The I-9 process continues to be the bane of HR existence. Recent accommodations for remote work environments, closed driver’s license agencies, and USCIS delays in printing work permits and green cards are definitely appreciated and helpful, but they also make the process more confusing. Employers are beginning to worry about how they will catch up on viewing all of the original documents they saw remotely during the pandemic, in the USCIS-designated 3-day time frame once their companies return to the office. Meanwhile, I-9 audits and worksite enforcement actions are continuing apace. While following all of the new guidance, employers must also be sure to stick to the basics. Continue reading “USCIS gets flexible on I-9 Process, but Employers must stay Vigilant”
PERM Gets Rough in an Uncertain Job Market
Employers who may be trying to proceed with PERM applications for foreign national workers are in an uphill battle. With layoffs, furloughs and unemployment at all time highs, the Department of Labor is on high alert for unsuspecting PERM employers who are trying to do the right thing under difficult circumstances.
Employers who have H-1B or other workers with limited time on their nonimmigrant status, don’t have the luxury of waiting until the job market improves to begin PERM applications for their employees. For H-1B or L-1B workers in their final year or two of nonimmigrant visa eligibility, PERM is a necessity or they will have to return to their home countries. Continue reading “PERM Gets Rough in an Uncertain Job Market”
F-1 Student Ban from 100% Remote Education Rescinded
On July 14, 2020, the Trump Administration rescinded SEVP guidance issued last week, which forbid F-1 students from attending universities that were planning to be 100% remote during the fall 2020 semester. With the rescission, schools may now revert to following the SEVP March 9 Broadcast Message: Coronavirus Disease 2019 and the March 13 COVID-19: Guidance for SEVP Stakeholders . Read more about this important development in our education law blog, UpdateED.
ICE Bars F-1 Students from 100% Remote Programs for Fall Semester
On July 6, 2020 the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) provided long awaited guidance for the fall 2020 semester. In an unexpected about face from guidance issued in March 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 response effort by higher education, SEVP has determined that foreign students on F-1 visas cannot attend universities that will be 100% remote during the fall 2020 semester. Continue reading “ICE Bars F-1 Students from 100% Remote Programs for Fall Semester”
Universities Weigh Impact of Latest Travel Ban on Certain Chinese Graduate Students and Post Docs
The White House has issued a new travel ban blocking Chinese nationals associated with entities that are part of China’s “military-civil fusion” strategy from obtaining graduate level Student (F) or Exchange Visitor (J) visas. The ban went into effect on June 1 and has no end date. The ban specifically references those visa applicants who are currently outside the United States, but does not exclude the possibility that the estimated 3000 Chinese nationals, already studying in the U.S. who meet the criteria of the executive order, could have their existing visas revoked. Read Valentine’s full post on the Duane Morris Education Law Blog, UpdateED.
COVID-19 Immigration Agency Suspensions and Cancellations 3/29/2020 Update
The Duane Morris Immigration Team is dedicated to providing the most up to date information and zealous advocacy on behalf of our clients during the COVID-19 emergency. Below we have compiled information from various U.S. agencies on all aspects of travel, USCIS appointments, ICE activities and Removal Proceedings. This post will be updated as changes develop. Duane Morris has developed a COVID-19 Strategy Team which is providing regular updates on all business and employment related matters impacted by the COVID -19 pandemic. A second webinar on Business Continuity Planning for a Pandemic will be held on Wednesday, March 18. To register, click here.
- Topics Discussed Below
Continue reading “COVID-19 Immigration Agency Suspensions and Cancellations 3/29/2020 Update”
USCIS Announces I-9 and E-Verify Timing Waivers and Modifications in the wake of COVID-19
COVID-19 social distancing directives, State and Federal agency closures and remote work requirements have made it impossible for employers to comply with the normal I-9 and E-Verify regulations on timing and review of employee documents. To address these concerns, USCIS has announced several measures to extend time frames and loosen its normally strict requirements. In this blog, we discuss USCIS suspension of the I-9 requirement to review physical documents, an automatic 60 day extension for all I-9 audit responses, acceptance of expired documents for new hires who are unable to update driver licenses and state IDs, as well as E-verify suspension of the 8 day response time for responding to Tentative Nonconfirmations. Continue reading “USCIS Announces I-9 and E-Verify Timing Waivers and Modifications in the wake of COVID-19”
USCIS Suspends Premium Processing for all I-129s and I-140s
USCIS announced at 2:19 PM on 3/20/2020 that Premium Processing services for I-129 (E-1, E-2, H-1B, H-2B, H-3, L-1A, L-1B, LZ, O-1, O-2, P-1, P-1S, P-2, P-2S, P-3, P-3S, Q-1, R-1, TN-1 and TN-2.) and I-140 (EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3) is suspended temporarily. Like many of us, USCIS service center operations have gone remote, so it is impossible for the agency to keep up with the demand for premium processing of applications. Continue reading “USCIS Suspends Premium Processing for all I-129s and I-140s”
Premium Processing Resumes for FY2019 Cap Subject H-1B Petitions
By: Valentine Brown
On January 26, 2019, USCIS announced that Premium Processing will resume on January 28, 2019 for all cap-subject FY2019 H-1B petitions; in other words, for any H-1B lottery application filed last April that is still pending with the agency. But shouldn’t all of those petitions have already been approved? Well, um…. yes. But wasn’t the employment start for all of those petitions October 1, 2018? Another, Yes. In spite of these facts there are several thousand H-1B cap-subject petitions still un-adjudicated or waiting for a decision months after employers responded to USCIS requests for additional information. Better late than never, as the old adage goes.
The announcement means that employers who have any of those thousands of petitions still at the agency can upgrade them to premium processing and receive a decision or a request for additional information within 15 days. Employers who are currently compiling responses to requests for information can also submit their response with a premium processing upgrade and $1410 to obtain a decision on their petition within 15 days.
The USCIS announcement is only applicable to cap-subject FY2019 H-1B applications. Premium processing remains suspended for the following H-1B categories, at least until February 19, 2019.
- H1B Extension Petitions that include changes to the original position
- H1B Petitions where there is a change of employer
- H1B Petitions that request amendments with changes to the original petition
The continued ban on premium processing, especially for petitions where there is a change of employer is burdensome to both employers and H-1B status holders. With current adjudications taking as long a six months and denial rates higher than ever, it is often too risky for an H-1B nonimmigrant to make an employer switch until the H-1B petition is approved, and for employers waiting six months or more for a new hire to start is untenable.
Premium processing continues to be available for H-1B cap exempt petitions filed by institutions of higher education, government research entities and some qualified non-profit organizations that file petitions at the California Service Center. It is also still available for H-1B extension petitions where there are no changes or amendments. These are applications that are filed with the Nebraska Service Center.
USCIS states that the agency will update the availability of premium processing for other categories once the workload of the agency permits. It is unclear whether the original deadline for the lifting of the premium processing ban of February 19, 2019 will be honored, or whether the ban will be further extended.
I-9 Compliance More Important than Ever during E-Verify Outage
By: Valentine Brown
The government has been shut down for 29 days, with no signs go reopening anytime soon. Although USCIS has continued to operate due to being self-funded by application filing fees, E-Verify’s funding was discontinued by the shutdown, so the system has been inoperable since December 22, 2018. For many employers, using E-Verify as part of an immigration compliance scheme is voluntary, however for federal contractors and employers in several states, E-Verify is mandatory. In either case, losing the availability of this valuable double check on employee eligibility to work leaves an employer relying on the I-9 process. Below are a few reminders to get employers through the shutdown and to make sure they are ready when the E-Verify system is back up and running:
Make copies of employee documents used for I-9 completion: To be sure, copying an employee’s identity documents is not required for the I-9 process, however it has increasingly become considered as a best practice for employers, especially in our new age of 6000+ ICE I-9 audits per year. (But remember, for E-Verify employers, photo matching requires employers to make copies of green cards, work permits and U.S. passports when they are presented for verification purposes.) Keeping copies of documents with the I-9 form has several benefits in the shutdown context. At some point the government will reopen and the employee’s information will have to be inputted to the E-Verify system. Having copies of the employee’s documents will serve to ensure that the employer has the correct employee information, for submission and as a double check on the information entered on the I-9 form. Having copies will reduce the likelihood that the employer will have to go back to the employee for additional information once E-Verify is back up and running. Reducing the number of employee contacts during the I-9/E-Verify process reduces the opportunities for unwitting I-9 discrimination to occur, including document abuse and citizenship status discrimination.
Conduct careful review of all documents presented for I-9 purposes: Without the E-Verify check available, employers will be relying on their own judgment as to the validity and veracity of immigration-related documents presented during the shutdown. While it is not necessary for employers to be a fake document expert, it is required that they review the presented documents to make sure they appear valid and relate to the person who is presenting them. Immigration documents, such as work permits and green cards have changed over the years, so determining what is a valid document is not always as easy as it seems it should be. In the M-274 Handbook for Employers, there are many samples of what the various immigration documents look like as well as descriptions of their security features. Employers should use information in the handbook to compare to documents presented if they have questions.
Store shutdown period I-9s together: Best practice is to store I-9s separately from employee files in order to ensure that information on the I-9 forms remains private and is not inadvertently, or purposely used to make employment decisions. I recommend three I-9 files: (1) active employees with no reverification required (2) active employees with reverification required (3) terminated employees stored in order by termination date. I would add another temporary category of I-9s prepared during the shutdown. This will allow employers to easily identify those I-9s that will have to be entered into E-Verify once it is back up and running. After the shutdown is over, the I-9s can be folded back into the three standing files as described above.
With no signs of stopping, the shutdown maybe with us for a while. Taking extra care now with your I-9 forms will ease the burden of catching up on E-Verify entries, once the system is back up and running.