In General Electric Company (GE Energy) 2010-PER-763 the employer’s Application for Permanent Labor Certification was accepted for filing by the Department of Labor on October 26, 2009. The employer had posted the job order on April 27—182 days before the filing date—and removed it on May 27. The Certifying Officer (CO) denied the application because the job order was placed more than 180 days before the application was filed, and the job order “must be conducted at least 30 days, but no more than 180 days, before the filing of the application” (20 CFR § 656.17(e)(1)(i)).
BALCA casts doubt on FAQ regarding advertisements in professional journals
In the Matter of The University of Texas at Brownsville (2010-PER-00887), BALCA held that the Certifying Officer (“the CO”) abused his discretion when he denied the employer’s labor certification application on the basis that the national professional journal in which its advertisement was placed was only available electronically. While this may appear to end the Department of Labor’s requirement that such advertisements be in print, there are reasons to be cautious.
In its quest to increase job growth, U.S. to assist foreign entrepreneurs
News Release from Jewell & Associates, PC – August 2, 2011
Breaking news: The Wall Street Journal reports today that Washington will provide immigration benefits to foreign entrepreneurs in its quest to increase job growth in the United States. The WSJ article can be viewed at: http://tiny.cc/ibvud.html.
Jewell & Associates, PC will provide further coverage of the details, as they become available, in future posts.
© Jewell & Associates, PC 2011
Green Card Lottery entrants can check status online through June 30, 2012
News Release from Jewell & Associates, PC – July 21, 2011 Now through June, 30, 2012, entrants in the DV-2012 Diversity Visa Lottery may check the status of their entries through the Department State’s Entry Status Check on the State Department’s Electronic Diversity Visa website. To find out if his/her entry was selected (i.e., if he/she “won” the green card lottery), an entrant must use the information on his/her DV-2012 confirmation page. Entry Status Check is the only means by which the Department of State will notify DV-2012 entrants of their selection. Entry Status Check will give DV-2012 lottery winners instructions on how to proceed with their application for U.S. permanent residence, and will provide them with the date, time, and location of their immigrant visa interview.
For general information about the annual Diversity Visa Lottery, please visit the Department of State’s website.
© Jewell & Associates, PC 2011
All Countries Relieved from NSEERS Compliance
As of April 28, 2011, all countries that were designated as part of the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS) have been relieved of compliance and removed from the NSEERS list. Accordingly, nationals and citizens of Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Egypt, Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen are no longer subject to the NSEERS registration requirements.
Update on Adjustment of Status Portability under AC21
Under the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-First Century Act of 2000 (AC21), a foreign national who has an approved I-140 petition and whose Adjustment of Status application has been filed and has remained unadjudicated for 180 days or more may accept a job with a new employer, or accept a different job with the same employer, as long as the new job is in the same or a similar occupational classification as the job for which the I-140 petition was originally filed. This ability to move between the same or similar positions is referred to “portability.”
VIBE – the USCIS’s New Information Verification System
When adjudicating employment-based immigration petitions, the USCIS is required to verify certain basic information about the petitioner, to make sure that the company or organization is a bona fide U.S. employer. For these verifications, the USCIS relies on paper documentation submitted with the petitions, and issues Requests for Evidence (RFEs) to employers when the documentation initially submitted doesn’t fully provide the necessary information.
Reminders about Employer Responsibility regarding I-9s and SSA No-Match Letters
It is a good idea for employers to revisit and remind themselves of some basic requirements for employee work authorization and employer responsibilities about once a year, to make sure that one is up to date on any new rules and fully remembering old ones. All individuals working in the United States must have legal authorization to do so and earned wages must be reported to the Internal Revenue Service for tax purposes and the Social Security Administration for potential benefit accrual.
Form I-129 Export Control Attestation Not Required Until 2/20/2011
News Release from Jewell & Associates, PC – December 27, 2010 On Dec. 22, 2010, USCIS announced that Petitioners will not be required to complete the attestation regarding export controls on the new version of the Form I-129 until Feb. 20, 2011. Please see our previous posting regarding the new Form I-129 here: /blog/?p=294. The USCIS Alert is located here: http://tinyurl.com/2dchnxk.
© Jewell & Associates, PC 2010
J&A Lawyer Claire Hulse named Barrister of the Year for 2010 by the Bar Association of San Francisco
News Release from Jewell & Associates, PC – December 7, 2010 J&A Lawyer Claire Hulse was recently named Barrister of the Year for 2010 by the Bar Association of San Francisco, for her significant contributions to BASF and its new attorney division, the Barristers Club. Claire Co-Chairs the Barristers Immigration Section, which she and her Co-Chair, Jacqueline Brown Scott, revamped this year by hosting monthly events on various topics covering all aspects of immigration, including business- and deportation/removal-related topics. They started the year with a viewing of Papers the Movie, a documentary about the DREAM Act, held a panel to discuss Arizona’s controversial immigration law, SB1070, hosted MCLEs regarding visas for entrepreneurs, startups, artists and entertainers, and ended the year with a well attended presentation by two Immigration Judges from the San Francisco Immigration Court, where Claire clerked following law school. Claire also served on the Nominating Committee, choosing new members of the 2011 Barristers Board. She will receive her award at the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Annual Membership Luncheon and Installation of Officers on December 14.
The related BASF press release can be viewed here:
http://www.sfbar.org/newsroom/20101201.aspx.
© Jewell & Associates, PC 2010