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July 2011 Newsletter
 
In this Issue
Brazilians Spent $1 Billion in Miami-Dade County in 2010, But Immigration Restrictions Thwart True Potential
U.S. Congressman Arrested Outside the White House After Immigration Protest
Restaurant of the Month: Giotto
U.S. Commerce Secretaries Emphasize Economic Benefits of Immigration, Encourage Reform
Multinational Executives or Managers: A Path to the Green Cardse Prosecutorial Discretion in Favor of Immigrants Facing Deportation
H-1B Cap Count
Visa Bulletin update

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Foreign nationals with "extraordinary ability" in the arts, sciences, business, education, or athletics may obtain an O-1 visa or green card 

 RESTAURANT OF THE MONTH

Giotto

959 West Ave.  

Miami Beach, FL  33139 

(305) 532-1138   

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Jacob L. Ratzan, P.A.

150 SE 2nd Ave., Suite 901

Miami, FL 33131

Tel: 786-406-1744

Fax: 786-406-1745

[email protected]

www.ratzanlaw.com  

 

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Welcome to our July 2011 Newsletter!  In this issue, read about the economic benefits of Brazilian tourism and immigration to the U.S., the arrest of a pro-immigration U.S. Congressman, green cards for multinational executives and managers, and our monthly H-1B and Visa Bulletin updates.   

 

Our Restaurant of the Month is Giotto, bringing a high-flying and gratifying slice of Italy to Miami Beach.    

 

Enjoy! 

 

The Ratzanlaw Team

 

 

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Brazilians Spent $1 Billion in Miami-Dade County in 2010, But Immigration Restrictions
Thwart True Potential

    

With more than 500,000 Brazilians visiting Miami in 2010, some question why Brazil is excluded from certain visa and investor programs that could make it easier for Brazilians to visit the United States and help the economy.    

 

It is estimated that in 2010 Brazilians spent more than $1 billion in Miami-Dade County.  Nonetheless, Brazil is not part of the Visa Waiver Program, which enables citizens of 36 countries to travel to the U.S. for tourism or limited business purposes.  The foreign nationals that participate in the program do not need a visa for stays of 90 days or less. 

 

In an article posted by Miami Today, William D. Talbert III, President and CEO of the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, states Brazil is Miami-Dade's first billion dollar market.  "We've been told by professionals in Brazil that if we get the Visa Waiver Program, that $1.1 billion will turn into $2 billion overnight," said Talbert. 

 

As a member of the Visa Waiver Program, visitors from Brazil would not need a tourist visa ... click here to read more

 

 

 

   

U.S. Congressman Arrested Outside the White House After Immigration Protest 

 

Illinois Congressman Luis Gutierrez, D-Illinois, along with a dozen protesters, was arrested Tuesday afternoon outside the White House after protesting the Obama administration's record number of deportations.  The peaceful protesters were arrested after sitting on the sidewalk in front of the White House where people are supposed to keep moving.

 

Representative Gutierrez wrote a letter to President Obama last week asking him to suspend the deportation of undocumented immigrant college students with clean criminal records.  After receiving the President's response where he rejected Rep. Gutierrez's plan, the congressman organized a rally and protest in front of the White House where eventually he was arrested.

 

In his response, President Obama argued that although more than a million people have been deported since his election, 51 percent were convicted criminals and ... click here to read more

 

 

  

 

 .Giotto     

 

 Restaurant of the Month: Giotto    

Extraordinary Italian Pizza on Miami Beach   

 

You may have never heard of Raffaele Esposito, although chances are you take delight in his ever-most important food creation - pizza. In 1889, Esposito, a baker from Naples, Italy, famously baked a pizza for King Umberto I and Queen Margherita. To represent Italian colors, Esposito used red tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and green basil leaves. The Queen loved the dish, and so Esposito had invented Pizza Margherita.

 

If she were alive today, Queen Margherita would relish in the flavors of Giotto, a fun, young and vibrant pizza restaurant located at 959 West Avenue on Miami Beach. Giotto is owned by Renato Viola and Antonio Polzalla, members of the Italian Acrobatic Pizza Team who have won numerous awards around the world for their pizza-making talents. In addition to spinning, whirling, and flipping pizza dough, Viola and Polzalla have mastered the 72 hour fermentation technique, making the dough light, fluffy, and scrumptious. Giotto's menu includes all types of pizzas with a choice of fresh mozzarella, meats, prosciutto, eggplant, tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers, and other delicious ingredients, many of which come directly from Italy.

 

Viola's passion for pizza started at age 15, when his cousin Massimo began mentoring him. Polzalla was born into a family pizza tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation. Giotto was first conceived in 2005, when Viola and Polzalla met at the Campionato Nazionale di Pizza Piccante. Those of us in South Florida can be thankful that in April 2011 their idea came to fruition.

 

For his part, Viola was admitted to the U.S. on an O-1 "extraordinary ability" visa as somebody who has achieved sustained national or international acclaim and who has risen to the top of his field of endeavor. 

 

You can witness this extraordinary pizza with acrobatics at Giotto, 959 West Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139.  And...they deliver!    
 

  

 

 

 

   

U.S. Commerce Secretaries Emphasize Economic Benefits of Immigration, Encourage Reform

 

With unemployment at 9.2 percent, some immigration advocates are pushing reform as a way to boost the economy and create jobs.  The current and former U.S. Commerce Secretaries recently wrote a letter to The Bellingham Herald outlining the positive effect a strong immigration system will have on the nation's economy.

 

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and former Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez pointed to a statistic by the National Venture Capital Association demonstrating immigrants have started 25 percent of public venture-backed U.S. companies.  Such companies, including Google, eBay, Yahoo!, Sun Microsystems and Intel, employ 220,000 people and have played a role in more than one quarter of U.S. global patent applications.  

"The right kind of immigration policy means more jobs for Americans at home and greater competitiveness for American companies abroad," write Locke and Gutierrez.  "Unfortunately, that's not the policy we now have."

 

One issue is that the country grants 400,000 student visas ... click here to read more.  

 

 

  

 

   

 Multinational Executives or Managers:
A Path to the Green Card

 

Owners, managers and executives of multinational companies seeking to relocate to the U.S. or to expand their business to the U.S. may be able to quickly obtain their legal permanent residency, i.e. green card, in the U.S. The Immigration and Nationaliy Act (INA) allows some multinational executives and managers to apply for green cards in the U.S. under the employment-based first preference category for "priority workers", subcategory multinational executives or managers (EB-1C). The other priority workers include foreign nationals with extraordinary abilities (EB-1A) and outstanding professors or researches (EB-1B).  


The most significant advantage of applying for a green card under the EB-1C category is that the applicant can bypass the labor certification process, which can take several years and is required for most employment based applications. In addition, the applicant may obtain work and travel authorization while the green card application is pending.

The most common way a multinational executive or manager may come to the U.S. is under an L-1 visa. To qualify for the L-1 visa, the foreign national must ... click here to read more.  

  

 

  

 

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H-1B Cap Count

Visas Available For Professional Positions  

 

Cap Type 

Cap Amount 

Petitions Filed  

Date of Last Count

H-1B Regular Cap 

65,000 

21,600

7/22/2011

H-1B Master's Exemption 

20,000

13,300

7/22/2011

 

As of July 22, 2011, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has receipted 21,600 cap-subject H-1B petitions toward the cap of 65,000 for Fiscal Year (FY) 2012.  In addition, USCIS has receipted 13,300 petitions toward the Masters exemption of 20,000.   

 

This marks an increase by 1,100 in cap-subject H-1B petitions and 500 Masters exemption petitions filed since the last update on July 15, 2011.  The current number shown for petitions filed reflects petitions that have been approved or are still pending.  

 

The H-1B program allows U.S. businesses to hire foreign workers to fill "specialty occupations," such as ... click here to read more.                  

  

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Visa Bulletin Update: August 2011

 

Worldwide EB-3 advances to November 1, 2005; Family-Based 2A Category for Spouses and Children of Lawful Permanent Residents  Advances Four Months 

 

The Department of State (DOS) has released the August 2011 Visa Bulletin, showing immigrant visa (i.e. green card) availability for August 2011.  As the DOS predicted earlier, the EB-2 category (Members of the Professions Holding Advanced Degrees or Persons of Exceptional Ability) for China and India has continued to advance, although in August they will not advance as much as they did in July. 

Back in March, the DOS announced that advancement in EB-2 is due to the sharp drop in demand for EB-1 visas (Priority Workers).  The DOS has dropped those unused visas to the EB-2 category.  In August 2011, the cut-off date in the EB-2 category for China and India will advance five weeks to April 15, 2007.

Furthermore, August continues to bring forth a significant advancement in the EB-3 subcategory for unskilled workers where ... click here to read more.   

  

 

Disclaimer: The information provided in this newsletter is offered purely for informational purposes.  It is not intended to create or promote an attorney-client relationship, and does not constitute and should not be relied upon as legal advice.  We intend to make every attempt to keep this information current.  We do not promise or guarantee, however, that the information is correct, complete or up-to-date, and readers should not act based upon this information without seeking professional counsel from a licensed attorney.  Transmission of information from this newsletter is not intended to create, and its receipt does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship with Jacob L. Ratzan, P.A. or any of its individual attorneys or personnel.