BARTEN LAW OFFICE,
P.C.
July 2006
HOT TIPS NEWSLETTER
IN THIS
NEWSLETTER
I. HOT TIPS
FOR EMPLOYERS
A. H-1B CAP
REACHED
B. ELECTRONIC
SIGNING AND STORAGE
OF I-9 SIGNATURES
C. HOW TO
TELL IF AN
INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE STUDENT IS ELIGIBLE TO WORK
D. SOCIAL
SECURITY MISMATCH
LETTERS
II. HOT TIPS
FOR FAMILIES
A. FAMILY
IMMIGRANT VISA
AVAILABILITY RETROGRESSES FOR TWO CATEGORIES
B. 1100
FIANCÉ(E)
I-129F PETITONS RECALLED
C. 10,000
FIANCÉ(E)
I-129F PETITONS REQUESTS FOR EVIDENCE SENT
III. HOT TIPS
FOR OTHERS
TEMPORARY
PROTECTED STATUS
DEADLINES FOR RE-REGISTRY
HOT TIPS FOR
EMPLOYERS
FISCAL YEAR 2007 H-IB CAP REACHED
New
applications for H-1B
temporary worker program began to be accepted as of April 1, 2006 for
an October 1, 2006 beginning employment date. H-1B visas are temporary
visas valid for 3 years which may be renewed. These visas are filed by
an employer on behalf of the proposed employee. The position must
require a bachelor degree or higher to qualify for an H-1B.
Applications filed after May 26, 2006 were too late. However, there are
still H-1B visas available for employees from Chile and Singapore. Also
there are H-1B visas still available for positions that require a
minimum of a U.S. master’s degree for entry into the position.
Link to Public
Notice
http://www.uscis.gov/graphics/publicaffairs/newsrels/FY07H1BCap_060106PR.pdf
ELECTRONIC SIGNING AND STORAGE OF I-9
SIGNATURES
This interim
rule amends
Department of Homeland Security regulations to provide that employers
and recruiters or referrers for a fee who are required to complete and
retain Forms I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, may sign and
retain these forms electronically. This interim rule implements
statutory changes to the Form I-9 retention requirements by
establishing standards for electronic signatures and the electronic
retention of the Form I-9. Effective June 15, 2006
FR Doc E6-9283
[Federal Register: June 15, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 115)] [Rules and
Regulations] [Page 34510-34517] From the Federal Register Online via
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
HOW TO TELL IF AN INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE
STUDENT IS ELIGIBLE TO
WORK
Off-Campus:
F-1
nonimmigrant students are
authorized to work off-campus if they have a current Form I-766,
Employment Authorization Document (EAD) card. They may work for the
period of time shown on the card. Students who are currently enrolled
in school may work up to 20 hours while school is in session and
full-time during school breaks and vacations.
Students who have completed their degree and are engaged in work up to
one full year as part of their optional practical training (OPT) may
work full-time. These students will have a Form I-20 that shows that
they are authorized OPT.
Internships/Work
Study:
Students may
also be paid while
engaged in curricular practical training (CPT), which must be an
integral part of their curriculum. Your organization must be a
sponsoring employee with a cooperative agreement with the school. The
student must have a Form I-20 showing that CPT is authorized.
For more
information on hiring
international college students, visit this link.
http://www.ice.gov/sevis/faqs/information_employers_nonimmigrant_students.htm#_Toc134866906
SOCIAL SECURITY MISMATCH LETTERS
The Bureau of
Immigration and
Customs Enforcement proposes to amend the regulations relating to the
unlawful hiring or continued employment of unauthorized aliens. The
amended regulation describes the legal obligations of an employer,
under current immigration law, when the employer receives a no-match
letter from the Social Security Administration or the Department of
Homeland Security. It also describes ``safe-harbor'' procedures that
the employer can follow in response to such a letter and thereby be
certain that DHS will not find that the employer had constructive
knowledge that the employee referred to in the letter was an alien not
authorized to work in the United States. The proposed rule adds two
more examples of situations that may lead to a finding that an employer
had such constructive knowledge to the current regulation's definition
of ``knowing.'' These additional examples involve an employer's failure
to take reasonable steps in response to either of two events: (1) The
employer receives written notice from the Social Security
Administration (SSA) that the combination of name and social security
account number submitted to SSA for an employee does not match agency
records; or (2) the employer receives written notice from the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that the immigration-status or
employment-authorization documentation presented or referenced by the
employee in completing Form I-9 was not assigned to the employee
according to DHS records. (Form I-9 is retained by the employer and
made available to DHS investigators on request, such as during an
audit.) The proposed rule also states that whether DHS will actually
find that an employer had constructive knowledge that an employee was
an unauthorized alien in a situation described in any of the
regulation's examples will depend on the totality of relevant
circumstances. The ``safe-harbor'' procedures include attempting to
resolve the no-match and, if it cannot be resolved within a certain
period of time, verifying again the employee's identity and employment
authorization through a specified process.
HOT TIPS FOR FAMILIES
FAMILY IMMIGRANT VISA AVAILABILITY
RETROGRESSES FOR TWO
CATEGORIES
Family F1 and
F2A have
retrogressed. DOS cautions that immigrant visa number use is
approaching the annual limits for the year and additional retrogression
of cut-off dates are possible.
Family First :
Unmarried Sons and
Daughters of Citizens: 23,400 plus any numbers not required for fourth
preference.
Family Second
: Spouses and
Children, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Permanent Residents:
114,200 visas a year. A. Spouses and Children: 77% of the overall
second preference limitation, of which 75% are exempt from the
per-country limit;
|
Family
|
All
Charge- ability Areas
Except Those Listed
|
CHINA-mainland
born
|
INDIA
|
MEXICO
|
PHILIPPINES
|
|
1st
|
01JAN00
|
01JAN00
|
01JAN00
|
15MAY92
|
22SEP91
|
|
2A
|
01SEP99
|
01SEP99
|
01SEP99
|
01SEP99
|
01SEP99
|
|
2B
|
22AUG96
|
22AUG96
|
22AUG96
|
01DEC91
|
08JUL96
|
|
3rd
|
22AUG98
|
22AUG98
|
22AUG98
|
15OCT93
|
01JUL88
|
|
4th
|
01MAY95
|
01MAY95
|
01OCT94
|
15AUG93
|
15DEC83
|
1100 FIANCÉ(E) I-129F PETITONS
RECALLED BY DHS
The International Marriage Broker Regulation (IMBRA) was signed by the
President January 5th of this
year. A 60-day deadline, March 5, 2006, was established for
DHS to begin asking K-1 fiancé(e) petitioners for their
criminal background information. DHS did not meet the
deadline for collecting additional information. Some
petitions filed after the deadline were approved in error under the old
procedures and sent through the National Visa Center (NVC) to posts for
processing. Approximately
1100 cases went to 95 IV-issuing posts. Posts are preparing
to return these cases as quickly as possible to NVC.
Link to Public
Notice
http://www.uscis.gov/graphics/publicaffairs/statements/IMBRA_061306PN.pdf
HOT TIPS FOR OTHERS
EL SALVADORAN TPS EMPLOYMENT
AUTHORIZATIONS AUTOMATICALLY
EXTENDED UNTIL MARCH 9, 2007 – DEADLINE TO RE-REGISTER
SEPTEMBER 1, 2006
USCIS has
announced that the
employment authorization cards of El Salvadorans with Temporary
Protected Status will be automatically extended to March 9, 2007.
Re-registry is still required by the deadline of September 1, 2006.
Late applications must be filed at an alternative location.
Countries (or
parts thereof) which
are currently designated under the TPS program are listed below:
Burundi:
TPS re-registration period ended November 1,
2005. EAD extension sticker valid through February 28, 2006.
El
Salvador: TPS
re-registration period from July 3, 2006 to September 1, 2006. EADs
auto-extended to March 9, 2007.
Honduras:
TPS re-registration period ended June 1, 2006.
EADs auto-extended to January 5, 2007.
Liberia:
TPS registration period ended October 14, 2005.
EAD extension sticker valid through February 28, 2006.
Nicaragua:
TPS re-registration period ended June 1, 2006.
EADs auto-extended to January 5, 2007.
Somalia:
TPS re-registration period ended September 27,
2005. EAD extension sticker valid through February 28, 2006.
Sudan:
TPS re-registration period ended November 1,
2005. EAD extension sticker valid through May 2, 2007.
If you haven’t received your
green card.
If you were
granted permanent
resident status or entered the U.S. with an immigrant visa more than 60
days ago and have not received your first permanent resident card,
please call 1-800-375-5283"
Finding
the Status of
Your Case If you have an application receipt number, you can
check the
status of your case online.
Obtaining
a List of
Processing Dates If you would like to see the Processing
Dates for
Applications and Petitions, click here.
Schedule
an Infopass
Appointment http://infopass.uscis.gov/
Report
Your Change of
Address to the USCIS
All aliens in
the United States
who are required to be registered under the law) must keep the USCIS
informed of their changes of address. The only aliens exempt from this
requirement are diplomats, official government representatives to an
international organization, and certain non-immigrants who do not
possess a visa and who are in the U.S. for fewer than 30 days. All
aliens changing their address must file Form AR-11 with the USCIS address listed on the
form.
Compliments of:
BARTEN LAW
OFFICE, P.C.
P.O. Box 1604
621 Main Street
Ames, IA 50010
515-233-4388
Fax
515-233-6959
For Comments
and Suggestions
jbarten@bartenlawoffice.com