News Update - January 23, 2010

By Alan Lee, Esq.

Warnings on Risk of Travel for H-1B Workers From Consulting Companies


In the event that you are a H-1B consulting company or use H-1B workers supplied by a consulting company, please be aware that U.S.C.I.S. has recently issued a memorandum that will make it difficult to sponsor new petitions or retain such workers through extension petitions if they are from a company which exercises little or no control over the workers.  These "job shops" have become the target of congressional inquiry and now action by the agency.  In cases where the consulting company retains control over the work of the off-site employees, U.S.C.I.S. would still approve petitions and extensions.  There have been reports that H-1B workers from consulting companies who have returned from overseas vacations have been pulled out of line at U.S. airports and summarily removed under expedited removal procedures.  In such cases, individuals are not allowed back into the U.S. for five years unless they are able to obtain a waiver.  Other H-1B workers at airports have withdrawn their applications for admission and had their H-1B visas cancelled.  In the present evolving atmosphere, consulting companies and those companies employing workers from consulting companies should warn such persons that they face added scrutiny upon their return if they leave the U.S.

(More in our next posting on the factors of control looked upon by U.S.C.I.S.)


The author is a 26+ year practitioner of immigration law based in New York City. He was awarded the Sidney A. Levine prize for best legal writing at the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1977 and has written extensively on immigration over the past years for the ethnic newspapers, World Journal, Sing Tao, Pakistan Calling, Muhasha and OCS. He has testified as an expert on immigration in civil court proceedings and was recognized by the Taiwan government in 1985 for his work protecting human rights. His article, "The Bush Temporary Worker Proposal and Comparative Pending Legislation: an Analysis" was Interpreter Releases' cover display article at the American Immigration Lawyers Association annual conference in 2004, and his victory in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in a case of first impression nationwide, Firstland International v. INS, successfully challenged INS' policy of over 40 years of revoking approved immigrant visa petitions under a nebulous standard of proof. Its value as precedent, however, was short-lived as it was specifically targeted by the Administration in the Intelligence Reform Act of 2004.

This article © 2010 Alan Lee, Esq.

 

Copyright © 2003-2012 Alan Lee, Esq.
The information provided here is of a general nature and may not apply to any particular set of facts or circumstances. It should not be construed as legal advice and does not constitute an engagement of the Law Office of Alan Lee or establish an attorney-client relationship.