"The Undocumented" - A Documentary by Marco Williams

A compelling documentary about struggles of crossing Sonora desert and personal struggles of those affected by migrant deaths.

"The Undocumented" - Independent Lens - Independent Documentary Films | PBS

H-1B Cap Cases - Update on Issuance of Receipt Notices

The H-1B lottery was completed on April 7 and the USCIS has started data entry for the selected cases. If past is any indication, it may take until late May for the USCIS to issue all the receipt notices.

Source: AILA

New Immigration Bill Filed

The new immigration bill was formally filed today by a bipartisan group of senators. The 844-page bill provides a path to legal status (referred to as "registered provisional immigrant status") for many immigrants who have been residing in the U.S. before December 31, 2011. It would eventually lead to permanent residence after a person was in provisional status for 10 years, paid fees, filed taxes and otherwise complied with the requirements of the bill.

There are many other amendments in the new bill, including reclassification of spouses and minor children of permanent residents as "immediate relatives" which would greatly expedite unification of these families. Other provisions include blue cards for agricultural workers, changes to H-1B visa cap, making Conrad 30 program for foreign physicians permanent, etc.

There is still a long way to go before the bill becomes final. But it is a step in the right direction.

We will keep you posted on any new developments.

Those interested to read the bill can access it at:http://www.schumer.senate.gov/forms/immigration.pdf

News on Immigration Reform Bill

Today, a group of senators disclosed details of the long-awaited immigration reform bill which would give millions of immigrants an opportunity to legalize their status in the United States.

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Source: Reuters

Update on H-1B Cap

When the H-1B filing season started this April 1^st, everyone anxiously waited to see how many applications will be received during the first 5 days. For the first time since 2008, the H-1B was reached within the first week. Not just reached, but exceeded! This prompted the USCIS to conduct a “lottery” – a computer-generated random selection process to select 85,000 petitions which will be processed. The lottery was completed on April 7th.

Those that were not selected will receive their petitions and the filing fees back from the USCIS.

H-1B number game this year:

• Number of regular H-1B cap visas available: 65,000
• Number of advanced degree (Master’s degree or higher) H-1B cap visas available: 20,000
• Number of petitions received by USCIS the first week of April 2013: about 124,000

Perhaps it is time to address H-1B cap limits in the immigration reform and let the markets decide. 

DACA Statistics - March 31, 2013

The USCIS issued an updated DACA statistics report on March 31st, 2013:

• Applications received: 472,004 
• Applications approved: 268,361

USCIS to Implement Customer Identity Verification at Field Offices

On Monday, May 6, 2013, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will implement Customer Identity Verification (CIV) in its field offices. Individuals will now be required to submit biometric data, specifically fingerprints and photographs, when appearing at USCIS offices for interviews or to receive evidence of an immigration benefit. CIV will help to both defend against threats to national security and protect customers from identity fraud by enhancing the agency’s ability to verify identity.

Currently, USCIS requires applicants and petitioners requesting immigration or naturalization benefits to visit one of our Application Support Centers (ASCs) to provide biometric data. USCIS uses this data to help determine eligibility for requested benefits. This requirement, along with providing a government-issued document for examination, will not change.

For CIV, an individual appearing at a USCIS field office for an interview or to be issued evidence of an immigration benefit will have his or her identity biometrically re-verified. Examples of evidence include temporary travel documents, parole authorizations, temporary extensions of Form I-90, and temporary I-551 stamps on passports or on Forms I-94 to evidence lawful permanent resident status. Individuals coming to USCIS field offices for other purposes, such as an Infopass appointment or as the guest of an applicant or petitioner, will not submit biometric data.

Under this new process, staff will take two fingerprints and a photograph of the individual and input this information into the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology’s (US-VISIT’s) Secondary Inspections Tool (SIT). SIT is a Web-based application that processes, displays and retrieves biometric and biographic data. US-VISIT also links databases associated with border inspections and security. After identity verification is satisfactorily completed, individuals will proceed to their interviews or be issued their immigration documents.

Last updated:04/08/2013

Source: USCIS.gov

"As Congress continues to debate ways to address illegal immigration, we must remember the many hard-working legal immigrants that contribute so much to our nation's economy and culture."

—Bob Filner 

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