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December 28, 2010
Immigration
Law Alert
Clark Hill and
NowHIRE Present I-9 Compliance Webinar
On January 18, 2011 at 1:00 pm
Eastern, Clark Hill and nowHIRE will present a free webinar entitled
I-9 Compliance: Tips to Prepare for and Survive an Immigration
and Customs Enforcement Audit. Mike Nowlan, Co-Leader of the Clark
Hill Immigration Practice Group will be the guest speaker. The
webinar is approved for 1.0
(General) recertification credit hours toward PHR, SPHR and GPHR
recertification through the HR Certification Institute. Information and registration for the
webinar can be found at: http://www.hrmarketer.com/users/clients/nowhire-new/ice_webinar2.html.
Change in Visa
Processing Procedures at US Consulates in Mexico
Beginning
January 10, 2011, persons applying for visas at US Embassies and
Consulates in Mexico will go to the Applicant Service Centers (ASCs)
prior to their visa application interview at the Embassy or
Consulate, for review prior to the interview.
US Visa
Applications Experiencing PIMS Delays
Many applicants
for H-1B and other US visas have recently experienced delays in visa
processing that seem to be due to a delay in the Petition Information
Management System "PIMS". The PIMS systems is method
for US consulates to access visa petition information that was
previously submitted to USCIS in the US. Applicants are advised to
bring complete copies of the petition that was submitted on their
behalf to USCIS. Delays while waiting for a PIMS clearance can
last two weeks or more. For more on PIMS, see the
Department of State's website.
New H-1Bs
Still Available
On December
17, 2010, USCIS announced that it received
approximately 53,900 H-1B petitions toward the 65,000 available per
fiscal year, under the general H-1B cap. In addition, USCIS
received 19,700 petitions toward the 20,000 available per fiscal year,
under the US Master's Cap. USCIS continues to accept petitions
toward the general cap and the US Master's cap. The H-1B is a
frequently utilized temporary work visa for professional
positions. For more information on the H-1B visa, see the Clark
Hill website.
US Immigration
and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Updates
Below are
summaries of recent efforts by the US Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) as they enforce laws related to employment of
persons not authorized to work in the US. While there were many
actions that took place recently, below are a few of the highlights.
Dunkin'
Doughnuts Manager Pleads Guilty
On December
14, 2010, ICE announced that a Dunkin' Doughnuts manager
in Portland, Maine had pled guilty to employing 18 unauthorized
workers in his store between 2000 and 2009, and to using false
attestations in an immigration document. He faces up to five
years and six months of prison for the charges.
Missouri Woman
Pleads Guilty
On December
10, 2010, ICE announced that following an ICE investigation, a Missouri woman had
plead guilty to employing unauthorized workers at the Chinese
restaurant she managed. She faces a possible 10 years of
imprisonment and $250,000 for each of the two counts of harboring and
each of the two counts of transporting unauthorized workers. In
addition, she faces six months of imprisonment and a $3,000 fine for
each of the two counts of employing unauthorized workers.
San Francisco
Restaurant Owners Charged
On December 6,
2010, ICE announced that
the owners of the El Barlazo restaurant chain in the San Francisco,
California area had been charged with a variety of immigration and
tax violations including harboring unauthorized workers for financial
gain, employing at least 10 unauthorized workers over a twelve month
period, false representation of Social Security numbers, tax evasion
and filing false tax returns.
Visa Priority
Dates - January Visa Bulletin
The January
Visa Bulletin has been posted. Visas
for some employment based second and third preference cases have
moved forward. For a summary of priority dates, retrogression, and
how these dates impact US green card processing, please visit the
Clark Hill website.
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