Musillo Unkenholt Law | Healthcare Immigration Blog

August 9, 2013
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USCIS CHECKING SOCIAL MEDIA

AILAimmigration attorneys have reported seeing RFEs questioning information postedon social media and other websites. LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets are publicand available to USCIS adjudicators. USCISis reportedly searching the internet for information on companies and employeesbefore approving cases.

Thingsto keep in mind regarding online postings:

·        Employeesassigned to third party worksites who list the end-client as theiremployer. This can cause the USCIS toraise questions regarding whom the actual employer is and who maintains theright to control the employee’s work. Besure to list your H-1B employer as your employer on your social media page.

·        Anyinformation on a company’s website which contradicts the H-1B petition,including the address of the company headquarters, vendors or other clients thecompany works with, etc. can cause the USCIS to issue an RFE asking foradditional information about the Petitioner.

·        Negativecomments posted on social media or other customer feedback websites may causethe USCIS to investigate the company more fully before approving the case.

MU suggests that H-1B employees are accurately listing their employment on social media andthat your company website is accurate and up-to-date.

August 7, 2013
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MU LAW’S MARIA SCHNEIDER WINS INGENUITY AWARD

MULaw attorney MariaSchneider is the founder and chair of the Cincinnati Bar Association’s(CBA) Immigration Law Committee. TheImmigration Law Committee recently won the CBA’sIngenuity Award, for the second year in a row. The Ingenuity Award is given to a CBACommittee, which in the past year has displayed a commitment to strengtheningits purpose and function through membership development, successful continuingeducation seminars, creative programs and other notable accomplishments.

TheImmigration Law Committee focused on advanced topics within the practice ofimmigration law, hosting monthly meetings featuring speakers and round tablediscussions among experienced practitioners. This year’s meetings included a tour of the Customs and Border Patrolpost at the Greater Cincinnati Airport. This month, the committee hosts Ellen Kinker, a caseworker from Sen.Rob Portman’s (R-OH) office.

August 1, 2013
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CONGRESS VACATES

The US Congress will begin its summer recess tomorrow. Like schoolchildren, they take much of the summer off. This year’s promised Comprehensive Immigration Reform has now been tabled until after they return in September.

The Senate has done its job. It passed a bi-partisan immigration bill by a healthy margin, which included both good and bad things for the healthcare industry.

The Republican-controlled House has stalled. The lower-level House Judiciary Committee has passed a small business based immigration bill, the SKILLS Act. Will the full House move on a bigger Comprehensive bill in September?

Some see hopeful signs. Immigrants and employers are pressing their concerns directly to House members, who have returned to their home districts for the Summer Recess. Some Republicans leaders, such as Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and one-time Vice Presidential hopeful Paul Ryan (R-WI) reportedly have been working behind the scenes to encourage colleagues to produce a bill.

Hopeful these efforts can lead to a productive autumn.

July 24, 2013
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NPTE TEST DATES FOR 2014

The FBSPT has recently published the 2014 National Physical Therapy Exam (NPTE) test dates. MU Law reminds readers to schedule their 2014 Physical Therapy NPTE exams.

Keep in mind that the FSBPT uses a fixed-date testing process. The FSBPT approach is different than other healthcare occupation’s examination processes, which allows for rolling testing dates. FSBPT believes that their fixed-date testing system provides the most secure exam for their industry.

Be sure to register well in advance in order to insure that your seat is reserved.

Test Date	Registration Payment Deadline	Jurisdiction Approval Deadline	Seats are reserved for PT candidates until:	Scores Reported to Jurisdictions
January 29, 2014	December 23, 2013	Jan. 2, 2014	January 15, 2014	February 5, 2014
April 30, 2014	March 26, 2014	April 2, 2014	April 16, 2014	May 7, 2014
July 22&23, 2014	June 17, 2014	June 24, 2014	July 8, 2014	July 30, 2014
October 29, 2014	Sept. 24, 2014	Oct. 1, 2014	Oct. 15, 2014	Nov. 5, 2014

July 18, 2013
Uncategorized

HEALTHCARE IS FIVE PCT OF H-1Bs

The USCIS has just released its Characteristicsof H1B Specialty Occupation Workers report. As its name implies, the report contendsloads of data about the H-1B program. Notablefor readers of this blog is that Occupations in Health and Medicine made up approximatelyfive percent of all H-1Bs petitions approved in 2012 (Table 8A). Keep in mind that these figures include H-1Bextensions and concurrent H-1Bs. Thedata does not break out H-1B cap-subject petitions.

The report details a load ofinteresting data, including the below excerpt from the summary. The data refutes much of the complaints aboutthe H-1B program, including the criticism that it is used as a way to facilitatecheap foreign labor. The median salaryof $70,000 is much higher than the USmedian salary of $26,695. The averageComputer Programmer salary was $71,380, more or less in-line with theoverall H-1B salary figure listed in this report.

· The number of H-1B petitions filed increased 15percent from 267,654 in FY 2011 to 307,713 in FY 2012.

· The number of H-1B petitions approved decreased3 percent from 269,653 in FY 2011 to 262,569 in FY 2012.

· Seventy-two percent of H-1B petitions approvedin FY 2012 were for workers between the ages of 25 and 34.

· Forty-six percent of H-1B petitions approved inFY 2012 were for workers with a bachelor’s degree, forty-one percent had a master’sdegree, 8 percent had a doctorate, and 4 percent were for workers with aprofessional degree.

· Sixty-one percent of H-1B petitions approved inFY 2012 were for workers in computer-related occupations.

· The median salary of beneficiaries of approvedpetitions remained at $70,000 for both FYs 2011 and 2012.

July 15, 2013
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GUILTY VERDICT IN H-1B NURSE SCHEME

Last month MU Law posted a blog about an alleged H-1B nurse visa scheme that resulted in a federal indictment and trial. The verdict is in. US Citizen Kizzy Kalu was found guilty of 89 criminal counts, including visa fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, and human trafficking.

The allegations included information that Mr. Kalu misled the USCIS, alleging thatthe nurses would work as instructors/supervisors at Adam University. Nurse instructor/supervisors are generally held to be specialtyoccupations, which makes these positions eligible for H-1B approval.

Theprosecutors proved that Adam University existed largely in name only and had nogenuine need for nurse instructor supervisors. The nurses actually worked as regular nurses at salaries below prevailingwage. Regular nursing positions areusually ineligible for H-1B approval.

Thegovernment also proved that Mr. Kalu forced the nurses to kick back a portion oftheir salary and threatened to have their visas revoked if they did not complywith his scheme. The full press releaseis available on the US Department of Justice’s website. Mr. Kalu’s sentencing is set for September 23, 2013.

July 10, 2013
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AUGUST 2013 VISA BULLETIN

The Department of State has just released the August 2013 Visa Bulletin. There has been a dramatic jump for India EB2. MU Law expected that an India EB2 progression would happen, although it took a lot longer than we expected. Suffice it to say, had it happened earlier in the year, today’s jump would not have been as dramatic. Nevertheless, the India EB2 jump is welcome news.

Unfortunately, no other category moved more than a few weeks and most employment-based categories did not move at all.

August 2013 Visa Bulletin
	All Other Countries	China	India	Philippines
EB-2	Current	08AUG08	01JAN08	Current
EB-3	01JAN09	01JAN09	22JAN03	22OCT06

July 9, 2013
Uncategorized

SIA ARTICLE: BENEFIT OF COUNSEL

MU Law’s Chris Musillo wasasked to author an article for Staffing Industry Analysts. SIA has published an article in SIA’s Julyissue of SI Review. An internetcopy of the article appears on the SIA webpage.

In the articleChris discusses the Comprehensive Immigration Reform debate and what may happenif CIR is passed. Chris concludes:

Contingentlabor and staffing companies have traditionally been large users offoreign-trained employees. These employees have proven to be beneﬁcial foremployers and American society as a whole. It is incumbent on the industry tomake sure that Congress hears this story or else misperceptions, and notrealities, will drive future legislation and regulation.

July 3, 2013
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HOUSE STARTS MOVING: SKILLS ACT PASSES

The HouseJudiciary Committee has passed the SupplyingKnowledge Based Immigrants and Lifting Levels of STEM Visa Act (SKILLSAct). Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) sponsored the SKILLS Act. Hehas 20 co-sponsors.

The SKILLS Actwould nearly triple the H-1B cap and also increase employment-based green cardnumbers. Notably, Sec.110 of the Act sets aside 4,000 immigrant visas for healthcareoccupations, including nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists,and other allied healthcare workers who work in rural or undeservedareas. These immigrant visas are immediately available and not subject toretrogression.

This is the first step toward a House CIR bill. The House is expected to spend the summer debating, proposing and amending a variety of provisions. Together these provisions will become the House CIR bill.

The House may administratively decide to have several smaller bills, rather than one large CIR bill, as has been done in the Senate. It remains to be seen if this strategy proves to be successful.

June 27, 2013
Uncategorized

BREAKING! SENATE PASSES CIR

Today the Senate took the historic step ofpassing Comprehensive Immigration Reform, Senate bill S. 744. This is a significant step on the path to thebill becoming law. It is important tonote that nothing has changed with this action. While we are much closer, we are still quite a ways from any legalchange. The House must act. The House is more conservative than theSenate.

S. 744 does many things. Many of the specifics will change as theHouse takes action. Therefore it is muchtoo early for employers to plan for CIR.

What the House will do is a wide-openquestion. The House will likely moveslowly. There are many factions ofRepublicans who are struggling to reconcile their disparate opinions. If the Republicans can agree on the Houseside, then a House CIR bill could pass.

Even if that happens, there is no guaranteethat the senate and House bills can be reconciled. At this point the odds are 50/50 that we getCIR in 2013, and the odds improved significantly with today’s Senate vote.

MU Law has been to Washington on severaloccasions in the last 90 days to speak with Congressional staff aboutemployment-based immigration issues. While no one knows what the final CIR bill will look like, but if CIRpasses it will have these characteristics:

Greater H-1B visa numbers. Current law allows 65,000 new “regular” H-1B visa approvalsevery fiscal ear and an additional 20,000 for graduates of American Master’s degreeprograms. American businesses haveregularly asked Congress to raise this H-1B quota. Congress is hearing the call. Most potential legislation calls forincreased H-1B numbers.

Increased H-1B Enforcement. The trade-off for the greater H-1B numbers isgreater enforcement regulation. Allversions of CIR step up funding for H-1B enforcement.

Special Third Party Placement Rules for H-1BEmployers. Since January 2012,USCIS has held staffing companies to a higher level of scrutiny. Congress is nowgoing further. Placing employees atthird-party worksites is outright prohibited for some employers and highlyregulated in others.

Abundant Green Card Numbers. Byincreasing green card numbers, Congress hopes to incentivize employers andworkers to become permanent residents. . This should mean faster green cardsand less worrying about quotas.

E-Verify is here to stay. E-verifyis a federal program whereby voluntary employers can check a prospectiveemployee’s work authorization. Governmentcontractors and some states have made E-verify mandatory. Congress appears ready to require E-verifyfor all employers, likely phasing it in over a few years.

Shifting from Family Based Visa Numbers toMerit Based Immigrants. One part of the CIR plan is that Congressappears to have settled on a merit-based green card. A merit-based system would allow theDepartment of Homeland Security to weigh a number of factors, such aseducation, job prospects, US ties, and English fluency to prioritize anapplicant’s visa. The merit based systemwill come at the expense of the family categories and will eliminate the visalottery program.

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