During the early months of the pandemic, the Social Security Administration (SSA) took a break from issuing “no-match” letters to employers. It appears that towards the end of 2020, however, the SSA has resumed this practice....more
While the U.S. presidential election has come to an end, we continue to monitor changes in the Trump administration’s handling of ongoing agency immigration reforms through the end of 2020 and into early 2021 that may impact...more
11/24/2020
/ Biden Administration ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Popular ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
Due to extensive delays in the production and issuance of Employment Authorization Documents (Form I-766, EAD) by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency announced that employees may...more
8/21/2020
/ E-Verify ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-9 ,
Green Cards ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Required Forms ,
USCIS
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced a new fee structure that will take effect on October 2, 2020. The final rule, published in the Federal Register on August 3, 2020, announced that...more
8/12/2020
/ Application Fees ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-140 Petitions ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
L-1 Visas ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas
On August 3, 2020, the White House issued an Executive Order on Aligning Federal Contracting and Hiring Practices with the Interests of American Workers, directing federal agencies to contract with those who prioritize the...more
Labor Day became an official federal holiday in 1894. Although the world of employment has obviously changed significantly over the last 125 years, the pace of workplace transformation seems to have accelerated in the past...more
9/3/2019
/ #MeToo ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Ban the Box ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Health Insurance ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Labor Regulations ,
Labor Shortage ,
LGBTQ ,
Marijuana ,
Misclassification ,
OFCCP ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Rate of Pay ,
Right to Work ,
Salary/Wage History ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Silica ,
Transgender ,
Unemployment ,
USCIS ,
Visas ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
In an announcement on Thursday, May 16, 2019, President Trump unveiled an outline of his new legislative plan to modernize the nation’s immigration framework, promising to “establish a new legal immigration system that...more
Employers seeking to sponsor H-1B workers for fiscal year 2020 can begin filing petitions on April 1, 2019, for a start date of October 1, 2019. The H-1B visa is used by businesses that want to employ foreign nationals to...more
When the federal government partially shut down on December 22, 2018, so did E-Verify, the online system for verifying a new hire’s eligibility to work. Employers that are obligated to or have chosen to use E-Verify have...more
1/15/2019
/ E-Verify ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Federal Budget ,
Federal Funding ,
Foreign Workers ,
Form I-9 ,
Government Shutdown ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Trump Administration ,
US-Mexico Border Wall ,
USCIS
Starting October 1, 2018, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will begin implementing its June 28, 2018 policy memorandum to prioritize the removal of foreign nationals from the United States on the...more
10/1/2018
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Workers ,
Fraud and Abuse ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Notice to Appear ,
Policy Memorandums ,
USCIS ,
Visas
In recent weeks, several notable policy changes have taken place concerning the adjudication of immigration petitions by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)....more
9/18/2018
/ Adjudicatory Process ,
Corporate Counsel ,
DACA ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Popular ,
Requests for Evidence ,
USCIS ,
Visa Caps ,
Visas
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has published a memorandum establishing its policy relating to H-1B petitions filed for employees who will be working at one or more third-party worksites. ...more
2/28/2018
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Domestic Hiring Policy ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Highly-Skilled Workers Visa ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
New Guidance ,
Required Documentation ,
Third-Party Relationships ,
USCIS ,
Visas
On January 13, 2018, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has resumed accepting requests to renew a grant of deferred action under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)...more
The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has the authority to grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to eligible foreign-born individuals who are unable to return home for certain safety-related reasons....more
Increased immigration enforcement and a reduction in illegal entry into the United States remain among the Trump administration's highest priorities. Notably, Acting ICE Director Thomas Homan has reportedly ordered Homeland...more
11/9/2017
/ Audits ,
Business Interruption ,
Deportation ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Eligibility Verification ,
Form I-9 ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
Immigration Enforcement ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
Raids ,
Trump Administration ,
Undocumented Immigrants
On September 24, 2017, President Donald Trump issued a “Presidential Proclamation Enhancing Vetting Capabilities and Processes for Detecting Attempted Entry into the United States by Terrorists or Other Public-Safety Threats”...more
9/26/2017
/ Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Foreign Workers ,
Green Cards ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
National Security ,
Refugees ,
Terrorist Threats ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration ,
Visas
On August 28, 2017, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will begin requiring in-person interviews for certain applicants who apply for permanent residence. ...more
Recent actions by the U.S. Department of State (DOS) and Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) indicate that employers seeking to hire foreign workers will likely face a more stringent visa approval process....more
8/18/2017
/ Buy America ,
Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Immigration Reform ,
L-1B ,
Trump Administration ,
USCIS ,
Visas