Archive for January, 2010
Monday, January 25th, 2010
Immigration lawyer Stewart Rabinowitz of the Dallas-based firm Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz offers some perspective on how USCIS plans to prevent, detect, and address fraud within the H-1B visa program in 2010.
In September 2008, USCIS published a report entitled H-1B Benefit Fraud & Compliance Assessment of the H-1B visa program. As background, the H-1B classification permits a foreign national to work for a U.S. employer in a position deemed professional, and which requires at minimum a bachelor’s degree. Each H-1B employer must certify to the Department of Labor that the wage paid to the foreign national by the H-1B employer is the required wage (frequently the prevailing wage) in the area of intended employment, and must document the source of establishing wage offered, in addition to meeting many other technical requirements. USCIS collects substantial fees for filing H-1B petitions, including a $500.00 anti-fraud fee.The anti-fraud fee is currently $500.00. As of 2009, USCIS had collected approximately $90 million in anti-fraud fees.
The report, based on a sampling of 246 cases from a total population of 96,827 cases, revealed fraud in 33 cases of the sample, and technical violations in 18 cases.
In response to the report, U.S. Senator Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) wrote USCIS asking what plans the agency has to counter fraud and technical violations which the 2008 report revealed. “The USCIS response to Senator Grassley’s letter was in itself revealing,” says Stewart Rabinowitz, an immigration lawyer for the Dallas-based firm Rabinowitz and Rabinowitz, “In a public response to Senator Grassley’s letter, they stated that they’d be seeking greater evidence from petitioning H-1B employers that an H-1B employee will be performing at a site where that employer may place that worker, that USCIS will be expanding its site visit inspections of H-1B employers to approximately 25,000 (up from about 5,000 in 2009), and that USCIS will begin using open source commercial means to independently verify employer information.”
Rabinowitz can see the writing on the wall. “In this time of economic downturn, it is clear that USCIS will subject U.S. employers to greater scrutiny prior to approving an H-1B petition, requiring that even relatively simple H-1B cases become minutely well documented and thus become more expensive to prepare,” Rabinowitz asserts, “ H-1B employers should be prepared to document compliance with each of the requirements of the H-1B program, and with 25,000 inspections taking place, H-1B employers should expect a visit from USCIS agents during 2010.” But to what end? “This may result in a chilling effect, causing potential H-1B employers to not use the H-1B program, an outcome that may not benefit U.S.employers or U.S. workers in the long run. A U.S. employer who is unable to find required but scarce talent domestically and chooses to forego using the H-1B program to employ needed and available foreign talent may be less competitive globally as a consequence,” Rabinowitz concludes.
To learn more about Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, P.C., call 1.972.233.6200 or visit Rabinowitzrabinowitz.com.
Tags: Dallas immigration, Dallas Immigration attorney, Dallas Immigration lawyer
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Wednesday, January 20th, 2010
Stewart Rabinowitz, of the law firm Rabinowitz and Rabinowitz, offers his opinions about President Barack Obama’s decision to sign into law an extension of several U.S. Citizenship and Immigrations Services (USCIS) programs.
On October 28, 2009, President Barack Obama signed into law an extension of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Appropriations Act of 2010 which extended several key programs until September 30, 2012. The extended programs included E-Verify, the Immigrant Investor (EB-5) Pilot Program, the special immigrant visa category for non-minister religious workers, and the date by which J-1 non-immigrant exchange visitors must obtain that status in order to qualify for the “Conrad 30” program.
E-Verify, an Internet-based system operated by DHS in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA), allows participating employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility of their newly hired employees. Stewart Rabinowitz, an immigration lawyer for the firm Rabinowitz and Rabinowitz, believes that the program is in widespread use. “More than 168,000 participating employers at nearly 640,000 worksites nationwide currently use the program,” he says. Since Oct. 1, 2009, more than 1.3 million employment verification queries are now automatically confirmed without any need for employee action.
Adds Rabinowitz, “Despite this number, the program continues to suffer significant databases errors, especially when processing recently naturalized U.S. citizens, which has led many other employers to shy away from enrolling.”
Under the Immigrant Investor Pilot Program, USCIS will continue to receive, process, and adjudicate all Regional Center petitions. Under this program, qualifying investors who make a substantial investment in the U.S. and who create 10 U.S. worker jobs can gain permanent resident status. Through investment in pre-approved Regional Centers, foreign investors can rely on “indirect” job creation to meet the law’s requirements. Currently, there are more than 70 regional centers throughout the United States. USCIS strictly interprets requirements for this classification.
The special immigrant visa category for non-minister religious workers covers those within a religious vocation or religious occupation.
Finally, USCIS will continue to adjudicate immigration benefits covered by the “Conrad 30” program. The “Conrad 30” program allows each state health department to submit a request directly to the Department of State to initiate the waiver process for a foreign medical graduate who obtained J-1 status and who want to change to another status without leaving the U.S. to meet a two-year home residency requirement. “It’s not too difficult to imagine what might have happened in rural and other health shortage areas had the Conrad 30 program not been extended,” Rabinowitz concluded.
To learn more about Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, P.C., call 1.972.233.6200 or visit Rabinowitzrabinowitz.com.
Tags: Dallas immigration, Dallas Immigration attorney, Dallas Immigration lawyer
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Stewart Rabinowitz, of the Dallas-based law firm Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, offers some perspectives on the island nation’s current calamitous chaos.
On January 13, 2010, DHS Deputy Press Secretary Matt Chandler, in response to the devastating earthquake epicentered in Port au Prince, Haiti, announced a suspension of removals to Haiti. Chandler said, “Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Assistant Secretary John Morton today halted all removals to Haiti for the time being in response to the devastation caused by yesterday’s earthquake. ICE continues to closely monitor the situation.”
The Administration considered and on January 15, 2010 granted Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in the wake of the disaster. TPS allows citizens of countries so designated who are in the U.S. illegally to stay and work in the U.S. legally for up to 18 months. Haitians who were residing in the U.S. on the day of the quake and who meet other requirements are eligible to apply. Presently, the DHS is readying for the registration of what DHS estimates to be 100,000-200,000 Haitians eligible to TPS. The registration period will begin on the date that DHS publishes notice in the Federal Register. Qualifying Haitians in the U.S. will have a 180 day window thereafter in which to file. TPS can be extended multiple times depending on Department of State’s assessment of country conditions. “Conditions are horrific there, almost unimaginable,” said Stewart Rabinowitz with the Dallas-based law firm Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, “I am pleased that the Administration wasted little time in recognizing the severity of the situation.” According to Rabinowitz, Haiti is the poorest nation in the Northern Hemisphere, and this latest natural disaster, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake, the first major event of this kind in at least 200 years, is only the latest in a string of natural disasters. “Haiti has yet to recover from Tropical Storm Fay and hurricanes Gustav, Hanna, and Ike, which pounded Haiti in August and September 2008, killing a total of 793 people and leaving hundreds more missing. The country has also experienced riots over skyrocketing food prices and must endure a continued presence of UN troops to maintain order and now, a major earthquake in a country where buildings possess very little structural integrity.”
At least qualifying Haitians here can register for TPS and obtain employment authorization and can begin to assist family members in Haiti by remittances they will be able to send home to help in that country’s rebuilding process.
To learn more about Rabinowitz & Rabinowitz, P.C., call 1.972.233.6200 or visit Rabinowitzrabinowitz.com.
