The Department of Homeland Security, through an announcement entitled "2009 Government and Employers: Working Together to Ensure a Legal Workforce," explained the three types of site visits that are currently being conducted:
1. Risk Assessment Program fraud study. Applicable to any type of benefit program, including family and employment-based, this study is part of a joint program between USCIS and ICE. Applications and petitions are chosen at random, usually on a post-approval basis, for visits to help in designing profiles of potential fraud.
2. Targeted site visits. These visits take place where fraud is suspected, and consist of a visit to ask questions. Advance notice, including notice to counsel, is supposed to be provided.
3. Administrative site visits. These relate to religious worker and H-1B petitions. They generally are conducted by contractors who know nothing of immigration law. Religious worker visits are performed under the regulations for that category. For H-1B site visits, the contractors have been equipped with a set of specific questions, and all employers/beneficiaries should be asked pretty much the same questions, primarily reaching the issues of whether there's really an employer there, whether the employer knows it filed the petition, and whether the beneficiary is doing the work and receiving the wage indicated on the petition. H-1B visits are done on a post-adjudication basis, and are randomly selected. Each employer should receive only one such visit, but may receive different visits for different sites.
http://www.immigrationlawyermn.com/
http://www.cundyandmartin.com/
(952) 746-4111
Immigration Lawyers of Minnesota
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Immigration News on Worksite Enforcement, Raids, DHS Visits, and Illegal Immigration. USCIS and ICE Focus on Work Visas.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Duluth, Minnesota, Immigration Lawyers and Attorneys
Duluth, Minnesota, Immigration Lawyers and Attorneys
www.DuluthImmigrationLawyer.com
www.ImmigrationLawyerMN.com
www.cundyandmartin.com
The city of Duluth is located in northeast Minnesota and is home to both historic roots of the north, as well as, a diverse population of native northerners and foreign born immigrants. Duluth is the hub of the Minnesota northland for such cities as Cloquet, Hermantown, Proctor, Two Harbors, Hibbing, and Superior, Wisconsin.
Total population is approximately 85,000. According to U.S. census data:
12.5% of the population is foreign born
19.5% speak another language, other than English, within the home
15% of the population is non-white or non-black, i.e., they are Hispanic, Asian, etc.
The central U.S. Immigration office and Immigration Court that serves Duluth and Minnesota, generally, is located in Bloomington, MN. This means that even though you may live in Duluth, if you are seeking a work visa, family sponsorship, green card, K-1 fiance visa or facing deportation, you will need an immigration attorney who is familiar with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services – USCIS, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – ICE, and the Immigration Court in Bloomington. Cundy and Martin, LLC, is located in Bloomington, MN, and serves clients out of Duluth while its main office is located in Bloomington, near USCIS, ICE, and the Federal Immigration Court, to address the immigration needs and concerns of its diverse clientele.
Call or email our office if you need immigration assistance and Vincent Martin will gladly help you. Mr. Martin is a Partner at Cundy & Martin, LLC, and heads the Immigration Practice Group. Vincent represents employers, business personnel, investors, families seeking to sponsor other family members, students, asylees, and those facing deportation with all areas of immigration law. Vincent has helped countless clients with work visas, family visas, and deportation defense.
Call (952) 746-4111
vmartin@cundyandmartin.com
www.DuluthImmigrationLawyer.com
www.DuluthImmigrationLawyer.com
www.ImmigrationLawyerMN.com
www.cundyandmartin.com
The city of Duluth is located in northeast Minnesota and is home to both historic roots of the north, as well as, a diverse population of native northerners and foreign born immigrants. Duluth is the hub of the Minnesota northland for such cities as Cloquet, Hermantown, Proctor, Two Harbors, Hibbing, and Superior, Wisconsin.
Total population is approximately 85,000. According to U.S. census data:
12.5% of the population is foreign born
19.5% speak another language, other than English, within the home
15% of the population is non-white or non-black, i.e., they are Hispanic, Asian, etc.
The central U.S. Immigration office and Immigration Court that serves Duluth and Minnesota, generally, is located in Bloomington, MN. This means that even though you may live in Duluth, if you are seeking a work visa, family sponsorship, green card, K-1 fiance visa or facing deportation, you will need an immigration attorney who is familiar with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services – USCIS, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – ICE, and the Immigration Court in Bloomington. Cundy and Martin, LLC, is located in Bloomington, MN, and serves clients out of Duluth while its main office is located in Bloomington, near USCIS, ICE, and the Federal Immigration Court, to address the immigration needs and concerns of its diverse clientele.
Call or email our office if you need immigration assistance and Vincent Martin will gladly help you. Mr. Martin is a Partner at Cundy & Martin, LLC, and heads the Immigration Practice Group. Vincent represents employers, business personnel, investors, families seeking to sponsor other family members, students, asylees, and those facing deportation with all areas of immigration law. Vincent has helped countless clients with work visas, family visas, and deportation defense.
Call (952) 746-4111
vmartin@cundyandmartin.com
www.DuluthImmigrationLawyer.com
Friday, October 9, 2009
ICE and USCIS Worksite Visits H-1B Employers
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), is targeting both employers with laborers and professional workers. ICE has undertaken an aggressive position toward investigating potential immigration violations at worksites. Employers and immigration attorneys nationwide are reporting surprise visits by ICE at worksites. However, unlike the visits of the past where ICE typically only raided undocumented workers at jobs such as meat processing plants, apparel factories, and the like, DHS is now visiting employers who employ professional workers under the H-1B program. The H-1B program generally grants work visas to those filling jobs that require a bachelor’s degree or higher. Such workers can include accountants, engineers, computer programmers, etc.
It appears that many of the H-1B visits by DHS are not triggered by anything in particular as small and large employers have been visited. In fact, very reputable companies with established histories of complying with the immigration law are being visited. This has caused some to question the efficiency and effectiveness of such visits at taxpayer expense. As employers become fearful of DHS investigations, I think it may a chilling effect on whether employers will select the best qualified candidates for jobs or the candidate that will result in the least scrutiny by our immigration service. This would not be good for business nor the public. If an employer has followed the rules, it should not have to expend time and resources, nor deal with the disruption, that surprise visits by DHS causes at the workplace. The legality of such warrantless “visits” has yet to be challenged in the courts, but it will only be a matter of time before an employer raises such issues.
There is a place for worksite enforcement by immigration officials, but there is also a need for a reasoned strategy.
www.ImmigrationLawyerMN.com
It appears that many of the H-1B visits by DHS are not triggered by anything in particular as small and large employers have been visited. In fact, very reputable companies with established histories of complying with the immigration law are being visited. This has caused some to question the efficiency and effectiveness of such visits at taxpayer expense. As employers become fearful of DHS investigations, I think it may a chilling effect on whether employers will select the best qualified candidates for jobs or the candidate that will result in the least scrutiny by our immigration service. This would not be good for business nor the public. If an employer has followed the rules, it should not have to expend time and resources, nor deal with the disruption, that surprise visits by DHS causes at the workplace. The legality of such warrantless “visits” has yet to be challenged in the courts, but it will only be a matter of time before an employer raises such issues.
There is a place for worksite enforcement by immigration officials, but there is also a need for a reasoned strategy.
www.ImmigrationLawyerMN.com
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Obama Immigration Law Reform
Obama Immigration Law Reform
President Barack Obama recently announced that he expects to have a new immigration law proposal in Congress by the end of the year, but that there will not be a new immigration law in effect until next year. He stated that there needs to be "a pathway to citizenship" for millions of illegal immigrants in the United States, and that the system must be reworked to avoid tensions with Mexico. Without it, he said, Mexicans will keep crossing the border in dangerous ways and employers will continue exploiting workers. "We can create a system in which you have . . . an orderly process for people to come in, but we're also giving an opportunity for those who are already in the United States to be able to achieve a pathway to citizenship so that they don't have to live in the shadows,"
This gives hope to many immigrants in the U.S., legal or illegal, documented or undocumented, as a new immigration law could effect not only the millions of illegal aliens or undocumented workers in the U.S., but also their families. Many family members of undocumented immigrants are lawful U.S. citizens, especially their U.S. born children. Even though an illegal alien may have a U.S. citizen immediate family member, the U.S. immigration law does not provide a clear path to legalization.
Under the current law, most illegal or undocumented immigrants must return to their home country before they can become legal in the United States. The problem that this creates is that once the person departs the U.S. to comply with the law, another section of the law bars them from returning for 10 years or more. Unfortunatley, many immigrants, in attempting to comply with our laws, leave the U.S. with the hope of returning through family sponsorship, only to learn at their visa interview at the U.S. consulate, that they are barred for ten years because of their previous unlawful presence in the U.S.
With hope that there will be immigration reform within the next two years that will provide “a pathway to citizenship,” many immigration lawyers are reporting that many immigrants are choosing to remain in the U.S., albeit illegally, rather than return to their home country and risk being barred for 10 years.
www.ImmigrationLawyerMN.com
President Barack Obama recently announced that he expects to have a new immigration law proposal in Congress by the end of the year, but that there will not be a new immigration law in effect until next year. He stated that there needs to be "a pathway to citizenship" for millions of illegal immigrants in the United States, and that the system must be reworked to avoid tensions with Mexico. Without it, he said, Mexicans will keep crossing the border in dangerous ways and employers will continue exploiting workers. "We can create a system in which you have . . . an orderly process for people to come in, but we're also giving an opportunity for those who are already in the United States to be able to achieve a pathway to citizenship so that they don't have to live in the shadows,"
This gives hope to many immigrants in the U.S., legal or illegal, documented or undocumented, as a new immigration law could effect not only the millions of illegal aliens or undocumented workers in the U.S., but also their families. Many family members of undocumented immigrants are lawful U.S. citizens, especially their U.S. born children. Even though an illegal alien may have a U.S. citizen immediate family member, the U.S. immigration law does not provide a clear path to legalization.
Under the current law, most illegal or undocumented immigrants must return to their home country before they can become legal in the United States. The problem that this creates is that once the person departs the U.S. to comply with the law, another section of the law bars them from returning for 10 years or more. Unfortunatley, many immigrants, in attempting to comply with our laws, leave the U.S. with the hope of returning through family sponsorship, only to learn at their visa interview at the U.S. consulate, that they are barred for ten years because of their previous unlawful presence in the U.S.
With hope that there will be immigration reform within the next two years that will provide “a pathway to citizenship,” many immigration lawyers are reporting that many immigrants are choosing to remain in the U.S., albeit illegally, rather than return to their home country and risk being barred for 10 years.
www.ImmigrationLawyerMN.com
Monday, July 27, 2009
TPS for Somalia
www.cundyandmartin.com
18-Month Extension of Temporary Protected Status for Somalia.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of Somalia from its current expiration date of Sept. 17, 2009 through March 17, 2011.
18-Month Extension of Temporary Protected Status for Somalia.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of Somalia from its current expiration date of Sept. 17, 2009 through March 17, 2011.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Reopen In Absentia after Departure Deportation
The Board of Immigration Appeals - BIA, has held that an alien’s departure from the United States while under an outstanding order of deportation or removal issued in absentia does not deprive the Immigration Judge of jurisdiction to entertain a motion to reopen to rescind the order if the motion is premised upon lack ofnotice.
See: Matter of Olivia BULNES-Nolasco, RespondentFile A074 374 363 - Hartford, ConnecticutDecided July 23, 2009, http://www.usdoj.gov/eoir/vll/intdec/vol25/3651.pdf
www.cundyandmartin.com
See: Matter of Olivia BULNES-Nolasco, RespondentFile A074 374 363 - Hartford, ConnecticutDecided July 23, 2009, http://www.usdoj.gov/eoir/vll/intdec/vol25/3651.pdf
www.cundyandmartin.com
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Am I a Citizen of the United States?
Am I a Citizen of the United States?
By Immigration Lawyer Minnesota Vincent Martin
Many people are citizens of America by birth or through some other part of the immigration law and don’t even know it. If you are a citizen by law, you do not need to take the citizenship and naturalization test through the INS or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Even if you have no documentation or consider yourself an “illegal alien” for example, no green card, no visa, no immigration paperwork, if you are citizen by law, your lack of documentation does not change the fact that you are a citizen – you just need proof of it.
Keep in mind that this article does not address amnesty or other types of laws that grant people immigration status. This article talks about the possibility that you may be a citizen by virtue of your parents’ or grandparents’ U.S. citizenship, or your place of birth.
The laws that determine whether you are a citizen automatically under the law have changed over the years. Under most circumstances, if you were born in the United States, you are a U.S. citizen. But in some instances, even if you were not born in the U.S., you may still be a citizen.
If you were born outside of America, the law typically looks to the law that was in effect at the time of your birth, your parent’s birth, your grandparent’s birth, etc. In some instances, merely being the child of a U.S. citizen makes you a citizen no matter where you were born, but in other instances the law requires that your American parent have resided in the United States for a period of time before citizenship can be automatically bestowed on you. Another factor to consider is whether your parents were married at the time you were born. The immigration law regarding children born out of wedlock can determine whether you received citizenship automatically or not.
If you were not a citizen at birth, you may have acquired citizenship through your mother or father when he or she became a citizen or naturalized. This typically requires that your parent naturalize before your 18th birthday. For example, if you have a green card and you are under 18 at the time that you parent becomes a U.S. citizen, you may have received citizenship automatically along with your parent, even though you don’t have documentation of it. In this case, you would not need to take the citizenship test, you would simply apply for a certificate of citizenship. The Child Citizenship Act of 2000 (CCA) would be the applicable law.
If you think that you may already be a citizen by law, you should contact an immigration attorney to get a legal opinion about your case. If you simply show up at the border, airport or other immigration office and merely try to claim citizenship without proper proof, the immigration service will send your case to the immigration judge and essentially place you into deportation. You will then have to prove your claim to the judge. With proper planning, if you have a legitimate claim to citizenship, you may be able to avoid the deportation process by receiving a certificate of citizenship or U.S. passport.
Vincent Martin is an immigration lawyer at Cundy and Martin, LLC, in Bloomington, MN. As an immigration attorney, his practice is devoted exclusively to immigration law. Vincent may be reached at 952-746-4111 or www.cundyandmartin.com .
By Immigration Lawyer Minnesota Vincent Martin
Many people are citizens of America by birth or through some other part of the immigration law and don’t even know it. If you are a citizen by law, you do not need to take the citizenship and naturalization test through the INS or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Even if you have no documentation or consider yourself an “illegal alien” for example, no green card, no visa, no immigration paperwork, if you are citizen by law, your lack of documentation does not change the fact that you are a citizen – you just need proof of it.
Keep in mind that this article does not address amnesty or other types of laws that grant people immigration status. This article talks about the possibility that you may be a citizen by virtue of your parents’ or grandparents’ U.S. citizenship, or your place of birth.
The laws that determine whether you are a citizen automatically under the law have changed over the years. Under most circumstances, if you were born in the United States, you are a U.S. citizen. But in some instances, even if you were not born in the U.S., you may still be a citizen.
If you were born outside of America, the law typically looks to the law that was in effect at the time of your birth, your parent’s birth, your grandparent’s birth, etc. In some instances, merely being the child of a U.S. citizen makes you a citizen no matter where you were born, but in other instances the law requires that your American parent have resided in the United States for a period of time before citizenship can be automatically bestowed on you. Another factor to consider is whether your parents were married at the time you were born. The immigration law regarding children born out of wedlock can determine whether you received citizenship automatically or not.
If you were not a citizen at birth, you may have acquired citizenship through your mother or father when he or she became a citizen or naturalized. This typically requires that your parent naturalize before your 18th birthday. For example, if you have a green card and you are under 18 at the time that you parent becomes a U.S. citizen, you may have received citizenship automatically along with your parent, even though you don’t have documentation of it. In this case, you would not need to take the citizenship test, you would simply apply for a certificate of citizenship. The Child Citizenship Act of 2000 (CCA) would be the applicable law.
If you think that you may already be a citizen by law, you should contact an immigration attorney to get a legal opinion about your case. If you simply show up at the border, airport or other immigration office and merely try to claim citizenship without proper proof, the immigration service will send your case to the immigration judge and essentially place you into deportation. You will then have to prove your claim to the judge. With proper planning, if you have a legitimate claim to citizenship, you may be able to avoid the deportation process by receiving a certificate of citizenship or U.S. passport.
Vincent Martin is an immigration lawyer at Cundy and Martin, LLC, in Bloomington, MN. As an immigration attorney, his practice is devoted exclusively to immigration law. Vincent may be reached at 952-746-4111 or www.cundyandmartin.com .
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