Pauly P.A. – German-American Law Firm

Category: News

  • US Employers: New Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9 Released

    Important for all US employers: USCIS released a revised version of the Form I-9 today and posted the following press release:

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today published a revised Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9 for use. All employers are required to complete a Form I-9 for each employee hired in the United States.

    Improvements to Form I-9 include new fields, reformatting to reduce errors, and clearer instructions to both employees and employers. The Department of Homeland Security has published a Notice in the Federal Register informing employers of the new Form I-9.

    Effective 03/08/13:

    • Employers should begin using the newly revised Form I-9 (Rev. 03/08/13)N for all new hires and reverifications.
    • Employers may continue to use previously accepted revisions (Rev.02/02/09)N and (Rev. 08/07/09) Y until May 7, 2013.
    • After May 7, 2013, employers must only use Form I-9 (Rev. 03/08/13)N.

    The revision date of the Form I-9 is printed on the lower left corner of the form.  Employers should not complete a new Form I-9 for current employees if a properly completed Form I-9 is already on file.

    A Spanish version of Form I-9 (Rev. 03/08/13)N is available on the USCIS website for use in Puerto Rico only. Spanish-speaking employers and employees in the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and other U.S. territories may use the Spanish version for reference, but must complete the English version of the form.

    The revised forms are available in English and Spanish online at www.uscis.gov. For more information, please call 888-464-4218. Representatives are available Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET. USCIS maintains a website, I-9 Central, to support Form I-9 users. USCIS has also scheduled free webinars to help employers learn about the new form.

    To order forms, call USCIS toll-free at 1-800-870-3676. For downloadable forms and information on USCIS programs, immigration laws, regulations, and procedures, please visit www.uscis.gov. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis) and the USCIS blog The Beacon.

  • Immigration Reform

    3/7/2013

    AP: Senators Look to Early April for : The Associated Press has reported that the bipartisan “Gang of Eight” might present their immigration reform bill after Congress returns from recess in early April.

    update 5/9/2013:

    In order to give a current overview over the immigration reform debate and its elements most hotly debated, AILA and AIC have compiled a list of all 300 amendments to the current Senate Bil which you can find here.

  • Sequestration and Visa Adjudications

    With the looming deadline before the automatic spending cuts take effect, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) has issued the following practice alert:

    What will be the impact on visa processing at U.S. consular posts if, as seems likely, the automatic spending cutback (“sequestration”) takes place March 1, 2013, at 11:59 EST?

    While the exact impact is unknown, it can be fairly said that sequestration will result in diminished consular services, including visa adjudications. The Department of State has already warned that the number of officers processing visa applications will be reduced. When asked about the impact of sequestration on the visa application process on Wednesday, February 27, 2013, Press Briefing, the Department of State expressed the concern that “we could have major setbacks in really the herculean effort we’ve made to reduce wait times.” And that “one of the areas that there’ll be an impact on, obviously, is our ability provide consular services. And so we’re concerned about that and it took a lot of effort to get us to reduce those wait times, and a lot of new hiring, a lot of new staff.”

    On Thursday, the Department added “Sequestration threatens all of our operations because it cuts across the board. And so the point being we’ve had a huge consular surge, it’s been good for the American economy. We estimate that for every 65 visitors to the U.S., that creates one American job. And obviously sequestration has a broader impact on our ability at all of our operations and our posts. And so one of the areas that we’ve particularly had a surge in hiring is on visa adjudicators, and sequestration certainly could have an impact in that regard.”

    If the sequester does indeed take effect tonight, we recommend that members alert their clients to the very real possibility of delays in the visa application process. Watch InfoNet for further updates.

    AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 13030141 (posted Mar. 1, 2013)

  • Supreme Court holds Padilla Does Not Apply Retroactively

    The Supreme Court found that Padilla v. Kentucky, in which the Supreme Court held that counsel must inform noncitizen clients whether a plea carries a risk of deportation, does not apply retroactively.

  • Florida Supreme Court Confirms Constitutional Homestead Rights of Certain Homeowners

    On October 4, 2012, the Florida Supreme Court clarified that even certain non-immigrants who own property in the State of Florida and whose families live permanently on this property may qualify for ad valorem tax relief (so-called homestead exemption). The Florida Supreme Court held that “the plain language of article VII, section 6(a), [of the Florida Constitution] permits every owner of Florida real property to apply for and receive ad valorem tax relief where it is sufficiently demonstrated that the owner has maintained on that property the permanent residence of another legally or naturally dependent on the owner.”

    With this decision, the Florida Supreme Court also held a Florida statute partially unconstitutional which required the property owner himself to establish his legal ability to permanently reside on his property in order to qualify for the homestead exemption.

    In the case at hand, Honduran husband and wife E-2 visa holders who owned a residence on Key Biscayne and lived there with their three US citizen children had applied for homestead exemption based on the fact that their children were residing with their parents in this residence. The Miami-Dade Property Appraiser had denied the taxpayers’ application for homestead exemption with the reasoning that the taxpayers themselves had failed to prove that their were legally able to live on the property permanently, since E-2 visas are non-immigrant visas. That decision had been overturned by the Miami-Dade Value Adjustment Board, and the Circuit Court as well as the District Court of Appeal later affirmed that the the taxpayers were indeed entitled to homestead exemption based on the evidence of their children’s permanent residence in this home. The Florida Supreme Court has now finally affirmed this decision. Please see the text of the full decision here.

    This case is not limited to E-2 visa holders; in fact it really has nothing to do with the immigration or visa status of the homeowner so long as a legal dependent lives on the property who has the legal ability to make it his or her permanent home. Therefore, children who hold legal permanent residence or US citizenship can thus qualify their parents’ homes in Florida for homestead exemption.

  • DHS to Offer Deferred Action to Eligible DREAMers

    DHS will formally announce this morning that it will offer deferred action to DREAMers. Preliminary information indicates that eligible applicants must: Be 15-30 years old, and have entered before age 16 Have been present in the U.S. for 5 years as of June 15, 2012 Have maintained continuous residence Have not been convicted of one serious crime or multiple minor crimes Be currently in school, graduated or have a GED, or is an honorably discharged veteran. The deferred action offer will be available to those in proceedings, as well as to those who apply affirmatively. The White House is expected to make a formal announcement this afternoon at 1:15pm ET. AILA will provide further details today.

    AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 12061560 (posted Jun. 15, 2012)

    Please read the formal announcement by Secretary Napolitano here: http://www.dhs.gov/ynews/releases/20120612-napolitano-announces-deferred-action-process-for-young-people.shtm

  • H-1B cap reached for FY2013

    USCIS announces that the annual limit for H-1B filings was reached as of 6/11/12. Any cap-subject applications received after that date will be rejected.

    AILA Infonet Doc. No. 12061242 (posted June 12, 2012).

    Cap-Subject H-1B Filing Pace Accelerates

    As any AILA member who files H-1Bs can tell you, the pace of filing cap-subject petitions increases as USCIS closes in on reaching the cap. The week of May 7, it was receiving an average of 840 per day . The next week it was 1060, the next week 1280, and the week of May 28 it was 1800 per day.

    As of June 1, USCIS reported that 55,600 non-advanced degree cap-subject filings had been received. So, if the most recent week’s “burn rate” continued, USCIS would reach 65,000 by early next week.

    However, it is not that simple. Each year, USCIS accepts more than the 65,000 before it starts rejecting petitions, since it must account for a certain percentage of withdrawals and denials. However, the agency has stopped publishing what that number (previously known as the target number) is, so the actual number it will receive before the gate comes down is unknown.

    AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 12060551 (posted Jun. 5, 2012)

    —

    USCIS updated its count of FY2013 cap-subject H-1B petitions & advanced degree cap-exempt petitions receipted. As of 5/18/12, nearly 42,000 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted. Additionally, USCIS has receipted 16,000 H-1B petitions for aliens with advanced degrees.

    AILA Infonet Doc. No. 12040939 (posted May 18, 2012)

    —–

    USCIS updated its count of FY2013 cap-subject H-1B petitions & advanced degree cap-exempt petitions receipted. As of 4/20/12, nearly 25,000 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted. Additionally, USCIS has receipted 10,900 H-1B petitions for aliens with advanced degrees.

    AILA Infonet Doc. No. 12040939 (posted April 24, 2012)

    —-

    As of April 13, 2012, approximately 20,600 H-1B cap-subject petitions were receipted. Additionally, USCIS has receipted 9,700 H-1B petitions for aliens with advanced degrees.

    AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 12040939 (posted Apr. 19, 2012)

  • Chemerinsky: Arizona Immigration Case Closes a Momentous Court Term

    “Oral arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court’s October Term 2011 will end April 25 with one of the most important and politically controversial cases of the year: Arizona v. United States. The issue before the court is whether key provisions of Arizona’s statute SB 1070—which calls on state and local law enforcement to aggressively enforce federal immigration laws—are preempted by federal law. The case poses basic questions about the allocation of power between federal and state governments and does so in a context that arouses deep emotion on both sides.”

    [Posted Apr 18, 2012 8:33 AM CDT on ABAjournal.com  By Erwin Chemerinsky]

    Please read this short article.

    We will report of the decision in this case.

     

     

     

     

  • New Visa Fees as of 04/13/2012

    DOS reminder that nonimmigrant and immigrant visa application fees changed on 4/13/12. If the visa fee was paid before 4/13/12, the difference between the new fee and the old fee does not need to be paid as long as the visa interview is on or before 7/12/12. AILA Doc. No. 12041642.

     

  • DOS Confirms China-Mainland Born and India EB-2 Cut-offs

    Charlie Oppenheim, Chief of Visa Control at the State Department, has confirmed that, effective March 23, 2012, no further EB-2 visas will be authorized for China-mainland born and India applicants with priority dates of August 15, 2007, or later. Visa applicants processing in April at consulates abroad will still receive visas, as those numbers were allocated before the cut-off date was established. Mr. Oppenheim understands that USCIS will continue to accept applications for adjustment of status for aliens with priority dates prior to the date established in the April 2012 Visa Bulletin. Those cases with priority dates of August 15, 2007, or later, will be processed by USCIS to the point of approval (pre-adjudicated) and a request for a visa number will be forwarded Visa Control at DOS to be held in a “pending” file until new visas are available beginning with FY2013 on October 1, 2012. Mr. Oppenheim advises that an item in the May Visa Bulletin will address the EB-2 movement.
    AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 12040447 (posted Apr. 4, 2012)