Ashwin Sharma interviewed by Reuters on U.S. demand for skilled worker visas topping quota
Ashwin Sharma interviewed by Reuters on U.S. demand for skilled worker visas topping quota
Preliminary paperwork that prospective visa seekers must file with the Department of Labor before applying to USCIS indicates that there is demand for well over 65,000 visas, said Jacksonville, Florida-based lawyer Ashwin Sharma, who handles H-1B visa applications for technology consulting firms. He expects a record volume of applications this year.
Dept. of Labor indicates that “Unusually High Number of Cases Filed”: Issuing Generic LCA Certification Notices
http://www.ashwinsharma.com, VIA AILA.org
More indications of the impending avalanche of H-1B cases set to be filed for the quota which opens April 1, and of the problems caused by DOL’s iCERT website. According to AILA, The U.S. Department of Labor has been sending the following e-mail to many LCA submitters: “Due to an unusually high volume of submitted cases, one or more Labor Condition Application cases you submitted recently was certified but the courtesy email informing you of the certification was not generated. Please log into the iCERT Visa Portal System to review your recently submitted cases and retrieve the certification(s).”
USCIS Anticipates Meeting FY 2014 H-1B Cap in First Few Days – First Time since 2008
By nation in 2005 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
By Ashwin Sharma, Esq.
The latest H-1B numerical cap (FY 2014) opens on April 1, 2013. USCIS has indicated that it expects to receive more than 65,000 cap-subject H-1B petitions and more than 20,000 petitions filed on behalf of individuals with a U.S. master’s degree or higher between April 1, 2013, and April 5, 2013. USCIS will monitor the number of petitions received and notify the public of the date on which the numerical limit of the H-1B cap has been met. This date is known as the final receipt date. If USCIS receives more petitions than it can accept, USCIS will use a lottery system to randomly select the number of petitions required to reach the numerical limit. USCIS will reject petitions that are subject to the cap and are not selected, as well as petitions received after it has the necessary number of petitions needed to meet the cap.
This could be the first time since April 2008 that the H-1B cap will require a lottery. USCIS has also indicated that premium processing for H-1B petitions filed for the Cap will note begin until April 15, 2013, quite understandable considering they are expecting an avalanche of H-1B cases.
That we are at 2008 application levels and preparing for another H-1B lottery is testament to two major factors:
1. Information Technology consulting, and the large variety of industries supported by it, have largely rebounded since the 2008 economic crash.
2. There are not enough H-1B visas to meet demand. Increasing H-1B numbers was obviously not at the top of the priority list during the economic collapse, however, it must be addressed directly by any Comprehensive Immigration Reform program. Increasing the H-1B quota, along with the addition of a special category for IT workers, is a no-brainer – one of the simplest fixes Congress can make in both strengthening this country’s economy and status as a tech superpower.
Related articles
- US to accept H1B applications from April 1 (news.in.msn.com)
Can I re-enter the U.S. with a valid I-94 and expired visa? – Automatic revalidation for certain temporary visitors
Canadian visa for single entry (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
VIA CBP.GOV
Under the automatic revalidation provision of immigration law, certain temporary visitors holding expired nonimmigrant visas who seek to return to the U.S. may be admitted at a U.S. port of entry by Customs and Border Protection (CBP), if they meet certain requirements, including, but not limited to the following:
A nonimmigrant who departed the U.S. for brief travel to Canada, Mexico, or an adjacent islands (for F and J nonimmigrant) for thirty days or less;
Nonimmigrant who have changed their nonimmigrant status (for F and J nonimmigrant) to another nonimmigrant status through U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and has a valid (unexpired) Form I-94, Arrival-Departure Record, endorsed by DHS can travel to Canada, Mexico or an adjacent island for thirty days or less.
Nonimmigrant who is eligible to re-enter the U.S. pursuant to the authority of automatic revalidation is not able to benefit from the automatic revalidation process if the passport of the nonimmigrant reflects evidence that while in a contiguous territory or on an adjacent island the nonimmigrant applied for a new visa and is pending a decision or has been denied a new visa application.
For more information about automatic revalidation provisions and reentry to the U.S. visit the Automatic Revalidation Fact Sheet on page 18 of the Carrier Information Guide on CBP.gov. Note: Carrier Information Guide is currently being updated to accurately reflect the countries listed below.
Nationals of Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria are not eligible for automatic revalidation of an expired visa.
Overview of the the STEM Jobs Act
STEM Jobs Act of 2012 Press Conference (Photo credit: republicanconference)
Via The House Committee on the Judiciary
“Graduates of American universities in science, technology, engineering, and math – or “STEM” fields – are behind many of the innovations and new businesses that are part of our present and future economic growth. Talented students from around the world contribute to the graduate STEM programs of our universities. Foreign students receive nearly four out of every 10 master’s degrees awarded in STEM fields and about the same percentage of all doctorates.
But our immigration system does not always put American interests first. We have the most generous level of legal immigration in the world but we select only 5% of our immigrants based on the skills and education they bring to America. Although these foreign graduates of U.S. universities in STEM fields are in great demand by American employers, many of them end up on years-long green card waiting lists. And as a result, many of them give up and go to work for one of our global competitors.
In an ever-competitive global economy, we must keep our country as the world’s greatest source of innovation and creativity. The STEM Jobs Act allows employers to fill their talent needs with foreign graduates of U.S. universities with advanced degrees in STEM so that they can continue creating jobs and growing our economy.”
Controversial STEM Jobs Act Proposes to transfer 55,000 visas from Diversity Visa Lottery to Masters and Ph.D. Graduates in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Eligible countries for the Diversity Visa Lottery (Credit: Wikipedia)
The controversial H.R. 6429, otherwise known as the “STEM Jobs Act” (Rep. Smith, R-TX & 68 cosponsors) proposes to create new “V” visa categories for families awaiting reunification as well as visas for Ph.D and Masters graduates in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The Act would, however, eliminate the (poorly implemented) Diversity Visa Lottery program that makes green cards available to certain individuals from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. The STEM Jobs Act has made it through the House, but will be almost certainly defeated in the Senate, where Democrats hold both a majority and a soft spot for the Lottery.
The White House, despite having repeatedly highlighted the substantial deficiency the nation faces in the STEM fields, has quickly declared its opposition to the STEM Jobs Act, indicating that it “does not support narrowly tailored proposals that do not meet the President’s long-term objectives with respect to comprehensive immigration reform.” In other words, the Administration wants immigration reform on an ‘all or nothing’ basis. This is more than a little puzzling given that during the latest election cycle, President Obama repeatedly raised the issue of the many difficult decisions necessitated in the short-term so as to invigorate the U.S. economy. This is not one of those difficult decisions.
U.S. Mission in India Expands Interview Waiver Program
USA B1/B2 Visa (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
New Delhi | November 19, 2012
In March of 2012, the United States Mission to India unveiled the Interview Waiver Program (IWP) which allows qualified individuals to apply for additional classes of visas without being interviewed in person by a U.S. consular officer. Following the success of the IWP, as part of continuing efforts to streamline the visa process, and to meet increased visa demand in India, the U.S. Mission is pleased to announce an expansion of the IWP. We expect this expansion to benefit thousands of visa applicants in India.
NFAP Report: DOL Threatens Personal and Commercial Privacy in Proposal Directed Against Skilled Foreign Nationals
The recently released National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) report underscores the severe consequences that will result if the U.S. Department of Labor’s proposed changes to form ETA 9035 (LCA) are implemented.
Attorney Sharma’s PolicyMic Article: Infosys Visa Fraud: Judge Dismisses Whistleblower Suit
By Ashwin Sharma
Earlier this week, Judge Thompson of federal court for the Middle District of Alabama rejected all claims brought by Jack Palmer against his employer, Infosys. Palmer claimed to have been harassed and retaliated against after making allegations that Infosys’ massive B-1 visa program was used fraudulently in place of more appropriate visas.
By way of background, when these allegations first arose in early 2011, I wrote about the strong likelihood that Infosys may have been engaging in a perfectly legal action under existing U.S. immigration law on B-1 visas. Subsequently, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), apparently motivated by Palmer’s Testimony, addressed a strongly worded but poorly researched memo to Secretary Hillary Clinton in which he demanded a complete review of the B-1 visa. His request was inexplicably granted, and the resultant changes substantially injured the economic interests of U.S. organizations engaged in international trade, countermanded congressional intent on the subject, and escalated denials for B-1 applicants at U.S. Consulates, especially those in the ‘B-1 in lieu of H-1B’ category.
Returning to the court’s decision: It was interesting to note that despite all the recent attention on various states’ interpretation of federal immigration law, Judge Thompson avoided the topic entirely: “Palmer’s brief spends an inordinate amount of time addressing whether Infosys engaged in visa fraud. To be clear, this litigation does not concern whether Infosys violated American immigration law. Rather, Palmer’s suit rises and falls on a simple inquiry: whether he has created a genuine dispute of material fact on his state-law claims.”
H-1B Temporary Visa Program – Selected Statistics, FY 2012 YTD (Through June 2012)
VIA THE OFFICE OF FOREIGN LABOR CERTIFICATION
H-1B Temporary Visa Program – Selected Statistics, FY 2012 YTD (.PDF, through June 2012)
NBC Newswire and The Associated Press joins Reuters in reporting on possibility that the entire year’s H-1B Work Visa Quota could be exhausted in a week
Steve Jobs and Bill Gates at the fifth D: All Things Digital conference (D5) in 2007 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
NBC Newswire and The Associated Press have added to yesterday’s Reuter’s article, for which I was interviewed, reporting on the possibility that the entire year’s national quota of H-1B Professional Work Visas could be used up in as little as a week’s time. The article discusses the recent Republican led attempt to reform immigration for highly skilled workers through the failed STEM Jobs Act, and makes the point that such an obvious demand for skilled workers sends a clear signal that the U.S. economic collapse is over and that Congressional overhaul of the H-1B should be part of any Comprehensive Immigration Reform legislation. Congress would do wise to listen to the likes of more than 100 top tech leaders including Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and even the late Steve Jobs, all of whom were proponents of increasing limits on Professional Work visas.
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