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Immigration Law

New H-1B Regulations Favor Highly-Paid Workers

by Kristin A. Zech | January 11, 2021 | Employment & Labor Law , Immigration Law

On January 8, 2021, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security published its final rule modifying the process by which cap-subject H-1B visas will be allotted.  The H-1B is an employment-based nonimmigrant visa for workers in specialty occupations, which typically require the worker to have at least a bachelor’s degree (or…

Suspension on Entry of Individuals on Employment-Based Immigrant and Non-Immigrant Visas Continued to March 31, 2021

by Kristin A. Zech | January 4, 2021 | Employment & Labor Law , Immigration Law

Update to Blog Posted on June 26, 2020: Latest Presidential Proclamation Frustrates Employment-Based Non-Immigrant Visas On December 31, 2020, President Trump extended the restrictions on entry of individuals in certain employment-based immigrant and non-immigrant visa classifications through March 31, 2021.  The initial proclamation, Proclamation 10014 on April 22, 2020,…

DHS Issues Temporary Policy for Form I-9 under COVID-19 Update

by Kristin A. Zech | November 20, 2020 | Employment & Labor Law , Immigration Law

UPDATE: DHS recently extended its temporary policy permitting flexibility in certain I-9 requirements to December 31, 2020.  The policy, issued earlier this year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, affords employers some flexibility in completing Form I-9 to account for a remote workforce and the difficulty some employees may currently…

Latest Presidential Proclamation Frustrates Employment-Based Non-Immigrant Visas

by Kristin A. Zech | June 26, 2020 | Immigration Law

On June 22, 2020, the President issued the latest in a series of immigration-related presidential decrees.  This most recent proclamation further frustrates legal immigration under the guise of protecting a U.S. labor market reeling from COVID-19.  The decree specifically targets individuals (and their families) seeking to enter the…

Employers Cannot Categorically Reject Applicants Without Permanent Work Authorization

by Kristin A. Zech | June 16, 2020 | Employment & Labor Law , Immigration Law

While a long-term workforce may be laudable, an employer cannot use this goal to justify its refusal to hire individuals without permanent work authorization.  In Rodriguez v. The Proctor & Gamble Company (Case No. 17-22652-CIV-Williams), the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida recently denied Proctor &…

Criminal Law; Immigration Law; Party Presentation Principle 

by John W. Polk | May 20, 2020 | Immigration Law

UNITED STATES v. SINENENG-SMITH, ___ U.S. ___, No. 1967 (7 May 2020) This case concerns a provision of the immigration laws, 8 U. S. C. §1324, which makes it a felony to encourage or induce an alien to enter or reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard…