Publications for Immigration Law
The United States is a party to a number of trade treaties with foreign countries. The E visa category was created to give effect to those treaties by providing reciprocal benefits to nationals of a treaty country.
The Agricultural Guestworker Act, a bill to provide American farmers with a revised temporary guestworker program, was introduced into the House of Representatives in late April.
Immigration reform is a hot-button, important issue. Recently, both the Senate and House have introduced legislation regarding immigration and agriculture.
I-9 enforcement is not primarily concerned with locating illegal workers with the goal of deporting them. Instead, I-9 enforcement is heavily focused on Form I-9 itself, and the employer’s strict accuracy in completing the form and complying with related regulations in assembling its workforce.
The last few years have witnessed significant increases in workforce audits and raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE") at all levels. Therefore, while proper I-9 compliance has always been important, it has never been more essential.
An I-9 audit can be triggered for a number of reasons, including random samples and reporting by disgruntled employees. Every employer should have a formal internal I-9 Compliance Policy detailing the employer’s exact policies and procedures.
In the last few years, immigration reforms and increased enforcement have been the topics of extensive debate.
As with many U.S. Visas, the H-1B's availability is limited by a quota system, subject to certain exceptions. As of the last cap count dated May 5, 2011, 54,800 visas remain available.
Under the H-2A program, agricultural employers who anticipate a shortage of domestic workers can petition the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service to bring foreign workers to the U.S. to perform agricultural labor or services of a temporary or seasonal nature.
Foreign investors who may not satisfy the requirements for an EB-5 Immigrant Visa (, should consider applying for an E-2 Treaty Investor Visa.
For employers interested in hiring a foreign worker for a "specialty occupation", an H-1B Employment Visa is an option with a number of very attractive features...
Effective May 11, 2010, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) began issuing a new, redesigned Permanent Resident Card, commonly known as the "Green Card."