OUTSIDE THE BOX THINKING, DELIVERING CUTTING EDGE SOLUTIONS!

These USCIS statistics on DACA cases from 8/15/12 to 7/31/13 show a total of 552,918 DACA requests accepted for processing, 540,821 biometric services appointments scheduled, and 430,236 requests approved.

The data also shows the number of accepted and approved requests from the top countries of origin and the top states of residence. Mexico was the top county of origin with 421,649 received to date and 329,833 approved. California was the top state of residence with 157,182 received to date and 127,207 approved.

View the (.PDF) USCIS Report, “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Process (August, 2013)”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Office of Immigration Statistics has released a report entitled, “Estimates of the Legal Permanent Resident Population in 2012.” This report uses estimates of the legal permanent resident (LPR) population living in the United States as of January 1, 2012. An LPR is any person not a citizen of the United States, who is residing in the U.S. under legally recognized and lawfully recorded permanent residence as an immigrant, also known as a “Green Card Holder.” The estimates are shown for the total LPR population, and the LPR population eligible to apply to naturalize by country of birth, state of residence, and the year LPR status was obtained.

Data for the estimates was obtained primarily from administrative records of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). An estimated 13.3 million LPRs lived in the United States as of January 1, 2012, and 8.8 million of them were eligible to become U.S. citizens. The majority (61 percent) obtained LPR status in 2000 or later.

Source of Information:

The H-2B non-agricultural temporary worker program allows U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary non-agricultural jobs.

The H-2B cap limit for the second half of FY 2013 (April 1 – September 30) is 33,000. As of the last count (8/9/13); 27,168 beneficiaries have been approved and 1,170 are pending for a total of 28,338.

The H-2B cap limit for first half of FY 2014 (October 1 – March 31) is 33,000. As of the last count (8/9/13); 678 beneficiaries have been approved and 652 are pending for a total of 1,330.

The Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) recently overturned the decision of a Certifying Officer (CO) to deny labor certification for the position of “Software Engineer.”

After obtaining & examining an Employer’s Application for Permanent Labor Certification, the CO issued an Audit notification ordering the Employer to submit its Prevailing Wage Determination (PWD) and other requested documentation. The Employer replied to the Audit by providing the PWD as well as the other documents.

The CO denied the labor certification stating the prevailing wage on the ETA form 9089 did not match the one listed on the PWD. He cited a violation of PERM Regulations 656.10(c) (1), 656.40 AND 656.41. In addition, the Employer’s Notice of Filing did not contain the job requirements or duties as listed on the ETA Form 9089. The Employer requested a reconsideration of the denial stating the prevailing wage inconsistency was an unintentional harmless error. The Employer also believed all of its audit response materials were compliant with PERM regulations.

MVP Law Group, P.A. makes available the information and materials in this forum for informational purposes only. The information is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice or any contractual obligations. Further, the use of this site, and the sending or receipt of this information, does not create an attorney-client relationship between us. Therefore, your communication with us through this forum will not be considered as privileged or confidential.

Question #1 – H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa

I am currently on H1B status with my employer and my future employer has filed a H1B. Can I start working for the other employer without an approval?

Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) Processing Times were released with processing dates as of August 12, 2013.

If you filed an appeal, please review the link below to determine the applicable processing time associated with your particular case.

Administrative Appeals Office

The Department of State has released its latest Visa Bulletin.

Click here to view the September 2013 Visa Bulletin

As projected by the U.S. Department of State, the September 2013 Visa Bulletin shows the EB2 date for nationals from India at 6/15/08; EB3 date for nationals from India at 9/22/03; no movement in EB2 for Chinese Nationals; movement in EB3 for Chinese Nationals at 07/01/10; and movement in EB3, WW at 07/01/10; and the F2A category has gone current, this category is reserved exclusively for Spouses and unmarried children (under the age of 21) of green card holders (LPRs).

The Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) recently affirmed the decision of a Certifying Officer (CO) to deny labor certification for the position of “Design Engineer-Mechanical.”

After receiving & reviewing an Employer’s Application for Permanent Labor Certification, the CO issued an Audit notification. The Employer responded by sending its recruitment report as well as resumes from U.S. applicants. In response, the CO informed the Employer that they would be required to conduct supervised recruitment. As part of the process, the Employer could only advertise the position in permitted publications and abide by specific advertising conditions. The Employer sent the CO a copy of the proposed job advertisement that was approved by the CO. A few weeks later, the Employer sent copies of the Arkansas State Workforce Agency job order; newspaper ads, on-line job postings from its company web page and a job search website. The CO told the Employer about the resumes that he had received as well.

A few months later, the CO told the Employer that the recruitment time had concluded. In 30 days, the employer was required to submit a comprehensive written report about the recruitment process and the outcomes. In a timely manner, the Employer presented its recruitment results. In the report, the Employer noted it had received resumes from 45 applicants. During the review of the resumes, the Employer cited it considered job applicants based on their education, training, experience as well as trainability. The Employer believed that none of the applicants fulfilled the minimum job requirements and therefore, were not qualified for the position.

We wanted to find a new way to engage our reader base. Every other Friday, we will post the ten (10) best/most frequently asked questions received during the week from our h1bvisalawyerblog, Facebook, and Twitter readers. We will answer those questions and provide the Q&A on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.

If you have a burning question, are seeking assistance with a difficult immigration related case, wish to discuss your views on Comprehensive Immigration Reform, DREAMers, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, priority dates, the monthly visa bulletin, adjustment applications, etc., please contact us by submitting your question/comment/viewpoint in our comment box provided on our H-1B Visa Lawyer Blog.

Our next “Q & A Forum” will take place this Friday, August 16, 2013. Act now and submit your questions!

Processing Time reports for all of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) Service Centers were released on 8/2/13 with processing dates as of 5/31/13.

If you filed a petition with one of the Service Centers, please review the links below to determine the applicable processing time associated with your particular case.

California Service Center

Contact Information