Watson Law Offices Newsletter
November 2011
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H-1B Cap Could Run Out By December
| |  Only 15,800 Visas Remain
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is now reporting the current H-1B Cap Count as of October 28, 2011.
Each Fiscal Year, the government may only issue 65,000 new H-1B visas. An additional 20,000 are set aside for graduates of U.S. Master degree programs.
49,200 Cap-Subject petitions have been received by USCIS for the 2012 Fiscal Year H-1B quota. Only 15,800 visas remain.
The 20,000 visas set aside in the U.S. Master's Cap have all been claimed. All petitions filed for U.S. Master's graduates will now be counted against the regular Cap.
Based on experiences in previous years, it is likely that demand for H-1B visas will increase in November. This could very well mean that all visas could be used up by the end of December. Once the quota on H-1B visas has been filled, employers will need to wait until April 2012 to file any new H-1B petitions.
Please note: if we have already filed your H-1B petition and your case is pending with the government, you have already been counted against the Cap. Clients in this situation do not need to worry about "missing" the Cap.
If you are an employer interested in hiring a foreign worker under the FY 2012 H-1B Cap, now is the time to contact us!
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| EB-2 India and China: Significant Movement Predicted for the December 2011 Visa Bulletin | |
EB-2 India and China Priority Dates Could Move to 2008
Reliable sources have indicated that significant movement could be possible for EB-2 India and China in the upcoming Visa Bulletin.
The State Department has warned, nonetheless, that "such movement will not be the norm throughout the fiscal year, and there is a possibility for retrogression of the cut-off [dates] during the summer months."
In the November Visa Bulletin, the State Department stated that the Visa Bulletin is being moved forward to generate demand. Until a Form I-485, Application for Adjustment of Status, has been filed with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, it is difficult for the State Department to determine just how many people are actually "waiting in line." It is a very real possibility that once they find out how many people are actually waiting to apply for permanent residence, they will need to move the cut-off dates back significantly. Any applications filed during that time will remain pending until visas are again available.
Unfortunately, it is unlikely that the EB-3 category will see such movement. The State Department has suggested that this category will only move forward a few weeks at most.
The December 2011 Visa Bulletin should be published within the next several days, and we will be sure to alert clients if there is significant movement.
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| New Bill Would Eliminate the Per-Country Numerical Limitations for Employment-Based Immigrants | | Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act
This bill proposes to completely eliminate the per-country numerical limitations for employment-based immigrants. As the current law is written, nationals of any one country may not capture more than 7% of the immigrant visas allocated each year. A total of only 120,000 employment-based immigrant visas are allowed to be issued every year for all of the employment-based categories.
The current law affects immigrants from countries with large populations most significantly, and has resulted in extremely long backlogs for nationals of India, China, Mexico, and the Philippines.
The new bill would eliminate the 7% per-country limitation, but not increase the number of employment-based immigrant visas issued each year as a whole. This would likely result in shorter wait times for nationals of countries that currently have a backlog. However, it could also worsen or create a backlog for nationals of other countries. The change would go into affect over a five year period.
The bill proposes to increase the per-country numerical limitation for family-sponsored immigrants as well.
The Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act was introduced in September by Representative Jason Chaffetz (R-UT). Next, it must be scheduled for House floor debate which may occur sometime in the next few weeks. We will keep you updated as more information becomes available. |
| Republicans Looking to Marco Rubio to Help Court Hispanic Vote in 2012 Election | |  A recent article in the Wall Street Journal reported that many Republicans are turning their attention to Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) as a possible vice presidential candidate in the 2012 Election. Republicans appear to see Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, as the key to attracting the Hispanic vote in the upcoming election.
Rubio warns his party, however, that it will not be that easy. Rubio feels that having a Hispanic vice presidential candidate alone is not going to fix the damage the Republicans have already done.
"The policies are important," Rubio said, "but the rhetoric is sometimes the impediment. Sometimes - and I'm not pointing fingers at anyone - the way the message is communicated is harmful and has hurt Republicans."
He calls for Republicans to end their anti-immigrant rhetoric, and instead, become the "pro-legal immigration party."
But Rubio's own views may make it hard for him to attract votes based on immigration polices alone. He opposes a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and publicly opposes the Dream Act.
Nonetheless, we hope that this is an indication that immigration will be a key issue in the 2012 Presidential Election, and result in both Republicans and Democrats working towards passing new legislation in the upcoming months. |
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This is an effort on our part to reach out to our larger community of friends, colleagues, current and former clients and anyone interested in Immigration Law. We expect there will be a strong push to make changes to existing Immigration Laws in the coming months and years, and we will try to keep our subscribers informed not only as to what changes are taking place, but how they are likely to impact everyone.
We welcome your input on what we should include, and how we should present this information. Please let us know what you think and what you would like to see. Also, please share this email with anyone whom you think would be interested in and benefit from this information.
THANK YOU!
Sincerely,
ROY WATSON
Watson Law Offices
142 Great Road
Bedford, MA 01730
(781)533-7700
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