The Department of Justice has announced a record anti-discrimination settlement agreement with Farmland Foods, Inc. involving allegations that the company engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination during the I-9 process. According to the DOJ, Farmland, a major U.S. producer of pork products, allegedly required newly hired non-U.S. citizens and some foreign-born U.S. citizens
A Federal E-Verify Mandate Soon?
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in I-9 and E-Verify, USCIS
As more and more states pass legislation mandating use of E-Verify, a federal E-Verify mandate seems inevitable. Recently, Representative Lamar Smith introduced the first attempt at such a federal mandate, the Legal Workforce Act.
The Legal Workforce Act would preempt existing state E-Verify laws and repeal the current paper Form I-9 system, replacing it with…
Final Rule on Form I-9 Published
By Nicola Ai Ling Prall on
Posted in USCIS
On April 3, 2009 USCIS published an interim rule intended to improve the integrity of the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) process. This interim rule made several key changes to the Form I-9 process, including requiring employers to accept only unexpired documents, deleting outdated documents from the list of acceptable documents, and adding documentation applicable…
Update on E-Verify
By Amy L. Peck on
Posted in USCIS
E-Verify: the Good, the Bad, and the Unresolved
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has recently released an independent report of the E-Verify system, highlighting the successes, failures, and remaining challenges that face employers face today.
The Good
USCIS reduced the Tentative Nonconfirmations (TNCs or mismatches) from 8% between June 2004 and March …
USCIS Releases New E-Verify User Manuals
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in USCIS
USCIS has released its new E-Verify User Manuals for Employers, Employer E-Verify Agents, and Federal Contractors. E-Verify is the online verification system that complements I-9 employment eligibility review and allows employers to check the legality of their workforce. The manuals provide guidance for employers enrolled in E-Verify. The new manuals reflect recent changes to the…
H-1B Update: Cap-gap Students Lose Work Authorization October 1st
By Amy L. Peck on
Posted in USCIS
Despite a marked decrease in H-1B petitions filed to date, USCIS is making little effort to adjudicate its current caseload of H-1B petitions in a timely fashion. The USCIS’s stated processing times for H-1B’s are more than two months off the actual processing times, which are approaching five months and increasing.
The effect of the…
USCIS Filing Fees to Increase on November 23, 2010
By Nicola Ai Ling Prall on
Posted in USCIS
On September 23, 2010, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced a fee increase for immigration benefits. Unlike most federal agencies, USCIS is primarily a fee-based organization, with 90% of its approximately $2.7 billion budget paid for by user fees. The economic downturn has meant that fewer employers were petitioning for foreign…
Major filing fee increases for employers who use substantial H-1B and L-1 visas
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in USCIS
Implementing a portion of the Border Security funding bill (Public Law 111-230) signed by President Barack Obama on August 13, USCIS has announced a new fee, in addition to existing fees, for certain H-1B and L-1 petitions. The new fee is $2,000 for certain H-1B and $2,250 for certain L-1 petitions.
The fee applies to…
The “Green Card” Is Green Again
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in USCIS
During the I-9 verification process, foreign-born employees often present a variety of Permanent Resident cards, commonly called “Green Cards.” However, for the last few decades, no version of the Permanent Resident card has been the color green.
USCIS announced on May 11 a new version of the Permanent Resident card will be issued. The card…
FY 2011 H-1B Petitions Received in First Week: 13,500FY 2011
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in US Immigration, USCIS
On April 9, 2010, USCIS announced that in the first week of accepting cap-subject H-1B filings for FY 2011, only 13,500 petitions had been received against the 65,000 regular cap and only 5,600 against the 20,000 master’s cap.
New H-1B visas are generally limited to 65,000 per fiscal year, with an extra 20,000 available to…