USCIS is moving the existing online payment for the USCIS Immigrant Fee to its Electronic Immigration System (USCIS ELIS). Customers will soon pay the $165 Immigrant Fee using USCIS ELIS after they receive their immigrant visa package from the Department of State.  USCIS ELIS is an online system created to streamline the application process for immigration benefits.  It allows users to create an account and file benefit requests online.  USCIS ELIS provides accurate and secure customer service and allows USCIS to process cases in a more consistent and secure environment.  New immigrants will also eventually use USCIS ELIS to file future applications and petitions when they become available in the system.  This $165 fee has been in place since February 01, 2013.  Immigrants who receive their visas at U.S. Embassies and Consulates abroad must pay the fee online.  The fee allows USCIS to recover the cost of processing the immigrant visa package and other information as well as producing and delivering the permanent resident card after immigrant visa holders are admitted to the United States. Immigrants will soon be directed to the USCIS ELIS website to create an online account and pay the immigrant fee.  The fee does not apply to certain special immigrants and those entering the United States through the inter-country adoption programs.  The USCIS Immigrant Fee is a separate fee from the Department of State immigrant visa application.

Beginning May 7, 2013 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) requires all employers to use the revised Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification (Revision 03/08/13)N for all new hires and reverifications. Points to Remember:

• All employers are required to complete and retain a Form I-9 for each employee hired to work in the United States.
• The revision date of the new Form I-9 is printed on the lower left corner of the form.
• Employers should not complete a new Form I-9 for existing employees if a properly completed Form I-9 is already on file.
• A Spanish version of Form I-9 (revision 03/08/13)N is available for use in Puerto Rico only.
• Spanish-speaking employers and employees in the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and other U.S. territories may use the Spanish version for reference, but must complete and retain the English version of the form.

As was expected, the H-1B cap of 65,000 was reached within the first week of the filing period. For the many employers that didn’t make the cut, this means waiting until next year to try again. However, because applications filed in 2013 are for visas valid during the following fiscal year, missing the H-1B cut this time around means your employees will not be able to work until 2015, and that’s only if you make the cut next time. Waiting until 2015 to hire foreign workers is not only burdensome, but oftentimes impossible for many employers. Fortunately, there may be some alternatives. The following are some additional visa options that might be available for employers who missed out on this year’s H-1B: Read More >

Application Support Centers, often called an ASC, offer fingerprinting services, usually after filing of an application for an immigration benefit.  Applicants are usually notified about an ASC appointment by mail and should wait to receive the notice.  If an applicant cannot make the appointment the latest can and should be rescheduled.  USCIS recently revised instructions provided on ASC notices for rescheduling appointments.  It advises that rescheduling requests for ASC appointments must be sent to the following address and not to the local ASC (as previously instructed): BPU / Alexandria ASC / Suite 100 / 8850 Richmond Hwy / Alexandria, VA 22309-1586.  USCIS instructions indicate that a copy of the original notice should be retained, and the original appointment notice and rescheduling request should be mailed to the address listed above.  Alternatively, applicants can call the NCSC 1-800 number to reschedule the appointment, which then gets routed to the proper service center with the file. These requests are interfiled with the case and are visible to the officer adjudicating the case. 

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) introduced on April 26, 2013 the Agricultural Guestworker “AG” Act (H.R. 1773) a bill to provide American farmers with a workable temporary agricultural guestworker program that will help provide access to a reliable workforce through a new nonimmigrant H–2C work visa program.  The Key Components of H.R. 1773 are as follows: Read More >

As we reported last month, U.S. Customs and Border Protection began efforts to automate Form I-94 Arrival/Departure Records. The interim final rule published in March has now taken effect. The new electronic system roll-out began on April 30 and is scheduled to be completed sometime this month. Read More >

Since March 4, 2013, USCIS has been accepting applications for Provisional Unlawful Presence Waivers (“Form I-601A”).  Many of these applications have been rejected, however, because customers did not provide proof that the required Immigrant Visa Application Fee was paid to the Department of State (“DOS”).

Individuals filing Form I-601A should make sure to:

• Pay the Immigrant Visa Application Fee before filing Form I-601A.
• Send the DOS Immigrant Visa Application Fee receipt along with the I-601A application; and
• Make sure the receipt is the official, DOS-issued receipt with the National Visa Center Case Number clearly visible.

As previously reported, on March 22, 2013, USCIS temporarily suspended adjudication of most H-2B petitions while the government considered appropriate action in response to the Court Order in Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agricolas et al v. Solis. The Court Order vacated a portion of the 2008 wage methodology rule dealing with the way the DOL determines the prevailing wage when relying on the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment Statistics survey.  USCIS has now resumed processing of all H-2B petitions for temporary non-agricultural workers.  Read More >

In its recent decision in Avila-Santoyo v. Holder, — F.3d. —, No. 11-14941 (11th Cir. 2013) (en banc), the Eleventh Circuit overturned precedent holding that the 90-day filing requirement for motions to reopen is subject to equitable tolling. Equitable tolling is an exception to time limitations that, for those eligible, allows the clock to be temporarily stopped. In its prior ruling in Abdi v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 430 F.3d 1148, 1150 (11th Cir. 2005), the Court had ruled that the filing deadline was “mandatory and jurisdictional,” meaning that the 90-day time period was to be strictly enforced, and thus the clock could not be stopped. For those immigrants in Florida and the rest of the Eleventh Circuit who were subject to the 90-day filing requirement, the rigid enforcement of the time limitation presented significant hardship when failure to file was due to reasons beyond the immigrant’s control. Read More >

The eight lawmakers – collectively referred to as the “Gang of Eight” - who put together a comprehensive immigration bill believe their legislation has a better shot in Congress than the gun legislation stymied the week of April 15th.