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News Archive
USCIS Warns of Potential for
Immigration Fraud
(Current as of April 21,
2006)
Although
Congress has been debating immigration legislation, all customers should be
advised that currently no temporary worker program exists for aliens unlawfully
present in the United States. Congress has not passed any legislation that
would create a temporary worker program. Therefore, there are no benefits
currently available because this program does not exist. Customers should not
pay any fees or fines to any person or organization claiming they can help
apply for or receive benefits for a temporary worker program. Be wary of
persons or organizations that claim they can assist in applying for benefits
that do not exist.
Changes in Certain USCIS fees
due to H-1B and L-1 Reform Acts
(Current as of December 15,
2004)
There are
changes in certain U.S. CIS fees as a result of the approval of the FY05
Omnibus Appropriations Act (H-1B and L-1 Reform Acts). The H-1B and L
non-immigrant provisions of the Omnibus Appropriations Act reinstate the
American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act (ACWIA) fees first put
in place after the approval of the ACWIA in 1998. The requirements under the
original ACWIA sunset on October 1, 2003. For H-1B petitioners; the new fee
for petitioners who employ 25 or more Full Time Equivalent (FTE) employees is
$1,500. Petitioners who employ no more than 25 FTE employees (including any
affiliate or subsidiary) may submit a reduced fee of $750. The new $1,500 and
$750 fees apply to any non-exempt petitions filed with U.S. CIS after
December 8, 2004. Certain types of petitions that were previously exempt from
the fees remain exempt from the new $1,500 and $750 fees. Furthermore, the
Act creates a new Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee of $500 which must be
paid by petitioners seeking a beneficiary's initial grant of H-1B or L
nonimmigrant classification or those petitioners seeking to change a
beneficiary's employer within those classifications. The only petitions
exempt from paying this fee are those that seek to amend or extend the stay
of the beneficiary. This new $500 fee applies to petitions filed with the
U.S. CIS on or after March 8, 2005.
Visa Revalidation Program Ends
July 16, 2004
(Current as of June 30,
2004)
The U.S.
Department of State announced it is terminating its domestic Visa
Revalidation program as of July 16, 2004 for C, E, H, I, L, O, and P visas.
This decision is based on national security reasons, including new biometric
visa requirements passed by Congress. Any applications for revalidations of
these types of visas received by the Visa Revalidation Division in St. Louis,
Missouri after July 16, 2004 will be returned to sender at the sender's
expense. The Department of State will continue to process qualifying diplomatic
and official visas. Please note that this pertains to visa revalidations
only. There is a difference between admission, as reflected on an I-94 Card,
and a visa in your passport. A visa is simply a document giving you
permission to apply to be admitted to the United States. Once you are in the
United States, it is the I-94 Card that you were given upon entry that
governs your lawful immigration status and ability to remain in the United
States.
Social Security Numbers for
Michigan Driver License Applicants
(Current as of April 22,
2004)
As of May 3,
2004, Michigan will collect Social Security Numbers from applications for
original, renewal and replacement driver's licenses in compliance with the
1996 federal Welfare Reform Act. While it will not be necessary to present an
actual Social Security Number when applying for a Driver License in Michigan,
all numbers provided will be verified by the State of Michigan. False
statements with regard to Social Security Numbers are subject to a maximum
fine of $5,000 and up to five years in prison.
Mexican TN's
(Current as of February 6,
2004)
As of
January 1, 2004, Mexican TN applicants are no longer required to submit a
nonimmigrant petition with CIS prior to applying for a TN visa. Consular
Posts in Mexico vary as to processing procedures for these Mexican TN visa
applications (with some allowing same day adjudication while others requiring
the submission of the application in advance of the interview. This includes
the Form DS-156 and Form DS-157 (if required); letter from employer detailing
the nature of the position being offered; the requirements and the
individual's qualifications for the job; evidence that the alien possesses
the required background for the job, i.e. degree, license, or experience).
Transfer of Immigration
Services to Department of Homeland Security as of March 3, 2003
(Current as of February 13,
2003)
As of March
3, 2003, the INS as we know it today will transition to the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS). The immigration services will be divided into three bureaus
within the DHS: immigration benefits will be handled by the Bureau of
Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS); interior enforcement will be
addressed by the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (BICE); and
border enforcement will be handled by the Bureau of Customs and Border
Protection (BCBP). All forms and documents issued by the former INS will
continue to be valid and there is no need to replace them at this time.
Documents include, but are not limited to, Alien Registration Cards (green
cards), Certificates of Citizenship, Employment Authorization Documents,
travel and advance parole documents, Form I-94 Arrival and Departure Record
and others. These documents will continue to be valid and accepted by the
BCIS and other agencies as evidence of someone's immigration status in the
United States.
Visa and Passport Waiver
Revoked for Certain Permanent Residents of Canada and Bermuda
(Current as of February 4,
2003)
On January
31, 2003, the INS published interim rules to eliminate the current passport
and visa waiver for residents of Canada (Landed Canadians) or Bermuda who
have a common nationality with citizens of Canada or with British subjects in
Bermuda. The rules take effect on March 17, 2003 and comments are due by
April 1, 2003. This means that as of March 17, 2003, all Landed Canadians
from Commonwealth Countries and Bermuda must have visas in order to enter the
United States.
Arrests of Family-Based Petitioners
(Current as of January 11,
2003)
There are
various reports from different INS Districts of petitioners with outstanding
wants and warrants being arrested at INS or ASC offices when appearing to
further the beneficiary's application. INS has indicated on a number of
occasions that it is running IBIS checks on individual petitioners as well as
on the beneficiaries. It appears that district offices may be under
instructions to turn such petitioners over to applicable law enforcement
officials when a warrant is found in the IBIS check. The districts in which
these arrests have occurred are in different regions, and therefore the
policy appears to be national rather than regional.
Change in Regulations for
Commonwealth Commuters from Canada
(Current as of June 20,
2002)
The State
Department is planning to change its regulations to require "aliens
resident in Canada (i.e. Landed Immigrants) ... having a common nationality
with nations of Canada" to obtain nonimmigrant visas to enter the United
States. These foreign nationals who are citizens of the British Commonwealth
Countries are currently exempt from the nonimmigrant visa requirements if
they are entering the United States from a Western Hemisphere country. This
change will affect the ability of foreign nationals of British Commonwealth
countries who reside in Canada to commute to the United States on a daily
basis. Although the United States has not announced a date when this change
is to become effective, it is anticipated that nonimmigrant visa appointments
at the U.S. Consulate in Toronto will become scarce. If you are affected by
this change, please contact our office for further instructions.
Advisory for Non-Immigrants
Flying Domestically
(Current as of September 26,
2001)
There are several
reports in the United States of nonimmigrants boarding domestic flights who
were questioned and asked for documentation. In at least two incidents, the
INS officer doing the questioning told the individual that he is required to
carry his passport, I-94 Card and I-797 Approval notice at all times. Current
immigration law does indeed require individuals over the age of 18 to carry
their "registration" documentation with them at all times. In light
of recent events, security has been heightened all over the United States,
and we recommend that you carry proof of your current immigration status with
you everywhere and at all times.
Travel After Filing for Change
of Non-Immigrant Status
(Current as of August 22,
2001)
The
Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) reiterates that, an alien on
whose behalf a change of nonimmigrant status has been filed and who travels
outside the United States before the request is adjudicated is considered
to have abandoned the request for a change of nonimmigrant status. This
has been, and remains, the INS's longstanding policy. If at any time it comes
to the attention of the INS that an alien on whose behalf a request for a
change of nonimmigrant status has been filed has traveled outside of the
United States while the application is pending, the application or petition
will be denied.
H-1B Lay-Offs Please Note: INS
Will NOT "Let Things Slide"
(current as of April 20,
2001)
INS has
repudiated a widely-distributed story in Wired News that quoted INS sources
as saying that the Service is "going to let things slide" for
laid-off H-1B workers and allow them to change jobs "without leaving the
country, even if they have been unemployed for a while." INS indicated
it still takes its long-held view that H-1B nonimmigrants who remain present
in the U.S. without changing status, when they are no longer employed under
the H-1B, are considered to be in violation of their status. INS indicates
that it will continue its past policy of reviewing such situations on a
case-by-case basis to determine whether to exercise discretion to grant an
extension of status (the procedural stance for a change of employer). The
length of the individual's presence in the U.S. under the H-1B admission is
one factor in such exercise of discretion.
KRA
Immigration Law Group
12763 Stark Road, Suite 201
Livonia, Michigan 48150, USA
Phone: (734) 762-7260
Fax: (734) 762-7606
Email: Questions@cis-immigration.com
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