NEXUS Inspection Program
The U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (“CBP”) is cooperating with the Canadian
Border Services Agency (“CBSA”) in a program called NEXUS that allows pre-screened,
low-risk travelers to be processed with little or no delay by U.S. and Canadian
officials at designated ports of entry. This program may be of interest to those
companies who find themselves sending their employees frequently between Canada
and the U.S. Individuals who are approved with NEXUS receive an identification card
that allows them to use NEXUS-dedicated lanes and kiosks to report their arrival
in the U.S. and cross the border with a minimum of customs and immigration questioning.
Applicants fill out a single application with the Canadian Customs Processing Center
that must be approved by both the U.S. and Canada. NEXUS is currently operational
at the following border crossings: Blaine, WA; Buffalo, NY; Champlain, NY; Detroit,
MI; Port Huron; MI; and Vancouver, BC. For more information, consult the Canadian Border Services Patrol website, or call (toll free)
1-866-NEXUS26.
H-2B Cap
On December 5, 2006, the USCIS announced that it has reached the congressionally
mandated H-2B cap of 33,000 U.S. workers for Fiscal Year 2006. The final receipt
date was set as November 28, 2006 for workers that have never held H-2B status.
This is the date that the USCIS decides that they will most likely reach the cap
on a specific day. Those petitions that are received on the final receipt date of
November 28, 2006, will be randomly selected until they reach the amount of petitions
required to meet the cap.
This cap does not apply to those who are currently in H-2B status or those who are
returning workers. In order to be exempt, a worker must have a filed an H-2B petition
between October 1, 2003 and September 30, 2006. Any worker who is not exempt from
the cap will be rejected and will be allowed to file on or after April 1, 2007 for
their new H-2B petition. The following types of cases will continue to be filed:
- Extension of stay for current H-2B workers;
- Change in previously approved employment and extension of stay;
- Change or add employers and extension of stay;
- Request eligible H-2B returning workers.
New Rights for H and L Dependants
A recent USCIS memorandum has announced changes in the manner in which dependent
stays in the U.S. are calculated toward the six-year H maximum period of admission.
Until now, nonimmigrant visitors have been limited to six years in H-1B status in
the U.S. This limit has also been interpreted to include time spent in L-1 status,
as well as in dependent H or L status (i.e. – H-4 or L-2 status).
The new memorandum states that time spent in either of these dependant statuses
will no longer be counted toward the six-year maximum. In practice, this means that
any individual who has spent time in either H-4 or L-2 status will not have to include
that period toward the six-year maximum should they subsequently attempt to change
status to H-1B or L-1.
The USCIS cites its desire to afford each nonimmigrant the full opportunity to utilize
their respective employment ability in making this determination. Individuals will
now be able to avail themselves of the full six years of H-1B/L-1 eligibility without
being penalized by the work status granted to their spouses.
New Guidelines for Reduction in Recruitment
Conversion
Effective October 6, 2006, the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration
announced the allowance of converting previous Traditional Recruitment (TR) cases
to Reduction in Recruitment (RIR). Since this announcement, there has been little
information on how to execute this request until a recent update written on Friday,
December 22, 2006.
Some of the key items of which are critical for those intending to convert is as
follows:
- An e-mail must be sent by no later than January 20, 2007 indicating a company’s
wish to convert the case.
- All recruitment for the case must be filed by no later than April 1, 2007, or the
case will be denied and will be unable to be accepted for either TR or RIR consideration.
- All cases in which the attorney/agent has not received a Recruitment Report Instruction
letters from the Backlog Elimination Center (BEC), can be considered for the conversion.
- If recruitment has begun and the Recruitment Instructions are received, it has been
decided these cases will now be allowed to be considered for conversion, as long
as the Recruitment Report Instructions have not been received.
- A public disclosure system will be modified to show cases with the TR and RIR designation
so that an employer or its designated attorney will be able to check the status
if a case has been converted.
- A denial of the right to convert will be sent to the employer or attorney of record.
H-1B Cap Options
On December 5, 2006, the U.S.C.I.S. issued a memorandum to provide guidance regarding
the issue of whether an H-1B visa holder that has spent one year outside of the
U.S., but has not exhausted the six-year limit on H-1B status is subject to the
cap if applying again for an H-1B application. The U.S.C.I.S. stated that the potential
H-1B applicant has two options. The first option is for the applicant to apply for
the remainder of time that they have left in H-1B status and not be subject to the
H-1B cap. The second option is for a new H-1B petition to be filed and a full three
years of H-1B status may be requested, however, the petition will be subject to
the H-1B cap. This is potentially good news for employers and employees, as they
will not be affected by the cap if they need to employ an individual for the period
of time remaining in their H-1B status.