"The revision date of the new Form I-9 is printed on the lower left corner of the form. Employers should not complete a new Form I-9 for existing employees, however, if a properly completed Form I-9 is already on file."

#immigrationupdates  

"Beginning May 8, 2013, the Immigrant Visa Unit will no longer accept walk-in applicants without visa appointments.  Applicants with emergency needs (i.e., ageing out cases, visa correction requests, and expiring visas) will be allowed to come in on a case-by-case basis."

#immigrationupdates

 
Beginning May 7, 2013, employers are required to use the new Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9 (revision 03/08/13) for new hires. All previous versions of the Form I-9 will no longer be valid and must not be used after May 6, 2013.
 
A Few Tips for Employers
 
 • You will find the revision date of the new I-9 in the lower left corner (03/08/13)

 • All current employees must have a Form I-9 on file

 • All new employees must be given the entire new Form I-9, including the instructions and "List of Acceptable Documents"

 • You should only accept documents that are unexpired when completing an employee’s Form I-9

 • Be sure to keep both pages together. You should consider printing two-sided copies

 • E-Verify users – List B documents must contain a photo, and the Social Security number field must be filled in

Few Notes From USCIS-AILA Verification Meeting

 • It is permissible for an employer to use the old form for an employee who starts work on May 6 (before the mandatory effective date), even where Section 2 may not be completed until May 9 (after the mandatory effective date).

 • While it is required that employees must be provided a copy of the instructions that they can refer to while completing the Form I-9, employers do not need to provide a copy of the instructions for employees to keep. For this purpose, employers may laminate and reuse the instructions.

 • In most cases, employers can leave certain fields blank if they do not apply, but it is recommended to use "N/A." However, if the passport number and country of issuance fields in Section 1 do not apply, the employee must write "N/A."

 • Even if the original Form I-9 is still valid, employers may choose to complete Section 3 of a new form, rather than reverify on Section 3 of the original Form I-9, provided the employer attaches the new form to the original. USCIS will amend the M-274.

 • "For example, presentation to the employer of a new Social Security Card reflecting a new Social Security number and new name raises a material question as to the identity of the employee, the veracity of information on Form I-9, the genuineness of any documents presented in Section 2 that contain a Social Security number, and the relation of these documents to the person who presented them. The employer can no longer reasonably rely on the Form I-9 to be assured that the individual is authorized to work. USCIS suggests completion of a new Form I-9 in this instance to ensure the employee is eligible to continue in employment. This is a suggestion and not a requirement."  Furthermore, "If the employer learns of a change, even if outside the Form I-9 context, that raises a material question as to the identity of the employee, the veracity of information on Form I-9, the genuineness of any documents presented in Section 2, and the relation of these documents to the person who presented them, then the employer can no longer reasonably rely on the Form I-9 to be assured that the individual is authorized to work and should complete a new Form I-9." 

 • DHS or DOJ/INS are currently acceptable issuing authorities for the Form I-20.

 • Telephone number and email address are not required fields. 

 • Three-Day Business Rule: If the employer or business is operational over the weekend, this counts towards the 3-day time frame for completing Form I-9 even if the HR office is only open on regular business hours from Monday to Friday.

Upcoming USCIS Teleconference

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) invites interested individuals to participate in a stakeholder teleconference on Tuesday, May 7, 2013 at 2:30 p.m. (Eastern). For more details: http://goo.gl/FHNFO

#immigrationupdates  

Beginning May 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014, entrants in the Diversity Visa 2013 program may check the status of their entries through the Entrant Status Check on the State Department (DOS) website at http://www.dvlottery.state.gov/. The Entrant Status Check is the ONLY way successful applicants are notified of their selection. DOS no longer notifies winners by letter or email. All entrants should keep their confirmation, since more DV 2014 entrants may be selected on October 1, 2013.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE SELECTED: If you have been selected for further processing in the DV Lottery program, follow the instructions on the Entrant Status Check page on how to proceed with the application.

WARNING: Be careful of fraudulent emails and letters from scammers posing as the U.S. government, asking for payments to process winning entries. The Department of State does NOT notify successful DV applicants by letter or email. Furthermore, some companies posing as the U.S. government have sought money to complete DV application. There is no fee to complete and submit a DV Lottery application.

For more information on the State Department's Fraud Warning, see http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1749.html. 

IMPORTANT NOTICE: If you have lost your confirmation information, you will not be able to check your DV entry status. DOS will not be able to resend the confirmation page information to you.

#immigrationupdates  

Related:

U.S. Department of State Diversity Visa (DV) Program Website: http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1322.html

"USCIS is moving the existing online payment for the USCIS Immigrant Fee to its Electronic Immigration System (USCIS ELIS). Customers will soon pay the $165 USCIS Immigrant Fee using USCIS ELIS after they receive their immigrant visa package from the Department of State and before they depart for the United States."

#immigrationupdates

Beginning today, the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will start automating its arrival and departure process
and eliminating the paper Form I-94 Departure Record cards for air and sea travelers at select pilot air and sea ports-of-entry (complete implementation timeline is available here: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/id_visa/i-94_instructions/i94_rollout.xml).

A paper Form I-94 will still be issued at land border ports-of-entry, as well as to certain classes of travelers, such as refugees, certain asylees and parolees, and whenever CBP determines the issuance of a paper form is appropriate. 

Upon arrival, the CBP officer will scan travelers' passports to capture biographic information and create an electronic record of their admission. The officer will also provide travelers with an admission stamp in their passports that is annotated with the following information:

 • Date of admission;
 • Class of admission, and
 • Date that the traveler is admitted until.  

Travelers will also receive a flier, instructing them to go to www.cbp.gov/I94, where they can access and print their electronic Form I-94 admission record in paper format.

Furthermore, "[a]s evidence of lawful admission submitted with a benefit request, USCIS will accept the electronic Form I-94 in paper format obtained from CBP’s website (www.cbp.gov/I94). This document is the equivalent of the paper versions of Form I-94 issued by CBP and USCIS. In lieu of submitting the electronic Form I-94 in paper format, USCIS will also accept photocopies of the passport pages that contain the individual’s biographical information, visa and admission stamp. These alternatives will allow applicants and petitioners more ways to provide proof of lawful U.S. entry in order to establish eligibility for certain USCIS benefits."

NOTE: As a practical matter, nonimmigrant visa holders in E, F, H, I, J, L, M, O, P, Q and R status should print out their I-94 admission record if planning to apply for a Social Security Number or driver's license, as well as for Form I-9 purposes.

#immigrationupdates  

Resources:

 • Admission (I-94) Number Retrieval Demo (Video): https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/video/I-94%20Web%20Application%20Demonstration%20for%20Internet.swf

 • I-94 Automation Fact Sheet: http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/newsroom/fact_sheets/travel/i94_factsheet.ctt/i94_factsheet.pdf

 • I-94 Automation Overview: https://lokewalsh.com/govfiles/CBP%20I-94%20Automation%20Overview.pdf

 • I-94 Quick Reference Guide for Local, State and Federal Agencies: https://lokewalsh.com/govfiles/I-94%20Quick%20Reference%20Guide%20Flyer%20(0812)%20FINAL.PDF

 • List of USCIS forms that are being updated for I-94 automation: http://goo.gl/LFw1b

Via +AILA National:

"USCIS has started the data entry process for H-1B petitions selected in the lottery. Premium processing cases are being handled first and data entry for those cases should be completed by April 15. USCIS announced on March 15, 2013, that the 15-day premium processing clock will start on April 15. (AILA Doc. No. 13031549)

At the AILA Spring CLE conference on April 12, 2013, Donald Neufeld, Associate Director of the Service Center Operations (SCOPS) Directorate, informed the audience that data entry for non-premium processing cases will begin after the premium processing cases are entered. Data entry for non-premium cases will likely not be completed until sometime in May, and rejection notices for petitions not selected in the lottery will be sent out after that. Please note that when the cap was reached on the first day in 2008, USCIS did not complete data entry and issue receipt notices until late in May. (AILA Doc. No. 08061261)

Non-premium processing cases can only be converted to premium processing after a receipt notice is issued."

#immigrationupdates  

The outline of the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013 from the Senate's 'Gang of Eight' was made available today. We'll take a closer look and share our notes with you.  We would love to hear your thoughts, so please feel free to share them as well.

#immigrationupdates  

Today, USCIS published an updated report on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) data, which indicates an approval rate of roughly 50%.

The report indicates that as of March 31, 2013, USCIS has received a total of 488,782. Of which 472,004 has been accepted for processing, and only 268,361 has been approved. It also shows Mexico, El Salvador & Honduras as the top 3 countries of origin, while California, Texas & New York are the top 3 places of residence.

"Please also note that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals reporting period will change from a mid-month to an end-of-month cycle. In addition, beginning with the April 2013 report, the reports will include updates to data previously reported based on the availability of data as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals process progresses."

The report is available here:

http://www.uscis.gov/USCIS/Resources/Reports%20and%20Studies/Immigration%20Forms%20Data/All%20Form%20Types/DACA/2013-0412%20DACA%20Final%20Monthly%20Report.pdf

#immigrationupdates