U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) today announced an extension of the flexibilities in rules related to Form I-9 compliance that was granted earlier this year. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will extend this policy until March 31, 2021. On March 19, 2020, DHS announced that it would exercise prosecutorial discretion to defer the… Continue reading ICE Extends the I-9 Flexibility Rules Related to Form I-9 for Remote Work
Tag: DHS
U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others File Federal Lawsuit Over H-1b and DOL Regs
Late yesterday, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce along with a host of other businesses, trade associations, universities and research labs filed a Federal lawsuit against both the DOL and the DHS challenging the recent regulations which both published last week, significantly impacting the employment of high-skilled immigrants. The lawsuit alleges procedural defects in the promulgation… Continue reading U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others File Federal Lawsuit Over H-1b and DOL Regs
USCIS Releases Revised I-9
The USCIS recently issued a revised version of the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification Form. This form must be used beginning on September 18, 2017. All existing storage and retention rules for Form I-9 must continue to be followed. As you know, employers use the Form I-9 to verify the identity and employment authorization of… Continue reading USCIS Releases Revised I-9
The Future? of the EB-5 Program
Numerous EB-5 legislation has been introduced with the intention of curbing some of the EB-5 program’s issues and problems. S.1501, the American Job Creation and Investment Promotion Reform Act of 2015, introduced by Sen. Grassley and Sen. Leahy, included a laundry list of EB-5 “integrity” measures. Sen. Charles Grassley and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, have proposed… Continue reading The Future? of the EB-5 Program
DHS releases FY 2015 report
If you like statistics and are missing baseball box scores, check out the report recently released by the DHS on non-immigrant admissions in FY 2015. As you read this, keep in mind that admission does not equal people as the same person may make multiple admissions in a year if they travel internationally.
Temporary Employment Company Liable for Over 465 I-9 Violations
The Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer (OCAHO), recently found a temporary employment company, Golden Employment Group Inc., located in Minnesota, liable for over 465 I-9 violations (United States of America v. Golden Employment Group Inc., OCAHO Case Number 15A00037). Specifically, the Judge found that they failed to timely present 125 Form I-9s and… Continue reading Temporary Employment Company Liable for Over 465 I-9 Violations
DHS Ignores Federal Court
I normally do not post about subjects such as detention, removal, deportation, etc because the readers of this blog are generally professional workers on H or L visas and those subjects though very important, are not relevant. However, I read with interest an article posted on law360.com which told of various advocacy groups who were… Continue reading DHS Ignores Federal Court
Ex-University CEO Sentenced to Prison for Student Visa Fraud
Herguan University’s former CEO, Jerry Wang, was sentenced to one year in prison and order to forfeit $700,000 for his part in a student visa scheme. Mr. Wang admitted to submitting false document to the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVIS) program. He also admitted to participating in a schedule… Continue reading Ex-University CEO Sentenced to Prison for Student Visa Fraud
MN Staffing Company Fined $225K for I-9 Violations
Employer Solutions Staffing Group II (ESSG), a large MN company with six to eight thousand temporary employees on its payroll, was recently fined $225 for “creating false attestations” on Section 2 of the I-9. Specifically, ESSG reviewed copies of the employee’s I-9 documents “without ever seeing the individuals whose documents they examined.” This is a… Continue reading MN Staffing Company Fined $225K for I-9 Violations
DHS Expects to Launch “Known Employer” Pilot Program in 2015 to Aid U.S.-Canada Business Travel
The Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) expects to launch the “Known Employer” pilot program by late 2015 which is designed to streamline adjudication of certain types of employment-based immigration benefit requests filed by eligible U.S. employers. The pilot program is designed to make adjudications more effectively and less costly and reduce paperwork and delays for… Continue reading DHS Expects to Launch “Known Employer” Pilot Program in 2015 to Aid U.S.-Canada Business Travel
EMPLOYERS BEWARE – THE U.S. GOVERNMENT WILL SPEND $$$$ TO COLLECT $500 FOR I-9 VIOLATIONS
In a recent case, U.S. v. Keegan Variety, LLC, 11 OCAHO no. 1238 (2014), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spent tens of thousands of dollars (think daily salaries of the investigators, the Judge and his/her staff) to collect $500 from an employer for two I-9 violations. Keegan Variety… Continue reading EMPLOYERS BEWARE – THE U.S. GOVERNMENT WILL SPEND $$$$ TO COLLECT $500 FOR I-9 VIOLATIONS