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 Other H-1B workers at airports have withdrawn their applications for admission and had their H-1B visas cancelled.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.)
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