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MAY 2014 VISA BULLETIN

The Department of State has just released the May 2014 Visa Bulletin.  This is the eighth Visa Bulletin of the 2014 US Fiscal Year, which began on October 1, 2013.  

The Philippines EB-3 leaped ahead by almost six month.  It is now at November 2007.

The Chinese EB-2 and EB-3 continued to be flipped: the Chinese EB-2 is worse than the Chinese EB-3.  Chinese nationals who are EB-2 may be able to file an EB-3.  Chinese EB-3s should check with their attorneys to effect this change.The Chinese EB-3 mirrors the All Other EB-3.

Employment- Based
All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed
 China – mainland born INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES
1st C C C C C
2nd C 15APR09 15NOV04 C C
3rd 01OCT12 01OCT12 01OCT03 01OCT12 01NOV07
Other Workers 01OCT12 01OCT12 01OCT03 01OCT12 01NOV07

CERTAIN H-4s WILL GET WORK AUTHORIZATION — WILL IT INCLUDE H-4s OF HEALTHCARE WORKERS?

The WhiteHouse yesterday has announced a series of notable improvements to the nation’sbusiness immigration scheme.  The mainone of interest to readers of this blog will be that certain H-4 visa holders willbe authorized to receive employment authorization cards (EAD cards).  These EAD cards will allow these H-4 workersto work at any US employer for the duration of the validity of the card.  The period of validity is expected to mirrorthe H-1 primary Beneficiary’s period of validity.
However the press releaselimits the work authorization to “spouses of certain high-skill workers on H-1Bvisas.”   The press release does not define “high-skillworkers” and so it is unclear if the White House means STEM workers, all H-1Bworkers, or some other definition.
A 2012U.S. Department of Homeland Security – Retrospective Review of Existing Regulations– Progress Report sought to extend employment authorization to H-4dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants “who have begun the process of seekinglawful permanent resident status through employment and have extended theirauthorized period of admission or “stay” in the United States under theAmerican Competitiveness in the Twenty-First Century Act of 2000 (AC21).”  MU Law firstnoted this Report in December 2012.
That language appearedto limit H-4 EAD authorization only to spouses of H-1Bs who were stuck in theirH-1B beyond six years because of retrogression. It remains to be seen what the White House means by this latest press release.  Nonetheless yesterday’s announcement clearlyis a step in a positive direction.

H-1B CAP HAS BEEN REACHED

In a surprise to no one, USCISannounced today that it has reached the H-1B cap for both the regular and master’scap.  The USCIS is expected to hold anH-1B lottery within the next week. 
If your H-1B petition is filed underthe Premium Processing Service (PPS) you should hear of its acceptance no laterthan April 28.  However if your PPS petitionis not accepted, it may take until mid-May before you find out that the casewas not accepted under the H-1B lottery. 
Reminder:  The PPS does not give a petitioner anygreater chance at winning the H-1B lottery, but it does allow for speediernotice and decision-making.
If your H-1B petition is filed underthe Regular Processing path it may be until May or even June before your findout if your H-1B petition is accepted under the lottery or not.  Last year it took about 10 weeks before allH-1B petitioners were notified of their acceptance or rejection.

H-1B CAP PROJECTION AND TIMING

Projection

TheH-1B cap will be reached this year on its first day of eligibility.  MU Law expects around twice as many H-1Bpetitions as allowed will be filed this year. We are basing this projection on our internal H-1B cap filings, discussionswith other AILA attorneys, our historical experience with H-1B numbers sincethe mid-1990s, and media sources.  Thathaving been said, our projection is not a scientific one.  Indeed, no one knows exactly how many H-1Bswill be received.

TheH-1B cap petitions will be divided into two categories: (1) Those who havegraduated from US Master Degree programs; and (2) all other H1-B cap-subjectpetitions (“regular H-1B cap”).  The USMasters category has a quota of 20,000 H-1B petitions.  The regular H-1B cap has a quota of 65,000H-1B petitions.

Timing

Sinceboth H-1B categories will be oversubscribed, the USCIS will hold an H-1Blottery.  The H-1B lottery will be heldnext week.  Last yearthe H-1B lottery was held April 9, 2013. Although the H-1B lottery will be held next week, the USCISdid not notify all petitioners of the outcome until June 2013.


Ifa petitioner wants know sooner, the H-1B may be filed via the PremiumProcessing Service (PPS).  The PPS does notgive a petitioner any greater chance at winning lottery, but it does allow forspeedier notice and decision-making.

CHILEANS MAY NOW USE VWP

Earlierthis month the United States announced that Chile would join 37 othercounties on the Visa Waiver list.  Theoriginal implementation date was May 1, 2014. Vice President Joe Biden accelerated the implementationdate to March 31, 2104. 
Chilean passportholders with both an approved Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA)and an e-passport will be able to visit the United States without nonimmigrantvisitor visas.  Chilean nationals seekingto enter the US for pleasure or business will no longer have to apply for aB1/B2 visa.
Chile is one of America’smost favored nations in US immigration.  Not only is Chile now the firstLatin American country to qualify for the Visa Waiver program, it is only oneof five countries who may avoid the onerous H-1B cap by filing a Trade Visa.  The other four Trade Visa Countries are:Canada (TN), Mexico (TN, Australia (E-3), and Singapore (H-1B1).

H-1B CAP PREMIUM PETITIONS START PROCESSING NO LATER THAN APRIL 28

The USCIS has issued their annual H-1B Cap press release.  The most notable news is that USCIS announced that it will start the processing of Premium Processing petitions no later than April 28, 2014.  The press release also confirms that USCIS expects to receive in excess of  the H-1B cap for both the masters and regular H-1B cap.  All told, many more than the Congressional mandated cap of 85,000 H-1B petitions will be filed by employers and receipted by USCIS.

A second notice marks the H-1B cap filing “tips”.  This page advises the public on filing addresses, the order of documents, LCAs, and other key elements of a properly-filed H-1B cap-subject petition.

POEA WARNING ON BOGUS EMPLOYEE

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is the Philippine government’s agency tasked with protecting Philippine workers rights when they travel to work outside the Philippines.  The POEA also promotes the development of overseas workers.  Employers who seek to recruit and hire Philippine workers must obtain a POEA licence before recruiting Philippine workers.

The POEA has just issued a warning that a “Sandra M. Lim” has been representing herself as an Asst. Supervisor with the POEA.  The POEA confirms that there is no POEA official or employee with that name.

NURSE STAFFING AND MORTALITY RATES

Prof. Linda Aiken has long beena first-rate scholar on nurse staffing rates and their impact on patient safetyand patient mortality.  Prof. Aiken’slist of credits is a mile long, including her Registered Nursing degree.
Once again, Prof. Aiken has found acritical link between nurse staffing and patient outcomes – this time inEurope.   From her paper in TheLancet,
Anincrease in a nurses’ workload by one patient increased the likelihood of aninpatient dying within 30 days of admission by 7% (odds ratio 1·068, 95% CI1·031—1·106), and every 10% increase in bachelor’s degree nurses was associatedwith a decrease in this likelihood by 7% (0·929, 0·886—0·973). These associationsimply that patients in hospitals in which 60% of nurses had bachelor’s degreesand nurses cared for an average of six patients would have almost 30% lowermortality than patients in hospitals in which only 30% of nurses had bachelor’sdegrees and nurses cared for an average of eight patients.
The Irish have picked up on thestudy.  The Irish Examiner reports that the Irish Nurses and Midwives’Organisation has asked the Irish Government to allow nurse recruitment.  The INMOcites Prof. Aiken’s research in their demand.

Will Americafollow suit?  Hopefully.  This research is not novel orgroundbreaking.  Here is a 2010 MU Law blogpost, citing yet another study by Prof. Aiken.

HISTORICAL H-1B USAGE

This year’s H-1Bfiling date of April 1, 2014 is coming fast. MU Law predicts that the USCIS will see as many as twice as many H-1Bsas allowed under the H-1B quota (H-1B cap). When the USCIS receives more H-1B petitions than slots available itholds an “H-1B lottery”.  Last year, the USCISheld an H-1B lottery for the first time since April 2008 (US Fiscal Year 2009).
If you areconsidering filing an H-1B cap-subject petition, MU Law urges you to begin thatprocess now.
Many healthcareprofessions ordinarily qualify for H-1B status, including Physical Therapists,OccupationalTherapists, SpeechLanguage Therapists, and some Registered Nursing positions.
Internationalworkers who are working in the U.S. on an H-1B visa with another cap-subjectemployer are not subject to H-1B cap. These cases are commonly referred to as“H-1B transfer” cases and may be filed at any time throughout the year.
Employees thatneed a “cap-subject” H-1B include:
* Internationalstudents working on an EAD card under an OPT or CPT programafter having attended a U.S. school
* Internationalemployees working on a TN may need an H-1B filed for them in order for them topursue a permanent residency (green card) case
* Prospectiveinternational employees in another visa status e.g. H-4, L-2, J-1, F-1
* H-1B workerswith a cap exempt organization
* Prospectiveinternational employees currently living abroad
Past H-1B Demand:

Year:
H-1B Cap Numbers:
Date H-1B Cap Reached:
H-1B 2003 (FY 2004)
65,000
October 1, 2003
H-1B 2004 (FY 2005)
65,000
October 1, 2004
H-1B 2005 (FY 2006)
85,000
August 10, 2005
H-1B 2006 (FY 2007)
85,000
May 26, 2006
H-1B 2007 (FY 2008)
85,000
April 3, 2007
H-1B 2008 (FY 2009)
85,000
April 7, 2008
H-1B 2009 (FY 2010)
85,000
December 21, 2009
H-1B 2010 (FY 2011)
85,000
January 25, 2011
H-1B 2011 (FY 2012)
85,000
November 22, 2011
H-1B 2012 (FY 2013)
85,000
June 11, 2012
H-1B 2013 (FY 2014)
85,000
April 5, 2013

APRIL 2014 VISA BULLETIN

The Department of State has just released the March 2014 Visa Bulletin.  This is the sixth Visa Bulletin of the 2014 US Fiscal Year, which began on October 1, 2013.  

The biggest news is that the Philippine EB-3 number has surged ahead to November 2007, a promotion of almost six months.  Other than that the Visa Bulletin dates remained approximately where they were in the April 2014 Visa Bulletin.

The Chinese EB-2 and EB-3 continued to be flipped: the Chinese EB-2 is worse than the Chinese EB-3.  Chinese nationals who are EB-2 may be able to file an EB-3.  Chinese EB-3s should check with their attorneys to effect this change.The Chinese EB-3 mirrors the All Other EB-3.

Employment- Based
All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed
 China – mainland born INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES
1st C C C C C
2nd C 15APR09 15NOV04 C C
3rd 01OCT12 01OCT12 01OCT03 01OCT12 01NOV07

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Musillo Unkenholt LLC is a full-service immigration law firm headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, serving clients throughout the United States and the world.

Our attorneys have vast experience in an array of immigration processes.

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Phone: 513.381.VISA (8472)

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