As of Monday, April 5, 2010, Vermont Service Center had received a total of 9,525 quota H-1B petitions. 6,791 were bachelor's, and 2,734 were advanced degree. All cases received before April 7, 2010, will get an April 7, 2010 receipt date. Those received on April 7, 2010 or later will have the actual receipt date. For those submitted for Premium Processing, the clock will start on April 7, 2010.

Quite a few of our community members have asked me about the basic laws governing adoptions. One of my colleagues has prepared brief write up for you.

Here is a set of questions posed to me recently by one of our clients:

I am Mr. Jones, the employer. The employee, Mr. Smith, is no longer employed with us because of company's budget issue. However, we may hire him in the near future if circumstance changes.

My question:
Q1. Do we need to withdraw PERM LC for him that was submitted 2009?
The status is still in process now. I would like to know if this PERM LC still has any goods for him. Let me know the pros & cons between withdraw it and not withdraw it.

Here is a question from our clients-only extranet.

What kind of problems can employment-based nonimmigrants (H-1, L-1, E-1, E-2, E-3, TN) face during reentry?

I think this question is most relevant for H-1 holders, but other employment-based nonimmigrants may also note the general principles here.

I am reproducing material from our employers-only (by invitation only) conference call for tomorrow. These matters need to be in place for H-1 new applications, transfers as well as extensions.

I have received e-mails from folks about my 2009 articles on immigration law compliance and end-client letter issues in H-1B cases published by American Law Institute - American Bar Association. Here is the link:
http://www.immigration.com/articles-rajiv-s-khanna

USCIS' Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) office has recently explained the three types of site visits that are currently being conducted:

1. Risk Assessment Program fraud study (RANDOM VISITS). This is a joint study by USCIS and ICE applicable to both family-based and employment-based cases. Cases are chosen for randomly for review and site visits  usually after a case is approved. The purpose of this study is to build a profile of the types of cases where fraud is most prevalent.

Here is a series of questions that should be relevant for many people:

PLEASE CONFIRM THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION WITH THE U.S. CONSULATE CLOSEST TO THE PLACE OF RESIDENCE IN YOUR HOME COUNTRY. LAWS ARE SUBJECT TO FREQUENT CHANGES