USCIS National Stakeholder Meeting Updates - 08/26/09
Please find attached Details of USCIS National Stakeholder Meeting which was held on July 27, 2009.
Please find attached Details of USCIS National Stakeholder Meeting which was held on July 27, 2009.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed rule on the removal of HIV infection from its list of communicable diseases of public health significance - As of now with respect to the above proposed rule the Chicago Field Office has not received any guidance from HQ. Hence the office will not hold such applications in suspension until further notice.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Application Support Center (ASC) stand-alone sites will move to a Monday through Friday schedule beginning Nov. 2, 2009. Stand-alone ASCs are those which are not co-located with other federal offices and which previously operated Tuesday through Saturday. All ASCs, both stand-alone and co-located sites, will continue to be open from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.
The DOL released a memo to regional administrators and district directors regarding travel and visa expenses of H-2B workers under FLSA minimum wage laws. In January 2009, the Department ofHomeland Security delegated to Wage and Hour enforcement authority to ensure that H-2B workers are employed in compliance with the H-2B labor certification requirements. Wage and Hour issued regulations implementing this authority, 29 C.F.R. Part 655, which became effective on January 18,2009. Those regulations are applicable to applications for certifications filed on or after that date.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the Office of Management and Budget has extended its approval of Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) to Aug. 31, 2012. Consequently, USCIS has amended the form to reflect a new revision date of Aug. 7, 2009.
Employers may use the Form I-9 with the revision date of either Aug. 7, 2009 or Feb. 2, 2009. The revision dates are located on the bottom right-hand portion of the form.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano announced new directives to enhance and clarify oversight for searches of computers and other electronic media at U.S. ports of entry—a critical step designed to bolster the Department’s efforts to combat transnational crime and terrorism while protecting privacy and civil liberties.
1. I am on H1B. It is valid until 2010. Since I am hearing that there are many queries on the port of entry, do ou think I should travel back to the country with valid AP or H1? Which one is more preferable?
2. Considering I have valid H1B until 2010 and valid AP (though I don't have AP at the moment). I plan to stay on H1 as long as I am waiting for my greencard. But for travel purposes I use AP. Does coming back into the country using AP will change my status from H1 to EAD?
3. How long is AP processing taking these days?
4. All my co-workers are getting huge queries on H1 extension or H1 transfer. Is AP processing also getting queries? Should I even start AP processing?
5. Please list out all the documents that I should carry while traveling?
1. I think I prefer AP. Read the Cronin memo and you will understand that even if you enter using AP, you will be considered to be on valid H-1 as long as you were maintaining H-1 status before you left. Search the word "Cronin" on my blog .
2. No. See answer above.
3. It is impossible to predict times. Plan for a six-month turnaround.
4. Do not be scared of queries. We are yet to lose an H-1 case. I am not aware of any queries on AP.
5. Advance Parole and Passport.
[Federal Register: August 28, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 166)]
[Notices]
[Page 44376-44377]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr28au09-66]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Agency Information Collection Activities: Form I-600/I-600A, Revision of a Currently Approved Information Collection; Comment Request
[Federal Register: August 28, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 166)]
[Notices]
[Page 44375-44376]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr28au09-65]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Agency Information Collection Activities: Form I-485 and Supplements A and E, Revision of a Currently Approved Information Collection; Comment Request
Here is a document USDOL (Wage and Hour Division) is using to send to employees. This outlines the factors USDOL is most interested in when investigating an employer.
The following FAQ should cover the issues.
The application process, whether non-immigrant or Green Card, involves a lot of paperwork, forms to be filled out, birth certificates, and other documents like filing fees and much more. During this process, meeting government officials, visiting embassies/consulates, tracking the application progress, and writing letters to the concerned authorities regarding follow-ups or delays will be essential. Below are a few pointers that provide information and guidelines on all types of immigration delays:
I am on H-1B and my spouse is on H-4 EAD. She got her EAD last year. She would like to do online business where she will sell items online on eCommerce website like ebay, amazon, etsy. These items will be shipped from India. I would like to know if she can do such online business where the items are going to be shipped from India.
Of course on H-4 EAD, she can do anything she likes, she can do online business, sell items on ebay amazon no problem at all. These items shipped from India is perfectly fine.
Note: This is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
1. | Legal Fees (for our Office)
1,800 - $2,400 depending on type of case, due at the commencement of the case |
2. |
Filing Fees to the USCIS (Single Applicant): Form N-400, See USCIS Fee Calculator |
3. | Federal Express Expenses: approximately $75 - $100 |
1. |
Legal Fees (for our Office)$6,800 ($3,200 for preparing the Labor Certification Application at the commencement of the case followed by $2,400 for preparing Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker; and $1,200 for preparing Form I-485, Application to Adjust Status/Consular Processing. |
The fee schedule for Green Card through Extraordinary Ability Alien, Outstanding Researcher/Professor, and Multinational Manager (fees are payable by personal checks) is as follows:
1. | Legal Fees (for our Office):
$6,800 for EB-1 ($5,600 at the commencement of the case and |
Note: For governmental Requests For Evidence (RFEs), we charge extra based upon the complexity of the issue(s).
1. | Legal Fees (for our Office):
$15,000 payable as follows for preparing I-526 Immigrant Petition: $10,000 at the commencement and the second installment of $5000 on the 1st day of the following month. |
1. | Legal Fees (for our Office):
$5,800 ($4,600 at the commencement of the case and |
2. |
Filing Fees (to the USCIS): Single Applicant |
1. | Legal Fees (for our Office):
$5,800 ($4,600 at the commencement of the case and |
2. |
Filing Fees (to the USCIS): Single Applicant |
The fee schedule for EB-3 (Schedule A) NURSES (fees are payable by personal or corporate checks) is as follows:
1. | Legal Fees (for our Office):
$5,800 ($4,600 at the commencement of the case and |
2. |
Filing Fees (to the USCIS): Single Applicant |
1. | Legal Fees (for our Office):
$5,800 ($4,600 at the commencement of the case and |
2. |
Filing Fees (to the USCIS): Single Applicant Forms I-360, I-485, See USCIS Fee Calculator |
3. |
Federal Express Expenses: approximately $300 -$400 |
Fee Type | Amount |
---|---|
Legal fees (to our Office, payable at the commencement of the case) | $2,800 |
Fedex Expenses | appx. $100 |
1. | Legal fees (for our Office) | $2,600 payable at the commencement of the case |
2. | Filing fees (to the USCIS) for Form I-129 |
$1,015 (for companies with 26 or more employees) |
Dear Rajiv Khanna jee
I am not able to express my happiness when I got your mail. I can just say THANK YOU for the sincere effort and a strong belief that you always had in my case. I also want to share the amount of frustration that I went through after the second refusal of the application. Still in that moment of time you said that you will not give up until we achieve our goal. I want to thank Diane, Sumanjee for their immense support of preparing things with the detailed hard work. Many Many thanks. We will always be together.
Sincerely
Ronu Majumdar