Russia will introduce a streamlined immigration process for highly skilled workers to attract more foreign national talent to Russia. As of July 1st, the flow of immigrants into Russia will be divided into two categories: ordinary guest workers and highly qualified specialists (exempt from Russia's work permit quota and employment permit regimes). Defined as foreign nationals with considerable achievements in their field and an annual income exceeding $2 million rubles (approximately 65 000 USD/ 53 000 EUR), highly qualified specialists will be able to secure work permits faster and easier. Further, highly skilled foreign nationals will have special privileges, such as paying the same tax rates as Native Russians.

If you are a Russian employer, employing highly skilled critical talent has just gotten easier with this new legislation by reducing the red tape, speeding up the processing...

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released H-1B cap numbers as of June 18, receiving 22,900 toward the 65,000 cap-subject H-1B petitions and 9,700 towards the 20,000 H-1B Master's category.

Thus, H-1B cap numbers remain available, and there is still time to submit your FY2011 H-1B visa application for foreign national applicants beginning employment on October 1, 2010 or later.

Contact your immigration services provider to see if this is an option for you/your foreign national or learn more about best practices for preparing your FY2011 H-1B application.

Photo attribution: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8042373@N03/

Earlier this month, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) re-designed E-Verify, an employment verification program that instantly determines the work authorization of a U.S. employee by matching Form I-9 data with government databases. While federal contractors and sub-contractors are required to use E-Verify, employers use of the controversial E-Verify program is optional (depending on state legislation) -- over 1,400 new employers currently join every week.

The enhancements of the re-design are meant to improve its usability, efficiency and accuracy. Learn more about E-Verify and Form I-9 or to determine your E-Verify options contact your immigration services provider.

New E-Verify enhancements include:

A re-designed home page with a new security measure that immediately displays the date and time of the employer's last login Improved case management...

Every two years the United States Center for Immigration Services (USCIS) completes a comprehensive fee review to assess whether they are covering their costs in providing immigration services and benefits.  With the last comprehensive fee review in 2007, the USCIS conducted another comprehensive review in 2009, which has resulted in a proposal to increase fees.  While there are some exceptions, to compensate for the gap between the cost of immigration services and the revenue being brought in, the USCIS is proposing an overall 10% fee increase for the average application and petition fees.

On June 11, 2010 the USCIS entered into a required 45 day public comment period to gather public opinion and feedback on the fee proposal. After this period, the USCIS will consider the collected feedback and make a final decision on the fee proposal.  Should you have any questions on how the fee increase may affect you, please contact your legal services provider....

Indian nationals in the second employment-based preference category finally received the good news that they have long been waiting for - the U.S. Department of State's ("DOS") July 2010 Visa Bulletin shows a gigantic leap forward of 8 months after months of stagnation.  This, along with the DOS's revised year-end projections, makes this bulletin one of the most informative and welcome bulletins so far this year.

This month's bulletin shows relatively steady progress overall, including:

In the EB third preference category, all other countries besides India and Mexico are now at 08/15/2003, which is a move forward of 1 month and 3 weeks from the cutoff dates in the prior bulletin. EB-3 Indian nationals saw relatively greater movement forward, by 1 month, to 11/22/2001. The EB-3 Other Workers category also remains at 06/01/2001, as it has since the beginning...

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released H-1B cap numbers as of June 11, receiving 22,200 toward the 65,000 cap-subject H-1B petitions and 9,400 towards the 20,000 H-1B Master's category.

Thus, H-1B cap numbers remain available, and there is still time to submit your FY2011 H-1B visa application for foreign national applicants beginning employment on October 1, 2010 or later.

Contact your immigration services provider to see if this is an option for you/your foreign national or learn more about best practices for preparing your FY2011 H-1B application.

Photo attribution: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8042373@N03/

Although it isn't required, most people turn to their immigration attorneys when petitioning or applying for nonimmigrant and immigrant visas, since finding the correct visa for one's specific circumstances can be tricky. We wonder, then, if fictional immigration attorneys are just that bad at their jobs, or if some of pop-culture's most famous immigrants just can't be bothered to seek legal advice.

Alas, what would we do if someone reported Superman or some other beloved fictional characters to ICE? Well, that just wouldn't do. Therefore, we decided to assess the situations of five of TV and film's most well-known foreign nationals, and give them advice on maintaining proper status in the United States.

(PLEASE NOTE: The following article is completely tongue-in-cheek and should in no way, shape, or form be considered as real immigration advice.)

1. Clark Kent (Superman)

Born in: Krypton...

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced at the end of May that it will be eliminating the paper Form I-94W, arrival/departure document, for participants of the Visa Waiver Program, a program that enables nationals of participating countries to travel to the U.S. for tourism or business for 90 days or less without obtaining a visa. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection will be removing the paper I-94W requirements for U.S.-bound flights on a rolling basis over the next several months. To prepare for this change, VWP travelers should submit ESTA applications as soon as they have begun making travel plans.  As of January 2009, all nationals of Visa Waiver Program ("VWP") countries have been required to file an online application under the Electronic System for Travel Authorization ("ESTA") prior to arriving in the United States.  The purpose of the electronic system is to help DHS determine whether a VWP traveler presents a security threat before the individual boards an aircraft into the United States.  Prior to ESTA, all VWP travelers were required to complete a paper Form I-94W, arrival/departure document, upon entry into the United States.  The data from this form was collected and entered electronically by U.S. Customs and Border Protection ("CBP"), and the paper form was surrendered when the individual departed the U.S....

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released H-1B cap numbers as of May 14, receiving 20,800 toward the 65,000 cap-subject H-1B petitions and 8,700 towards the 20,000 H-1B Master's category.

Thus, H-1B cap numbers remain available, and there is still time to submit your FY2011 H-1B visa application for foreign national applicants beginning employment on October 1, 2010 or later.

Contact your immigration services provider to see if this is an option for you/your foreign national or learn more about best practices for preparing your FY2011 H-1B application.

Photo attribution: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8042373@N03/

Following several recent changes to the India Business and Employment Visa category since 2009, we see yet another requirement change.  Effective immediately applicants should now include a Justification Letter with the Employment Visa application. The Justification Letter should be from the employer in India confirming the applicant is a skilled and qualified professional, technical expert, senior executive or in a managerial position.  This letter should also substantiate why and how those skills are not available in India and therefore clarifying why the applicant is needed.

As with most countries, the requirements can change slightly from country to country.  At this time the Justification Letter is a requirement for only the India Consulates in the United States.  We will continue to monitor the requirements at other Consulates to see if they also implement the Justification Letter.

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