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

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