Archive for the ‘Politics/Current Events’ Category
H-1B and L-1 Petition Fees Increase for Certain Employers
Effective immediately, petitioning employers with 50 or more employees in the U.S. and 50% or more of its workforce holding H-1B or L status (L-1A, L-1B and L-2) must submit additional fees for initial and change of employer petitions.
For H-1B petitions of either type, the petitioner must submit an additional $2000. For L-1A and L-1B petitions of either type, the petitioner must submit an additional $2250. These fee increases will remain in effect through September 30, 2014.
Please don’t hesitate to contact our immigration law office in San Francisco if you have questions about these fees.
Tags: H-1B, L-1A, L-1B, petition fee, Public Law 111-230, visa fee
Posted in Alerts, H-1B, Nonimmigrant Visas, Politics/Current Events, USCIS | Read More »
Rise in Visa Denials for Artists Angers Hollywood
The Los Angeles Times ran an article on August 10th discussing increased visa denials and processing delays for artists that have caused an outcry from Hollywood. Every year, across the entertainment industry, leading foreign national artists hold U.S. performances or participate in them. The last year has seen a spike in visa denials and delays from the USCIS’ California Service Center, which processes visa petitions for artists. As a result of this spike, performance centers, festivals and individual and group artists have had to cancel performances.
Hollywood’s anger has reached Congress and the White House. Alejandro Mayorkas, the Director of the USCIS, has agreed to investigate this issue. To read the full LA Times article, see: http://articles.latimes.com/2010/aug/10/local/la-me-workvisa-20100810.
Tags: Alejandro Mayorkas, artists, Hollywood, O visa, P visa
Posted in Nonimmigrant Visas, Politics/Current Events | Read More »
Obama Signs Border Security Bill
As an update to prior blog posts, President Obama signed the $600 million emergency border security bill into law on 08/13/2010.
The bill includes additional funding for Customs and Border Protection (CBP) totaling $254 million, additional funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) totaling $80 million, and additional funding for border security fencing, infrastructure and technology totaling $14 million. The bill also includes $32 million to acquire and deploy unmanned aircraft systems and $6 million to construct two (2) operating bases for use by CBP to carry out enforcement activities. In addition, the bill allocates $196 million to the Department of Justice for border security efforts and $10 million to Courts of Appeals and District Courts for the increased workload that will arise as a result of the increased security.
Please note that the bill also raises filing and fraud prevention and detection fees for L visas by $2,250. It also raises the fees for H-1B visas by $2,000 for applicants who have more than 50 employees in the U.S. if more than 50 percent of their employees are on L or H-1B visas.
Tags: border security, CBP, H.R. 6080, ICE, Obama
Posted in Alerts, Crimes and Immigration, Politics/Current Events, immigration reform | Read More »
Emergency Bill Headed to Obama’s Desk
In a prior post, we informed readers that the Senate was going to vote on the emergency Border Security Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2010 in September 2010 when it returned from its August recess. This is a $600 million spending bill aimed at U.S. border security. Apparently, the Senate has moved on the measure before its recess, passing it by unanimous vote on 08/12/2010. The bill will now head to President Obama’s desk, where it is expected to be signed into law.
Tags: border security, Emergency spending bill, House, Obama, Senate
Posted in Alerts, Crimes and Immigration, Politics/Current Events, immigration reform | Read More »
Emergency Border Security Bill Update
On August 9, 2010, we posted a blog discussing the emergency border security bill passed by the Senate (Border Security Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2010) and urged to be passed by the House of Representatives before it breaks for August recess. Instead of passing the bill sent over by the Senate, the House of Representatives has introduced a new but same bill per procedures that require the House to originate revenue generating measures.
On August 10, 2010, the House passed the new version of this bill by voice vote. The bill must now return to the Senate, which is currently on recess until September 10, 2010, for final passage before being sent to President Obama’s desk for signature. Please stay tuned for additional updates as they become available regarding this legislation.
Tags: emergency border security bill, House of Representatives, Senate
Posted in Alerts, Crimes and Immigration, Politics/Current Events, immigration reform | Read More »
$600 Million Emergency Border Security Bill Passed by Senate
Hours before the Senate broke for its August recess on August 5, 2010, it passed a $600 million dollar emergency spending bill aimed at border security. The bill, which was passed by voice vote and titled Emergency Border Security Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2010, was introduced by Senator Schumer (D-NY) and several of his Democratic colleagues.
The Emergency Border Security Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2010 is a substitute amendment to H.R. 5875, a bill passed by the House of Representatives on July 28, 2010. Further action is needed by the House of Representatives before the bill can be sent to President Obama for signature. Advocates are hoping the House of Representatives will pass the bill today or tomorrow before breaking for August. Otherwise, the bill will not get consideration until September.
The Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Janet Napolitano, released a statement urging the House of Representatives to pass the bill. She stated in her release: “I encourage the House to act quickly on this bill to strengthen our historic border security efforts.”
Stay tuned for more updates regarding this emergency legislation in future posts.
Tags: border security, Emergency spending bill, House of Representatives, Senate
Posted in Alerts, Crimes and Immigration, Politics/Current Events, immigration reform | Read More »
Portions of Arizona’s Controversial Senate Bill 1070 Blocked
Today, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona issued a partial injunction preventing certain portions of SB1070 from taking effect. SB1070, also known as the “Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act,” was signed into law April 23, 2010 by Arizona’s Governor, Janice K. Brewer. It is scheduled to go into effect tomorrow, July 29, 2010. The U.S. Department of Justice has sued the State of Arizona and Governor Brewer, arguing that SB1070 interferes with the Federal government’s ability to set and enforce national immigration policies.
SB1070 has created widespread controversy and outrage due to its harsh immigration provisions that many believe violate civil and constitutional rights. Today, U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton blocked key provisions from taking effect tomorrow. Among the provisions include the reasonable suspicion section allowing police to arrest and detain suspected illegal immigrants without a warrant. In addition, Judge Bolton enjoined the provisions making it illegal for undocumented day laborers to solicit or perform work and the provision requiring immigrants to carry federal immigration documents.
Many SB1070 provisions will go into effect as planned. For example, starting tomorrow, it will become a crime for Arizona state officials to interfere with or refrain from enforcement of federal immigration laws. It will also be a crime to pick up and transport day laborers across Arizona or to give rides to or harbor illegal immigrants. Also, if a vehicle is used to transport an illegal immigrant, it can be impounded.
Please contact our office if you have any questions about SB1070.
Tags: Arizona, Department of Justice, Governor Janice Brewer, SB1070, Susan Bolton
Posted in Alerts, Crimes and Immigration, Politics/Current Events | Read More »
Report Shows 88,000 U.S. Children Lost Immigrant Parent to Deportation
A report based on analysis of data provided by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security was recently released showing that between 1997 and 2007, 88,000 children in the U.S. lost a legal permanent resident parent to deportation. In most of these incidents, the green-card holding parent was deported because they committed a crime deemed by the Department of Homeland Security to be an “aggravated felony”, and therefore a deportable offense.
In 1997, the definition of what constitutes an aggravated felony was significantly expanded to include even relatively minor crimes, such as non-violent theft and drug offenses, as well as other offenses which are not felonies under state law. The study found that in 68% of cases, the crime in question did not involve violence.
Not surprisingly, subsequent to their parents’ deportation, many of these children simply tanked. High rates of depression, anxiety, behavioral problems, as well as plummeting grades were documented.
The results of this study should come as a surprise to no one. It’s obvious that when a child loses a parent, he or she loses a main source of stability and support. What astounds me is that our government, in the name of enforcing our nation’s immigration laws, would inflict this harm on its own citizen children. How absurd from a policy standpoint, considering the broader cost to our society.
As this study recommends, immigration judges should have the discretion to grant individuals a waiver from deportation when minor children are involved.
The study was a joint project of the Immigration Law Clinic at the UC Davis School of Law, and the International Human Rights Law Clinic and the Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Race, Ethnicity and Diversity at the UC Berkeley School of Law. It is available at: http://www.law.ucdavis.edu/news/images/childsbestinterest.pdf.
Tags: immigrant; immigration; green card; lawful permanent resident; children; crime; deportation; removal
Posted in Politics/Current Events, Uncategorized | Read More »
Immigration Reform: What’s Next?
In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, Senators Schumer and Graham outlined a bipartisan proposal for immigration reform. At the heart of the need for reform is the question of what to do with the 12 million or so undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. As the idea of immigration reform gains momentum again, it surely won’t be long before we hear the shrill cries from the anti-immigration conservatives: “No amnesty for people who break our laws!”
Let’s get two things straight: crossing an international border without being inspected is not a criminal offense, and the reforms proposed are no amnesty.
First, immigrants do not cross our border illegally because they are inherently lawbreaking. They do so because there is no legal channel for them to come to the U.S. to fill an entire sector of low-skilled jobs that, for the most part, U.S. citizens do not want.
Second, an amnesty is a pardon, which this proposal is not. Schumer and Graham propose to give the undocumented some type of non-permanent legal status (note: not a green card) only if: 1) they pay fines; 2) pay back taxes; 3) and perform community service. This is no amnesty. Two of these measures are even punitive.
For the record, many undocumented immigrants are already paying taxes, either because taxes are deducted from their paychecks, or because they are affirmatively filing tax returns with an Individual Tax ID Number, which anyone can apply for from the IRS.
Most undocumented immigrants are law-abiding, peaceful, and hard-working. Why should we punish them with steep fines for contributing to the growth of our nation’s economy? And why should we force an entire class of people (who are often living in poverty despite working more than one job) to perform community service? These two proposals strike me as completely unjust, disingenuous, and exploitative.
Tags: amnesty, Graham, immigration reform, Schumer, undocumented
Posted in Politics/Current Events | Read More »
The Start-Up Visa Buzz
While comprehensive immigration reform currently seems a distant dream, there is some support in Congress for a new immigrant visa for entrepreneurs. Called the Start-Up Visa, this new category of immigrant visa would require a $250,000 investment in a start-up venture. At least $100,000 of that capital would need to come from a U.S. investor. An entrepreneur would receive a conditional green card for two years, and at the end of those years, he or she would need to show that the start-up venture created at least 5 jobs for U.S. workers.
Modeled on the EB-5 program, which currently requires a $1,000,000 investment in most cases and the creation of 10 jobs, the Start-Up Visa is a brilliant idea which recognizes that scrappy entrepreneurs (not just those investors who have $1,000,000 in cash to plunk down) create the companies that are an engine of huge growth in our economy. The idea has generated a lobbying effort by Silicon Valley, and appears to have some key Congressional support. To learn more, visit www.startupvisa.com . Let’s hope the xenophobes in Congress don’t kill this one.
Tags: entrepreneurs, start-up visa
Posted in Alternative Visa Categories, Politics/Current Events | Read More »
