H-4 SPOUSE EMPLOYMENT

H-4 SPOUSE EMPLOYMENT H-4 s are recently eligible to apply for work authorization, in certain cases The Principal H-1B spouse must: be the beneficiary of an approved I-140 Immigrant Petition (PR Classification), or have been granted H-1B status under sections 106(a) and (b) of AC21 19

H-1B FEES $325 I-129 Petition / $290 I-539 Dependents $1,500 ACWIA Training Fee (26 employees) or $750 (<25) $500 Fraud Fee for the initial application $1,225 Premium Processing optional expedite $4,000 if 50 US employees & 50% US employees are in H-1B, L-1A, or L-1B status Legal fees 20

H-1B LABOR CONDITION APPLICATION (LCA) The sponsor company is required to pay the H- 1B the prevailing wage and give notice to its employees that a foreign national is being hired The company must complete the LCA notice, post this LCA information, and provide a copy to the H-1B Often confused with the Labor Certification recruitment process, which employers are generally reluctant to deal with 21

H-1B VISA Travel outside the US requires a visa stamp with the properly matching category to return May have multiple valid visas at a time Be sure to use the correct one Must have the H-1B approval to get an H-1B visa Apply at home or permitted consulate Plan in advance as seasonal changes may affect the timing of scheduling and processing, taking about a week 22

H-1B DUAL INTENT One of the great advantages of the H-1B is the benefit of Dual Intent, which allows the foreign national to concurrently maintain nonimmigrant status while at the same time applying for permanent immigration to the U.S. This is generally not allowed, as immigrant intent precludes a foreign national s qualification for many non-immigrant classifications, such as B Visitors and F Students 23

CAP GAP A Cap Gap situation arises generally where a student s OPT authorization expires prior to October 1 st Cap Gap provisions automatically extend the student s F-1 status and OPT authorization until the October 1 effective date for foreign nationals who have timely filed an H-1B petition 24

CAP GAP NOTICE TIMES FY 2015 Properly Filed - 1 st week April Courier Receipt Selected - end April Approved Premium Processing - May standard maybe beginning late May, but mostly later, most August, Sept Rejected - 2 nd week June (later than FY 2014) Denied, or Revoked - varies 25

Immigrant Categories Review The Green Card 26

EMPLOYMENT-BASED IMMIGRATION EB-1 Extraordinary / Outstanding EB-2 Certain Professionals NIW National Interest Waiver EB-3 General Workers PERM: Labor Certification (Recruitment Process) Visa Bulletin 27

EB-1 PERSONS OF EXTRAORDINARY ABILITY Extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business or athletics (allows self-sponsorship and Premium Processing) Qualifies with major award (Nobel Prize) Alternately a combination of USCIS criteria: national/international awards, published works, membership requiring outstanding achievement, commands high salary compared to others in field, & similar Intended for small percentage at top of field 28

EB-1 OUTSTANDING PROFESSORS/RESEARCHERS Internationally recognized as outstanding in specific academic area with at least 3 years of experience in teaching or research in area, for specific teaching or research position Evidence includes at least 2 from list of criteria such as major awards, published material, original scientific research, etc. Premium Processing possible 29

EB-2 CERTAIN PROFESSIONALS Members of the professions with advanced degrees (Master s) or the equivalent (Bachelor s plus 5 years of progressive experience) Aliens of exceptional ability in sciences, art, or business Requires PERM Labor Certification or Waiver of job offer if alien s services are in the national interest 30

EB-2 NIW Seeks employment in area of substantial intrinsic merit; Benefit will be national in scope; and National interest would be adversely affected if labor certification were required Must show benefit of unique skills substantially outweighs inherent interest in protecting US workers through labor certification process Allows self-sponsorship 31

EB-3 GENERAL WORKERS Pertinent Category : those with Bachelor s degrees & who hold professional jobs Must obtain labor certifications from the Department of Labor that: There are not sufficient US workers who are able, willing, qualified, and available to do the work The employment of the alien will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of US workers similarly employed. 32

PERM LABOR CERTIFICATION Complex and highly technical computerized system Form is 10-15+ pages Simple variants will result in application denial Theoretical 45-60 day processing, currently about 9 months initially and frequently additional 6-12 months for Audits Based on prevailing wage determined by job duties and geographic location 33

PERM LABOR CERTIFICATION Substantial recruitment to be done 30-180 prior to submission of PERM application 30 day job order with DOL 2 Sunday ads in largest local newspaper or professional positions may substitute one Sunday ad for an appropriate trade journal 3 additional recruitments from DOL list of 10 All applicants must be shown to not qualify or reject the terms 34

VISA BULLETIN MARCH 2016 Employment - Based All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed CHINA - mainland born INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES 1st C C C C C 2nd C 01AUG12 15OCT08 C C 3rd 01JAN16 01JUN13 15JUL04 01JAN16 15MAR08 35

Harry Gee & Associates, PLLC Presentation WWW.HARRYGEE.COM/UH2016 Additional information www.harrygee.com/expertise 5847 San Felipe, Ste 2950 Houston TX 77057 713.781.0071