013
Statement
of Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte
Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security
Hearing on “Enhancing American Competitiveness through Skilled Immigration”
Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security
Hearing on “Enhancing American Competitiveness through Skilled Immigration”
Chairman Goodlatte: The contributions of
highly-skilled and educated immigrants to the United States are
well-documented. Seventy-six percent of the patents awarded to our top
patent-producing universities had at least one foreign-born inventor.
According to a recent report, these foreign-born inventors “played especially
large roles in cutting edge fields like semiconductor device manufacturing,
information technology, pulse or digital communications, pharmaceutical drugs
or drug compounds and optics.”
A study by the
American Enterprise Institute and the Partnership for a New American Economy
found that an additional 100 immigrants with advanced STEM degrees from U.S.
universities is associated with an additional 262 jobs for natives. The
study also found that immigrants with advanced degrees pay over $22,000 a year
in taxes yet their families receive less than $2,300 in government benefits.
The United States has
the most generous legal immigration system in the world – providing permanent
residence to over a million immigrants a year. Yet, how many of those
immigrants do we select on the basis of the education and skills they can bring
to America? Only 12% -- barely more than one out of 10 -- and that is
including the immigrants’ family members.
Given the outstanding
track record of immigrants in founding some of our most successful companies,
how many immigrants do we select on the basis of their entrepreneurial
talents? Less than 1% -- and that is only if they already have the
hundreds of thousands of dollars needed to participate in the investor visa
program.
Does any of this make
sense, given the intense international economic competition that America
faces? Does any of this make sense, given that many talented foreign
graduates of our best universities are giving up hope of getting a green card
and are packing up and moving home to work for our competitors? Does any
of this make sense, given that Indian nationals with advanced degrees sought
out by American industry have to wait over eight years for a green card?
Does any of this make sense, given that Australia, the United Kingdom and
Canada each select over 60% of immigrants on the basis of skills and
education? The answer is clearly not.
It is as if we
purposely add weights to handicap our horse in order to give our competitors a
better shot at the winner’s circle. This just doesn’t make sense as
national economic policy. The House of
Representatives acted last year to rechart our course. We voted by over a
hundred vote margin to pass legislation by former Chairman Smith that
redirected 50,000 or so green cards a year from winners of the diversity visa
lottery toward foreign students graduating from our universities with advanced
degrees in STEM fields. That bill would have made all Americans
winners. Unfortunately, at the direction of the White House, the bill
died in the Senate.
In this new Congress,
we can rechart our nation’s course anew. We should look at all aspects of
high-skilled immigration policy. We can look for ways to improve our
temporary visa programs for skilled workers – such as H-1B and L visas.
We can look for ways to improve our temporary visa program for entrepreneurs –
the E-2 program. We can look for ways to offer green cards to aspiring
entrepreneurs that don’t demand that they themselves be rich but that instead
rely on the judgment of the venture capitalists who have funded them. We
can look for ways to reduce the backlogs for second and third preference
employment-based green cards. And we can seek to help the United States
retain more of the foreign students who graduate from our universities.
Of course, at the
same time, we need to ensure that whatever we do brightens rather than darkens
the career prospects of American students and American workers. Even
newly-minted PhDs are not immune to sometimes bleak employment prospects.
March 5, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: PROVISIONAL WAIVERS INTRODUCED BY USCIS
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: PROVISIONAL WAIVERS INTRODUCED BY USCIS: Posted by the Immigration Attorney Norka M. Schell Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC www.lawschell.com U.S. Citizenship and Immigratio...
PROVISIONAL WAIVERS INTRODUCED BY USCIS
Posted by the Immigration Attorney Norka M. Schell
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services sent this bulletin at 03/04/2013 10:21 AM EST
Beginning March 4, certain immigrant visa applicants who are the spouses, children and parents of U.S. citizens (immediate relatives), and have been unlawfully present in the United States, can start applying for provisional unlawful presence waivers through a new process.
The new provisional unlawful presence waiver process is for certain individuals who seek a waiver of inadmissibility only for unlawful presence. They can now apply for a provisional unlawful presence waiver while in the United States and before departing for their immigrant visa interview at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad. Under the current process, which continues to remain in effect, immediate relatives of U.S. citizens who are not eligible to adjust status in the United States have to travel abroad and be found inadmissible at their immigrant visa interview before they can apply for an inadmissibility waiver.
The new process is expected to shorten the time U.S. citizens are separated from their immediate relatives while those family members go through the process of becoming lawful permanent residents of the United States. For eligibility details and information on the process, please visit: http://www.uscis.gov/provisionalwaiver
STAY CONNECTED TO www.lawschell.com FOR UPDATES.
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services sent this bulletin at 03/04/2013 10:21 AM EST
Beginning March 4, certain immigrant visa applicants who are the spouses, children and parents of U.S. citizens (immediate relatives), and have been unlawfully present in the United States, can start applying for provisional unlawful presence waivers through a new process.
The new provisional unlawful presence waiver process is for certain individuals who seek a waiver of inadmissibility only for unlawful presence. They can now apply for a provisional unlawful presence waiver while in the United States and before departing for their immigrant visa interview at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad. Under the current process, which continues to remain in effect, immediate relatives of U.S. citizens who are not eligible to adjust status in the United States have to travel abroad and be found inadmissible at their immigrant visa interview before they can apply for an inadmissibility waiver.
The new process is expected to shorten the time U.S. citizens are separated from their immediate relatives while those family members go through the process of becoming lawful permanent residents of the United States. For eligibility details and information on the process, please visit: http://www.uscis.gov/provisionalwaiver
STAY CONNECTED TO www.lawschell.com FOR UPDATES.
February 23, 2013
Justice Department Reaches Settlement With Avant Healthcare Professionals LLC To Resolve Immigration -Related Unfair Employment Practices
Posted by Norka M. Schell, NY Immigration Attorney
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
The Justice Department reached a settlement agreement with Avant Healthcare Professionals, LLC, a healthcare staffing company based in Casselberry, Fla., resolving allegations that the company posted discriminatory job advertisements on the internet.
According to the department investigation, hundreds of Avant Healthcare Professionals' internet-based job postings contained discriminatory language, permissibly preferring foreign-trained individuals seeking permanent residence or H-1B visa sponsorship over U.S. workers. The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) prohibits employers from discriminating on the basis of citizenship or immigration status unless required by law, regulation or government contract. None of those limited exceptions applied to Avant's recruitment efforts.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Avant has agreed to pay $27,750 in civil penalties, to change its internal policies and written procedures to incorporate the INA's anti-discrimination protections, and to be subject to reporting and compliance monitoring requirements for a period of three years.
"Federal law protects authorized U.S. workers from illegal and discriminatory preferences," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. "Employers have a statutory obligation to monitor their online job postings to ensure that they do not violated the anti-discrimination provision of the INA.
The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practice (OSC) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. For more information about protection against employment discrimination under the immigration laws, call the OSC's worker hot line at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-2372525, TDD for hearing impaired), call the OSC's employer hot line at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-362-2735, TDD for hearing impaired), sign up for a no-cost webinar at www.justice.gov/about/osc/webinars.php, email to osccrt@usdoj.gov or visit the website at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc.
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
www.lawschell.com
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
The Justice Department reached a settlement agreement with Avant Healthcare Professionals, LLC, a healthcare staffing company based in Casselberry, Fla., resolving allegations that the company posted discriminatory job advertisements on the internet.
According to the department investigation, hundreds of Avant Healthcare Professionals' internet-based job postings contained discriminatory language, permissibly preferring foreign-trained individuals seeking permanent residence or H-1B visa sponsorship over U.S. workers. The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) prohibits employers from discriminating on the basis of citizenship or immigration status unless required by law, regulation or government contract. None of those limited exceptions applied to Avant's recruitment efforts.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Avant has agreed to pay $27,750 in civil penalties, to change its internal policies and written procedures to incorporate the INA's anti-discrimination protections, and to be subject to reporting and compliance monitoring requirements for a period of three years.
"Federal law protects authorized U.S. workers from illegal and discriminatory preferences," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. "Employers have a statutory obligation to monitor their online job postings to ensure that they do not violated the anti-discrimination provision of the INA.
The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practice (OSC) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. For more information about protection against employment discrimination under the immigration laws, call the OSC's worker hot line at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-2372525, TDD for hearing impaired), call the OSC's employer hot line at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-362-2735, TDD for hearing impaired), sign up for a no-cost webinar at www.justice.gov/about/osc/webinars.php, email to osccrt@usdoj.gov or visit the website at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc.
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Justice Department Reaches Settlement with FTD Inc...
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Justice Department Reaches Settlement with FTD Inc...: Postad by Norka M. Schell, Immigration Attorney Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE IMMEDIATE RELEASE The Justi...
February 21, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: USCIS Updated Version of Form I-881
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: USCIS Updated Version of Form I-881: Form I-881. A December 14, 2012, version of Form I-881, Application for Suspension of Deportation or Special Rule Cancellation of Removal (...
USCIS Updated Version of Form I-881
Form I-881.
A December 14, 2012, version of Form I-881, Application for Suspension of Deportation or Special Rule Cancellation of Removal (Pursuant to Section 203 of Public Law 105-100, NACARA),16 has been released by USCIS. The agency also continues to accept previous versions, including the July 8, 2011, version.
The new Form I-881 expires on December 31, 2014. The form and its instructions have changed very little from the July 8, 2011, version. As with Form I-829, USCIS has removed the bar code from the form. On the instructions, USCIS has corrected the lettering of the items in Part I, Who Is Eligible to Apply, so that the second item (“A Guatemalan national who:”) is letter “B” rather than a second letter “A”; the agency has updated references to this item accordingly throughout the rest of the document. USCIS has also changed the presentation of some information, making it easier to comprehend, e.g., the “where to file” information on page 7 is now in a table, and the reasons for denial of an application for suspension of deportation or an application for special rule cancellation of removal on pages 7 and 8 are now set out in list format. Additionally, much of Part VIII, Address Notification Requirements, Penalties, Forms, Privacy Act Notice and Paperwork Reduction, has been updated to be consistent with other forms. A few other minor technical changes, such as replacing “biometrics” with “biometric services” are also found on both the form and instructions. For more information, please visit our website at www.lawschell.com
The new Form I-881 expires on December 31, 2014. The form and its instructions have changed very little from the July 8, 2011, version. As with Form I-829, USCIS has removed the bar code from the form. On the instructions, USCIS has corrected the lettering of the items in Part I, Who Is Eligible to Apply, so that the second item (“A Guatemalan national who:”) is letter “B” rather than a second letter “A”; the agency has updated references to this item accordingly throughout the rest of the document. USCIS has also changed the presentation of some information, making it easier to comprehend, e.g., the “where to file” information on page 7 is now in a table, and the reasons for denial of an application for suspension of deportation or an application for special rule cancellation of removal on pages 7 and 8 are now set out in list format. Additionally, much of Part VIII, Address Notification Requirements, Penalties, Forms, Privacy Act Notice and Paperwork Reduction, has been updated to be consistent with other forms. A few other minor technical changes, such as replacing “biometrics” with “biometric services” are also found on both the form and instructions. For more information, please visit our website at www.lawschell.com
February 15, 2013
CHANGE OF NON-IMMIGRANT STATUS
By Norka M. Schell, Esq
www.lawschell.com
When a person is present in the United States in one non-immigrant (temporary) status, and latter on he or she decides to engage in a different primary activity only permitted under a different non-immigrant status, the law requires that this person changes his or her non-immigrant status FIRST before engaging in the activity. For instance, a person who comes into United States as a tourist and decides to attend school, or a foreign student who decides to take up other than school-approved employment. In such situations, the non-immigrant has two options:
(1) he or she may file an application with the United States Citizenship and Naturalization Services to request a change of status to a non immigrant classification appropriate to the proposed activity, or
(2) he or she leaves the United States and apply for the appropriate visa at the U.S. consulate abroad, and then re-enter the U.S. in the correct non immigrant classification.
Keep in mind that the application for change of status must be filed with the United States Citizenship and Naturalization Services before the person's authorized stay expires.
If you need assistance with change of non immigrant status, please contact one of our offices at
(212)564-1589 or (551)265-4395 to speak with a lawyer.
www.lawschell.com
When a person is present in the United States in one non-immigrant (temporary) status, and latter on he or she decides to engage in a different primary activity only permitted under a different non-immigrant status, the law requires that this person changes his or her non-immigrant status FIRST before engaging in the activity. For instance, a person who comes into United States as a tourist and decides to attend school, or a foreign student who decides to take up other than school-approved employment. In such situations, the non-immigrant has two options:
(1) he or she may file an application with the United States Citizenship and Naturalization Services to request a change of status to a non immigrant classification appropriate to the proposed activity, or
(2) he or she leaves the United States and apply for the appropriate visa at the U.S. consulate abroad, and then re-enter the U.S. in the correct non immigrant classification.
Keep in mind that the application for change of status must be filed with the United States Citizenship and Naturalization Services before the person's authorized stay expires.
If you need assistance with change of non immigrant status, please contact one of our offices at
(212)564-1589 or (551)265-4395 to speak with a lawyer.
February 11, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Comprehensive Immigration Reform Proposal Introduc...
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: Comprehensive Immigration Reform Proposal Introduc...: Posted by Norka M. Schell, NY Immigration Attorney www.lawschell.com Comprehensive Immigration Reform is a problem that has been punted f...
Comprehensive Immigration Reform Proposal Introduced by Bipartisan Senate Group
Posted by Norka M. Schell, NY Immigration Attorney
www.lawschell.com
Comprehensive Immigration Reform is a problem that has been punted from year to year, from Congress to Congress, from Administration to Administration. The status quo, which has resulted in the presence of more than 12 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, is simply unacceptable. We need Congress to create the legal foundation for bringing the millions of illegal immigrants in this country out of shadows. Making sure these people become full taxpayers and pay their fair share will both benefit our economy and make it easier to enforce the laws aginst unscrupulous or exploitive employers. A fair pathway to earned legal status will mandate that illegal immigrants meet a number of requirements--including undocumented immigrants to register under the program, submit biometric data, pass criminal background and national security checks, and pay fees and penalties before becoming eligible for a provisional legal status. President Barack Obama and several U.S. senators are fully committed to Comprehensive Immigration Reform. The following are the frameworks for Comprehesive Immigration Reform introduced by a bipartisan group of senators and President Barack Obama.
CREATING A PATH TO CITIZENSHIP FOR UNAUTHORIZED IMMIGRANTS ALREADY HERE THAT IS CONTINGENT UPON SECURING THE BORDER AND COMBATING VISA OVERSTAYS
A comprehensive plan would continue improvements in border security by providing Border Patrol with the latest technology, infrastructure, and personnel needed to prevent, detect, and apprehend every unauthorized entrant. Also with an eye on increased border security, the framework calls for an increase in the number of unmanned aerial vehicles and surveillance equipment used along the border, improvement in radio interoperability, and increase in the number of agents at and between ports of entry. This, the outline indicates, will substantially lower the number of successful undocumented border crossings while continuing to facilitate commerce. The summary also suggests that a reform plan must improve Border Patrol training with respect to strengthening prohibitions against racial profiling and inappropriate use of force. Border communities will be given a mechanism to ensure that they have a meaningful opportunity to share input on the workings on the border.
Comprehensive immigration reform would also include an entry/exit tracking program for airports and seaports in order to ensure that temporary visa holders are leaving as they should.
The framework additionally suggests that input from communities along the southwest U.S. border will be critical to determining the security of the border. It calls for the creation of a commission comprised of governors, attorneys general, and community leaders living along the southwest border to monitor the progress of securing the border and to make a recommendation regarding when border security measures ultimately proposed in a comprehensive reform bill have been achieved.
While the border security measures are being worked on, the framework suggests that the bill would require those "who came or remained in the United States without our permission to register with the government." Included in this process would be passing a background check and paying a fine and back taxes. This would earn undocumented immigrants probationary legal status, which will permit them to live and work lawfully in the United States. Persons who have a serious criminal background or others who pose a threat to national security will be ineligible for legal status and subject to deportation, and undocumented immigrants who have committed serious crimes would face immediate deportation. Permanent resident status would not be issued to these persons with probationary status until the security measures outlined in the bill were accomplished. Once the security measures have been implemented and deemed successful, then those with probationary status would be added tot he end of the queue for permanent resident status. In addition, they would be required to pass an additional background check, pay taxes, learn English and civics, and demonstrate a history of work in the United States and current employment, among other requirements, in order to earn the opportunity to apply for lawful permanent resident status. Exceptions to the end-of-the-line requirement would be made for people who were brought to the United States as minors as well as for certain agricultural workers who commit to the long-term stability of the agricultural industries would earn a path to citizenship through a different process under a new agricultural worker program.
IMPROVING THE LEGAL IMMIGRATION SYSTEM AND ATTRACTING THE WORLD'S BEST AND BRIGHTEST
Under the pillar, the focus is to retaining U.S.-educated PhD and master's degree recipients with degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math by putting those degree recipients on a fast-track for permanent resident status. Also, an effort would be made to eliminate the backlogs in both family and employment-based visas as a way to encourage lawful immigration.
STRONG EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION
This pillar gives attention to finding a means to ensure that persons not authorized to work in the United States are not hired, thus discouraging unlawful entry for employment purposes. This synopsis indicates that a vast majority of undocumented persons entering the United States do so for purposes of obtaining employment. The agreement calls for an effective employment verification system which prevents identity theft, ends the hiring of unauthorized workers, and provides employers with a fast and reliable method to confirm whether new hires are legally authorized to work in the United States. The system would also be crafted with procedural safeguards to protect U.S. workers, prevent identity theft, and provide due process protections.
ADMITTING NEW WORKERS AND PROTECTING WORKERS' RIGHTS
This fourth pillar looks at trying the availability of low-skilled foreign labor to actual need for workers. Employers would be required to demonstrate that U.S. workers are unavailable to fill openings and would provide a separate plan for the agriculture and dairy industries. The system would also have to be able to respond quickly to changing needs so that businesses are not harmed.
PRESIDENT OBAMA'S VISION FOR COMPREHENSIVE IMMIGRATION REFORM
CONTINUING TO STRENGTHEN BORDER SECURITY
Key elements under the border security aspect of the President's immigration reform proposal include strengthening and improving the infrastructure at ports of entry, utilizing public/private partnerships to facilitate processing of foreign visitors, and continuing the use of technology along the borders. The plan also calls for partnership with local border communities by establishing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) liaisons along the southern and northern borders "to improve communication and collaboration with border communities, boost funding to tribal government partners to reduce illegal activity on tribal lands, and strengthen training on civil rights and civil liberties for DHS immigration officers."
With respect to criminal aspects for border security, the plan calls for establishing new criminal penalties to combat transnational criminal organizations that traffic in drugs, weapons, and money and the smuggle people across the borders. The plan also expands the scope of existing law to allow for the forfeiture of the tools and proceeds of such organization. Penalties would also be established for persons trafficking in passports, immigration documents, and schemes to defraud, including those who prey on vulnerable immigrants through notario fraud. The plan additionally calls for strengthening penalties to combat human smuggling rings.
The proposal includes provisions to better target convicted criminal noncitizens in federal or state correctional facilities in order to remove them from the United States at the end of their sentences without letting them reenter communities, though the process would include a means to protect individuals with a credible fear of returning to their home countries. Also along removal lines, the proposal creates a streamlined administrative removal process for noncitizens who overstay their visas and have been determined to be threats to national security and public safety.
Improvements to the immigration courts by way of any increase in immigration judges and staff as well as an investment in training for such court employees are called for in the President's proposal as is a mandate for DHS to consider and expand alternatives to detention and reduce overall detention costs.
PATHWAY TO EARNED CITIZENSHIP
The President's earned citizenship plan would require undocumented immigrants to register under the program, submit biometric data, pass criminal background and national security checks, and pay fees and penalties before becoming eligible for a provisional legal status. Those who were brought to the United States as children without a lawful means of entry will be eligible for earned citizenship, and those who attend college or service honorably in the United States Armed Forces for at least two years would be given an expedited opportunity to earn citizenship. Other individuals seeking earned citizenship must wait until the existing legal immigration backlogs are cleared before getting in line to apply for lawful permanent resident status. In order to apply for permanent resident status, potential applicants would need to pay their taxes, pass additional criminal background and national security checks, register for Selective Service (where applicable), pay additional fees and penalties, and learn English and U.S. civics. Persons whose provisional lawful status has been revoked or denied, or whose application for adjustment of status has been denied, will have the opportunity to seek administrative and judicial review of those decisions.
CRACKING DOWN ON EMPLOYERS HIRING UNDOCUMENTED WORKERS
The first bullet under this aspect of the President's reform plan calls for a mandatory employment verification program. The program would be phased in over a five-year period, there would be exemptions for certain small businesses, and failure to utilize the program would carry significantly-increased penalties for employers. Employees would also be subject to penalties for committing fraud and identity theft. In order to combat fraud and identity theft, a fraud-resistant, tamper-resistant, tamper-resistant social security card would be established, and any document that a worker uses to establish identity and/or employability would have to be fraud-resistant and tamper-resistant. There are also worker protections in the proposal and a "labor law enforcement fund" to help ensure the industries that employ significant numbers of immigrant workers employ with labor laws."
www.lawschell.com
Comprehensive Immigration Reform is a problem that has been punted from year to year, from Congress to Congress, from Administration to Administration. The status quo, which has resulted in the presence of more than 12 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, is simply unacceptable. We need Congress to create the legal foundation for bringing the millions of illegal immigrants in this country out of shadows. Making sure these people become full taxpayers and pay their fair share will both benefit our economy and make it easier to enforce the laws aginst unscrupulous or exploitive employers. A fair pathway to earned legal status will mandate that illegal immigrants meet a number of requirements--including undocumented immigrants to register under the program, submit biometric data, pass criminal background and national security checks, and pay fees and penalties before becoming eligible for a provisional legal status. President Barack Obama and several U.S. senators are fully committed to Comprehensive Immigration Reform. The following are the frameworks for Comprehesive Immigration Reform introduced by a bipartisan group of senators and President Barack Obama.
CREATING A PATH TO CITIZENSHIP FOR UNAUTHORIZED IMMIGRANTS ALREADY HERE THAT IS CONTINGENT UPON SECURING THE BORDER AND COMBATING VISA OVERSTAYS
A comprehensive plan would continue improvements in border security by providing Border Patrol with the latest technology, infrastructure, and personnel needed to prevent, detect, and apprehend every unauthorized entrant. Also with an eye on increased border security, the framework calls for an increase in the number of unmanned aerial vehicles and surveillance equipment used along the border, improvement in radio interoperability, and increase in the number of agents at and between ports of entry. This, the outline indicates, will substantially lower the number of successful undocumented border crossings while continuing to facilitate commerce. The summary also suggests that a reform plan must improve Border Patrol training with respect to strengthening prohibitions against racial profiling and inappropriate use of force. Border communities will be given a mechanism to ensure that they have a meaningful opportunity to share input on the workings on the border.
Comprehensive immigration reform would also include an entry/exit tracking program for airports and seaports in order to ensure that temporary visa holders are leaving as they should.
The framework additionally suggests that input from communities along the southwest U.S. border will be critical to determining the security of the border. It calls for the creation of a commission comprised of governors, attorneys general, and community leaders living along the southwest border to monitor the progress of securing the border and to make a recommendation regarding when border security measures ultimately proposed in a comprehensive reform bill have been achieved.
While the border security measures are being worked on, the framework suggests that the bill would require those "who came or remained in the United States without our permission to register with the government." Included in this process would be passing a background check and paying a fine and back taxes. This would earn undocumented immigrants probationary legal status, which will permit them to live and work lawfully in the United States. Persons who have a serious criminal background or others who pose a threat to national security will be ineligible for legal status and subject to deportation, and undocumented immigrants who have committed serious crimes would face immediate deportation. Permanent resident status would not be issued to these persons with probationary status until the security measures outlined in the bill were accomplished. Once the security measures have been implemented and deemed successful, then those with probationary status would be added tot he end of the queue for permanent resident status. In addition, they would be required to pass an additional background check, pay taxes, learn English and civics, and demonstrate a history of work in the United States and current employment, among other requirements, in order to earn the opportunity to apply for lawful permanent resident status. Exceptions to the end-of-the-line requirement would be made for people who were brought to the United States as minors as well as for certain agricultural workers who commit to the long-term stability of the agricultural industries would earn a path to citizenship through a different process under a new agricultural worker program.
IMPROVING THE LEGAL IMMIGRATION SYSTEM AND ATTRACTING THE WORLD'S BEST AND BRIGHTEST
Under the pillar, the focus is to retaining U.S.-educated PhD and master's degree recipients with degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math by putting those degree recipients on a fast-track for permanent resident status. Also, an effort would be made to eliminate the backlogs in both family and employment-based visas as a way to encourage lawful immigration.
STRONG EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION
This pillar gives attention to finding a means to ensure that persons not authorized to work in the United States are not hired, thus discouraging unlawful entry for employment purposes. This synopsis indicates that a vast majority of undocumented persons entering the United States do so for purposes of obtaining employment. The agreement calls for an effective employment verification system which prevents identity theft, ends the hiring of unauthorized workers, and provides employers with a fast and reliable method to confirm whether new hires are legally authorized to work in the United States. The system would also be crafted with procedural safeguards to protect U.S. workers, prevent identity theft, and provide due process protections.
ADMITTING NEW WORKERS AND PROTECTING WORKERS' RIGHTS
This fourth pillar looks at trying the availability of low-skilled foreign labor to actual need for workers. Employers would be required to demonstrate that U.S. workers are unavailable to fill openings and would provide a separate plan for the agriculture and dairy industries. The system would also have to be able to respond quickly to changing needs so that businesses are not harmed.
PRESIDENT OBAMA'S VISION FOR COMPREHENSIVE IMMIGRATION REFORM
CONTINUING TO STRENGTHEN BORDER SECURITY
Key elements under the border security aspect of the President's immigration reform proposal include strengthening and improving the infrastructure at ports of entry, utilizing public/private partnerships to facilitate processing of foreign visitors, and continuing the use of technology along the borders. The plan also calls for partnership with local border communities by establishing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) liaisons along the southern and northern borders "to improve communication and collaboration with border communities, boost funding to tribal government partners to reduce illegal activity on tribal lands, and strengthen training on civil rights and civil liberties for DHS immigration officers."
With respect to criminal aspects for border security, the plan calls for establishing new criminal penalties to combat transnational criminal organizations that traffic in drugs, weapons, and money and the smuggle people across the borders. The plan also expands the scope of existing law to allow for the forfeiture of the tools and proceeds of such organization. Penalties would also be established for persons trafficking in passports, immigration documents, and schemes to defraud, including those who prey on vulnerable immigrants through notario fraud. The plan additionally calls for strengthening penalties to combat human smuggling rings.
The proposal includes provisions to better target convicted criminal noncitizens in federal or state correctional facilities in order to remove them from the United States at the end of their sentences without letting them reenter communities, though the process would include a means to protect individuals with a credible fear of returning to their home countries. Also along removal lines, the proposal creates a streamlined administrative removal process for noncitizens who overstay their visas and have been determined to be threats to national security and public safety.
Improvements to the immigration courts by way of any increase in immigration judges and staff as well as an investment in training for such court employees are called for in the President's proposal as is a mandate for DHS to consider and expand alternatives to detention and reduce overall detention costs.
PATHWAY TO EARNED CITIZENSHIP
The President's earned citizenship plan would require undocumented immigrants to register under the program, submit biometric data, pass criminal background and national security checks, and pay fees and penalties before becoming eligible for a provisional legal status. Those who were brought to the United States as children without a lawful means of entry will be eligible for earned citizenship, and those who attend college or service honorably in the United States Armed Forces for at least two years would be given an expedited opportunity to earn citizenship. Other individuals seeking earned citizenship must wait until the existing legal immigration backlogs are cleared before getting in line to apply for lawful permanent resident status. In order to apply for permanent resident status, potential applicants would need to pay their taxes, pass additional criminal background and national security checks, register for Selective Service (where applicable), pay additional fees and penalties, and learn English and U.S. civics. Persons whose provisional lawful status has been revoked or denied, or whose application for adjustment of status has been denied, will have the opportunity to seek administrative and judicial review of those decisions.
CRACKING DOWN ON EMPLOYERS HIRING UNDOCUMENTED WORKERS
The first bullet under this aspect of the President's reform plan calls for a mandatory employment verification program. The program would be phased in over a five-year period, there would be exemptions for certain small businesses, and failure to utilize the program would carry significantly-increased penalties for employers. Employees would also be subject to penalties for committing fraud and identity theft. In order to combat fraud and identity theft, a fraud-resistant, tamper-resistant, tamper-resistant social security card would be established, and any document that a worker uses to establish identity and/or employability would have to be fraud-resistant and tamper-resistant. There are also worker protections in the proposal and a "labor law enforcement fund" to help ensure the industries that employ significant numbers of immigrant workers employ with labor laws."
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: HHS Updates Poverty Income Guidelines
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: HHS Updates Poverty Income Guidelines: Posted by Norka M. Schell, New York Immigration Attorney www.lawschell.com The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issu...
HHS Updates Poverty Income Guidelines
Posted by Norka M. Schell, New York Immigration Attorney
www.lawschell.com
www.lawschell.com
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued its annual update of the federal poverty guidelines. The poverty guidelines, mandated by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 (OBRA), are used by a number of federal programs to determine eligibility for benefits or services. The annual update reflects the previous year's change in the Consumer Price Index and is broken down into three categories:
(1) poverty guidelines for the 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia,
(2) poverty guidelines for Alaska, and
(3) poverty guidelines for Hawaii.
The 2013 guidelines set the poverty level for the 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia at $11,490 for one person (an increase of $320 over last year's $11,170) with $4,020 for each additional person in the household (an increase of $60 over last year's total).
In the immigration context, the guidelines are relevant for “public charge” issues, among others, and may also be useful in obtaining waivers of some application fees for certain indigent aliens, such as applicants for temporary protected status.They are particularly important, however, in complying with the affidavit of support requirements imposed by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA).
IIRIRA created INA § 213A [8 USCA section 1183a], which provides that sponsors of all family-based and some employment-based immigrants must provide a legally enforceable affidavit (Form I-864) illustrating that they are capable of maintaining an annual income equal to at least 125% of the HHS poverty guidelines.The sponsor must meet the 125% requirement at the time when the immigrant visa or adjustment of status application is made.This calculation takes into account the total “family unit” for which the sponsor will be responsible, defined by INA § 213A(f)(6)(A)(iii) [8 USCA section 1183a(f)(6)(A)(iii)]as “members of the sponsor's household (including family and non-family dependents) plus the total number of other dependents and aliens sponsored by that sponsor.”
Thus, according to the new 2013 poverty guidelines, an individual in one of the 48 contiguous states or the District of Columbia would need an income of $14,362.50 for one person and $5,025 for each additional household member so that an individual who has four family members and wishes to sponsor an immigrant parent would be required to show an annual income of $39,487.50--a figure equal to 125% of the $31,590 poverty income level for a family of six. Consular officers and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) adjudicators, however, may still take into account an alien's ability to provide for himself or herself and any special circumstances, such as the need for medical treatment or other financial obligations, in determining whether the alien is likely to become a public charge.
The 2013 guidelines, while otherwise effective on the date of publication, do not become effective as to affidavits of support until March 1, 2013, pursuant to a USCIS regulation that provides that USCIS and the Department of State will not apply the new guidelines until “the first day of the second month after the date the guidelines are published in the Federal Register.
January 21, 2013
Unfair Immigration-Related Employment
Unfair Immigration-Related Employment Practice
The DOJ's investigation was based on a referral from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) made pursuant to a memorandum of agreement between USCIS and the DOJ's Civil Rights Division.
Under the terms of the agreement, Centerplate will pay $250,000 in civil penalties, the third highest amount paid through settlement since the enactment of the anti-discrimination provision in 1986, and will fully compensate any victims who lost wages as a result of the company's discriminatory practices.
If you have been suffering work-related discrimination, please call our the Law Offices of Norka M. Schell at (212)564-1589 to speak with an attorney about your case.
USCIS Expands Services
USCIS Expands
Services
National Customer Service Saturday Hours
On January 12, 2013,
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS') National Customer Service
Center (NCSC) expanded its live, toll-free telephone assistance service to
included Saturday hours. Customer service representatives at the NCSC can now
take calls Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Saturdays from
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., local time.
Customers now are able
to call the toll-free number on Saturdays to receive nationwide assistance for
immigration services and benefits offered by USCIS. Customer service
representatives can answer routine questions on a wide variety of topics
related to immigration services and benefits, including ordering forms,
processing times, and information on local offices and civil surgeons.
My Case Status and e-Requests
USCIS has also expanded
the capabilities of two of its online tools: My Case Status and E-Request--To permit
customers to view the current status of applications that they submit and
follow-up their cases, no matter which USCIS form they used. My Case Status now
allows individuals to track, through its secure mail initiative (SMI), the mailing and delivery of
USCIS-produced cards and documents by permitting them to use USCIS' website to
access the U.S. Postal Service tracking numbers of their documents. E-Request
now allows customers to inquire electronically about applications and petitions
that they submit to USCIS. Individuals may use this tool to request a follow-up
on their case status if they do not receive documents related to three of the
most-used immigration forms: Form I-485, Application to Adjust Permanent
Residence or Adjust Status; Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization;
and Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative.
If have an immigration question and like to speak with an attorney, please call our Firm at phone number (212)564-1589.
January 16, 2013
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: IT IS TIME FOR COMPREHENSIVE IMMIGRATION REFORM
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY: IT IS TIME FOR COMPREHENSIVE IMMIGRATION REFORM: By Norka M. Schell, Esq. Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC The need for immigration reform is no longer in question. Our immigrat...
IT IS TIME FOR COMPREHENSIVE IMMIGRATION REFORM
By Norka M. Schell,
Esq.
The need for immigration reform is no longer in
question. Our immigration system is broken, and the American people have called
upon the White House and Congress to fix it. How and when to fix our immigration
system are the key questions which the President and Congress must answer to
the American people.
Our previous experiences have shown that any long-term solution to the United State's immigration problems must begin with a comprehensive approach to reform that address all aspects of the nation's immigration system. Piecemeal reforms have been tried, and failed. Therefore, any effective reform bill must address the undocumented population to come out of the shadows and earn legal status; provide fair and lawful ways for American business to hire much-needed immigrant workers; reduce the unreasonable and counterproductive backlogs in family-based and employment-based immigration by reforming the permanent immigration system; and protect the national security and the rule of law.
Of course, effective enforcement policies are critical to restoring integrity and legitimacy to a system, but the U.S. Immigration Laws are so divorced from our economic and social realities that to think that we will be able to revive our economy and legality without a comprehensive reform of those laws is naiive.
In the coming months, President Obama and the new Congress will start working on an immigration reform bill, we expect that the White House and the Congress will seriously consider comprehensive immigration reform this time around.
January 4, 2013
Provisional Unlawful Presence Waivers of Inadmissibility for Certain Immediate Relatives
IMMIGRATION AND POLICY:: Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC 11 Broadway, Suite 615, New York, NY 10004 Phone (212)564-1580 www.lawschell.com Certain spouses, c...
11 Broadway, Suite 615, New York, NY 10004
Phone (212)564-1580
www.lawschell.com
Certain spouses, children, and parents of U.S. citizens (immediate relatives) who are in the United States are not eligible to apply for lawful permanent resident (LPR) status while in the United States. Instead, these relatives must travel abroad to obtain an immigrant visa from the Department of State (DOS) to return to the United Sates to request admission as an LPR and, in many cases, also must request from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) a waiver of inadmissibility as a result of their unlawful presence in the United States. Currently these relatives cannot apply for the waiver until after their immigrant visa interviews abroad.
As a result, these immediately relatives must remain outside of the United States, separated from their U.S. citizen spouses, parents, or children, while USCIS adjudicates their waiver applications. In some cases, waive application processing can take well over one year, prolonging the separation of these immediate relatives from their U.S. citizen spouses, parents, and children. In addition, the action required for these immediate relatives to obtain the LPR status in the United States-departure from the United States to apply for an immigrant visa at a DOS consular abroad-is the very action that triggers the unlawful presence inadmissibility grounds under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) section 212(a)(9)(B)(i), 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(9)(B)(i). As a result of the often lengthy processing times and uncertainty about whether they qualify for a waiver of the unlawful presence inadmissibility grounds, many immediate relatives who may qualify for an immigrant visa are reluctant to proceed abroad to seek an immigrant visa.
On April 2, 2012, the United States Immigration Services (USCIS) published a Notice of Proposed Rule-making (NPRM) regarding the provisional unlawful presence waiver process. DHS reviewed and considered all of the public comments. As a result, DHS adopted most of the public comments and produced a final rule. The completion of the provisional unlawful presence waiver process was then announced to the public on January 2, 2012 by the Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano. This final rule is expected to result in a reduction of the time that U.S. citizens are separated from their immediate relatives, thus reducing the financial and emotional hardship for these families. In addition, the Federal Government should achieve increased efficiencies in processing immigrant visas for individuals subject to the unlawful presence inadmissibility bars under the INA section 212(a)(9)(B), 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(9)(B).
USCIS will start accepting unlawful presence waiver application (I-601A) on March 4, 2013. It is important to keep in mind that the provisional unlawful presence waiver process does not confer any legal status, protect against the accrual of additional periods of unlawful presence, authorize an alien to enter the United States without securing a visa or other appropriate entry document, convey any interim benefits (e.g., employment authorization, parole, or advance parole), or protect an alien from being placed in removal proceedings or removed from the United States in accordance with current DHS policies governing initiation of removal proceedings and the use of prosecutorial discretion.
For questions about the provisional unlawful presence waiver process please visit the Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC's website www.lawschell.com or call our office at (212)564-1589 to speak with an attorney or visit the USCIS website at www.uscis.gov>
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