Modernized Visa Bulletin

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Check Out the New Visa Bulletin

The spate of immigration-related executive orders announced by President Obama in November 2014 has received attention because of the proposed expansion of DACA and the addition of DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans). While these provisions are being litigated, there are other immigration aspects of the executive orders that are being placed into practice. One of those is the modernization of the visa system. The October 2015 Visa Bulletin is the inaugural “modernized” visa system.

There are now two charts available per visa preference category. The Visa Bulletin will display Application Final Action Dates and Dates for Filing Applications. The Final Action Dates are when the visas can be issued. The Filing Applications Dates are the earliest an applicant may apply for Permanent Residence.

There are many individuals in the United States who have an approved PERM (Permanent Labor Certification) petition, but have not been able to apply for their Green Cards because they are waiting in lines. An Indian national might have his EB-2 PERM petition approved from October in 2010 but still be waiting in the line. While this does nothing to change the line, it provides guidelines on when individuals can file and get the Permanent Resident process started. Another benefit for someone in that situation is that he can change his employment without injuring his chances for permanent residence. The American Competitiveness Act allows for this change in employment.

The other benefit is that this normalizes the chasm in procedures of the Department of State (DOS) and USCIS. DOS handles applications filed abroad and USCIS adjudicates domestic petitions. DOS permitted the application process to begin based on its estimates of when the process would finish and a visa would be needed. USCIS forbade applications until a visa was available. This disparate system caused fluctuations in visa availability and the loss of visas that could be issued in a year. The syncing of procedures should help smooth out the disparities.

For an aspiring American Permanent Resident, the Visa Bulletin is the monthly release that informs you whether you are moving closer to a Green Card or further. It is divided by countries (“chargeability” – India, China, Philippines, Mexico, and everyone else) and by category in both the family and employment categories.

The employment category are broken into five tiers from EB-1 down to EB-5. The family category is organized by five tiers, as well, depending on the status of the person sponsoring the foreign national and her relationship to the foreign national. For example, a US citizen sponsoring her brother is in FB-4.

The Department of State releases the monthly visa bulletins based upon visa availability for the remainder of the fiscal year. The numbers are calculated on the follow factors: qualified visa applicants, pending adjustment of status applications that USCIS has, and the historical drop off rates through denials, withdrawals, and abandonments of petitions.

Immigration Polling

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Recent Poll Shows Immigration a Top Priority

 

Immigration as an overarching broad issue has become a centerpiece of presidential candidates vying for their parties’ nominations. Different immigration plans and statements have been bandied about over the past few months. The focus on immigration seems to be well warranted, not only from a policy-based perspective, but also from a practical voter-based perspective. After all, an election is about convincing the most number of voters to vote for you, both in the primary and in the general election.

New polling information conducted by Gallup indicates that focusing on immigration is crucial for garnering votes. The polling information shows that 20% of US voters will ONLY vote for a candidate who shares their views on immigration. Another 60% of US voters have indicated that immigration as a general topic will be one of their important considerations in deciding on a candidate.

The groups of voters who consider immigration higher among their concerns are Republican registered voters, first- or second-generation immigrants, and Hispanics. Immigration as an electoral concern can mean a million different things. It can encompass H-1B visas, increasing employment immigration, ensuring more border security, integrating immigrants into the United States, etc. One manifestation of immigration this primary election cycle has been the issue of birthright citizenship. The United States is exceptional in providing birthright citizenship through the 14th Amendment (being born in the United States confers United States citizenship, regardless of who the parents are). The elimination of birthright citizenship as a way of dealing with undocumented migrants has received more attention than usual.

These kinds of polls are a mainstay in electoral politics and similar polls will likely be released weekly in the lead up to the primaries early next year and into the general election. The nation’s pulse is on immigration in way that could affect the election. Whether that leads to actual legislative or policy changes remains to be seen. Immigration has been an important issue in the 2004, 2008, and 2012 general elections, but the DREAM Act has remained a legislative proposal and nothing more since 2001.

Yemen Has TPS

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Temporary Protected Status for Yemen

Last week, Secretary Johnson announced that Yemen has Temporary Protected Status. Temporary Protected Status (TPS) has been covered many times on this blog, as many countries around the world that have experienced natural calamities, civil wars, or other strife are on the list for TPS. For example, the countries in West Africa most severely affected by the Ebola virus were granted TPS status last November.

TPS is not the grant of immigration status. It is not a Green Card nor is it a path to one. It allows for a foreign national of a qualifying country to remain in the United States for an extended period of time because conditions are too dangerous in the home country. Employment authorization is the other main benefit, so that the foreign national can legally work in the United States during the stay. The foreign national must have been present in the US at the designation date of TPS. That means someone who is coming from Yemen right now to the United States cannot apply for TPS. Someone from Yemen present in the United States prior to this designation is eligible for TPS.

The list of countries eligible for TPS is here.

Congress and Immigration

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Four Immigration Programs Will Expire September 30

Capitol Building

Congress returns from its summer recess today, and it is tasked with a litany of difficult decisions and issues. Part of its agenda over the next three weeks will be deciding whether to renew four immigration programs. Those include the EB-5 program, CONRAD 30, E-Verify, and the Religious Non-Ministers EB-4 program. Their vitality to the nation is probably dependent on perspective, but Congress is certain to discuss and contemplate these four programs, given the stakes involved.

The EB-5 program concerns millions of dollars of investment each year, especially now that the program has reached an apex in popularity. It is estimated that the program has generated over 5.2 billion dollars of investment and created 31,000 full time US jobs. One place this investment is going is to the renovation of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

CONRAD30 allows individual states’ health departments to hire up to 30 international medical graduate doctors, so that instead of having to fulfill their two year home residency requirement on the J-1 visa, they are sent to rural and underserved medical areas for three full years.

The blog will provide updates on the four programs throughout the month. Congress has 22 days from today to decide whether to renew these programs or to let them sunset. Bills have been proposed, covering all four programs (EB-5 bills, CONRAD30, E-Verify, EB-4 Religious Workers.

September 30, 2015 is an important date for another reason. The Department of Homeland Security is the federal agency tasked with overseeing immigration in the United States. A congressional, presidential, and political battle in March of this year threatened a de-funding of the agency, but a last minute bill funded the agency until the end of the fiscal year (September 30). The prospect of a government shutdown may yet loom again.

E-Verify Up for Renewal

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E-Verify: To Renew or Not to Renew

This week, the blog has covered the immigration programs that are set to expire and sunset on September 30, 2015. When Congress returns from summer recess on September 8, it will have three weeks to renew the programs like it last did in 2012. The focus today is on the E-verify program.

E-Verify is a controversial verification system used by the US government to make sure that employers are not hiring employees who are not authorized to work. The Department of Homeland Security maintains the program with the Social Security Administration. The system matches an employee’s Form I-9 with US government records and if there is a mismatch, the employer and appropriate agency must resolve the incongruence. The Form I-9 must be filled out by employees along with accurate identification within the first three days of working and employers suffer the ramifications of illegal hiring practices.

DHS adulates the E-Verify’s improved accuracy. Opponents of the system discredit the statistics and purported accuracy, focusing on the unacceptable number of incorrect mismatches and the nightmare that puts employers and valid employees through unnecessarily. They do not see the efficacy of the system in slowing down the hiring of unauthorized workers or making American jobs any less attractive. The system is run at American taxpayer expense to the great consternation of E-Verify’s opponents.

Many states have mandated that all employers use the program to root out unauthorized workers. Other states make it optional. One benefit of E-Verify is that employers who use it are allowed to hire STEM OPT (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics students on their Optional Practical Training) for 29 months instead of 12. This provides for a buffer in between school and other immigration options.

This is bound to be an intensely debated issue over the new few weeks as Congress considers whether to renew the program. Opponents are politically widespread and backed with their own numbers. DHS is staunch in trumpeting the efficacy of the program and many states are ebullient in their adoption.