Siskind Susser is excited to announce that Lynn Susser was recently elected to ABIL, the Alliance of Business Immigration Lawyers. ABIL is comprised of over 20 lawyers from top tier immigration practices with years of expertise and a comprehensive understanding of immigration law. For more information on ABIL, including a map of ABIL attorneys worldwide, visit their website at www.abil.com.
The following articles are excerpts from ABIL’s monthly Immigration Insider, available here on their website.
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USCIS and CBP to Implement Form I-129 Pilot Program for Canadian L-1 Nonimmigrants
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) California Service Center (CSC) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) port of entry (POE) at Blaine, Washington, will implement a joint agency pilot program from April 30, 2018, to October 31, 2018, for Canadian citizens seeking L-1 nonimmigrant status under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). USCIS said the pilot is designed to facilitate the adjudication and admission process for Canadians traveling to the United States as L-1 nonimmigrants.
Department of Homeland Security regulations permit an employer to file an L petition on behalf of a Canadian citizen in conjunction with the Canadian citizen’s application for admission to the United States. USCIS said that petitioners choosing to participate in the joint agency pilot program will be asked to:
- Submit Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, and supporting evidence to the CSC before the Canadian citizen seeks nonimmigrant L-1 admission to the United States through the Blaine POE; and
- Use a cover sheet annotated with “Canadian L” to ensure quick identification of the I-129 and for any correspondence thereafter, such as a response to a request for evidence (RFE).
A petitioner who chooses not to participate in the pilot program may continue to file its L-1 petition on behalf of a Canadian citizen with CBP at the Blaine POE. In such a case, CBP will accept the petition but will adjudicate it at the next Class A POE.
For those who choose to participate in the pilot program, USCIS will receive fees, issue a Form I-797C receipt notice, and adjudicate the I-129. If USCIS needs additional evidence, the agency will send a request for evidence (RFE) to the petitioner.
CBP will continue to make the final determination on whether a Canadian L-1 applicant is admissible to the United States. Applicants participating in the pilot and seeking an immediate determination of admissibility must bring a copy of the petition approval notice for the I-129 when seeking admission to the United States at the Blaine POE, USCIS said.
If the petitioner chooses to send the applicant to the Blaine POE before USCIS makes a decision on the I-129, there may be delays while USCIS remotely adjudicates the form. USCIS said that in such a case, the applicant must bring a copy of the petition receipt notice for the I129 and await adjudication of the I-129.
If a petitioner chooses not to file the I-129 in advance with USCIS, the filing may continue to be made with CBP at the Blaine POE, but CBP will adjudicate it during the pilot at the nearest Class A POE. The beneficiary may apply for admission at any designated Class A CBP POE optimized for processing L-1 petitions for Canadian citizen beneficiaries. Accordingly, petitioners can still choose to have CBP adjudicate their petitions at the time an applicant appears at any CBP-designated Class A POE or pre-clearance airport (PC). The three optimized stations nearest to Blaine are Class A POEs Point Roberts, Washington, and Sumas, Washington, and the Vancouver, Washington, PC.
CBP and USCIS “strongly encourage petitioners participating in the L-1 pilot program to file L-1 nonimmigrant petitions with USCIS as far in advance of travel as possible.” USCIS said the L-1 nonimmigrant pilot program for Canadian citizens will allow both agencies to determine the efficiency of the program’s procedures, identify shortcomings, and develop operational improvements. During the six-month pilot, stakeholders may communicate and provide feedback to USCIS through [email protected]. Once the pilot is complete, USCIS will seek feedback from stakeholders before considering extending the program concept to other POEs, the agency said.
Under existing law, a Canadian citizen may apply for admission as an L-1 nonimmigrant by presenting a petitioning employer’s Form I-129 to an immigration officer at a Class A port of entry or pre-clearance airport. Alternatively, an L-1 petitioner may choose to file a Form I-129 for a Canadian citizen with USCIS, seeking to classify the individual as eligible for L-1 nonimmigrant status. If the petitioner chooses to file its petition with USCIS and USCIS approves the I-129, the qualifying Canadian citizen may then apply at a POE for admission to the United States in L-1 status.
The USCIS announcement is at https://bit.ly/2GZw2Hp.
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ABIL Attorneys Release H-1B Tips for Employers
Alliance of Business Immigration Lawyers (ABIL) attorneys have issued a press release recommending the following ways for employers to maximize their H-1B chances:
- Apply based on a master’s degree from a U.S. nonprofit university as long as all degree requirements were completed before April 1
- Ensure a close match between the course of study and job duties
- Apply concurrently for optional practical training (OPT) or STEM OPT and H-1B
- Apply for “consular notification,” not change of status, to preserve OPT if OPT lasts beyond October 1
- Apply for “change of status” if OPT expires before October 1 to preserve work eligibility under “cap gap” policy, but avoid travel
- Choose O*NET code and wage level carefully
- If more than one field of study could qualify a person for the position, explain task by task how the position requires the education
- Be careful of Level 1 wages. Instead, obtain an acceptable prevailing wage from a legitimate source other than the Department of Labor, offer to pay a higher wage from the outset, or explain why this particular job is both entry level and qualifies as a “specialty occupation”
- Consider other visa options if your employee is not selected in the H-1B lottery
- Check USCIS website for changes to form, fee, and filing location
The press release is at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2018/03/prweb15373184.htm.
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DOJ Files Complaint to Denaturalize Diversity Visa Recipient
The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently filed a complaint in the Eastern District of Michigan to revoke the U.S. citizenship of a diversity visa (DV) recipient who allegedly obtained naturalized citizenship after failing to disclose two prior orders of removal. The case against Humayun Kabir Rahman was referred to DOJ by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
The complaint alleges that Mr. Rahman arrived in the United States in February 1992 at John F. Kennedy International Airport, claiming his true name was Ganu Miah while in possession of a passport that did not belong to him. He was paroled into the United States to seek asylum, and his application was referred to an immigration court, where an immigration judge ordered him removed in 1998. In 1994, while Ganu Miah’s proceeding was underway, Mr. Rahman sought asylum under a different name, Shafi Uddin. That application was also referred to the immigration court, and he was ordered to be removed in 1997. Later in 1997, using a third identity, Humayun Kabir Talukder, Mr. Rahman applied for and received an immigrant visa through the diversity visa program, claiming he had entered the United States by car from Canada. In 2004, he was naturalized as a U.S. citizen. Throughout his immigration and naturalization proceedings, Mr. Rahman concealed that he had twice been ordered removed and lied about his identity and immigration history under oath. Mr. Rahman also was never lawfully admitted to the permanent resident status upon which he naturalized, USCIS said.
The case was investigated by USCIS and the Civil Division’s Office of Immigration Litigation (OIL). The case is being prosecuted by OIL’s National Security and Affirmative Litigation Unit, with support from USCIS Office of the Chief Counsel, Central Law Division.
The USCIS announcement about this case is at https://bit.ly/2IQoxDl. The announcement includes a link to a report by the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) noting that potentially ineligible individuals have been granted U.S. citizenship because of incomplete fingerprint records. The OIG report is at https://bit.ly/2INqKzv. The complaint is at https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1035226/download.
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This newsletter was prepared with the assistance of ABIL, the Alliance of Business Immigration Lawyers (www.abil.com), of which Lynn Susser is an active member.
Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk.