Maria del Carmen Ramos – Page 7 – The Immigration Bulletin

Immigration Alert: Decision Overturning 17-month OPT/STEM Extensions is stayed as USCIS scrambles to cure deficiencies

On August 12, 2015, Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dealt a blow to employers by vacating the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) 2008 interim rule expanding the optional practical training (OPT) program for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students in Washington Alliance of Technology Workers v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Civil Action No. 14-529 (D.D.C. Aug. 12, 2015). Continue reading “Immigration Alert: Decision Overturning 17-month OPT/STEM Extensions is stayed as USCIS scrambles to cure deficiencies”

Knock, Knock: Who’s there?

Due to a contempt hearing scheduled for August 19, 2015 in the case of the State of Texas v. United States, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is taking radical measures to recover all three-year Employment Authorization Document (EAD) cards issued prematurely under President Obama’s November 20 executive actions to over 2,500 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) recipients. Continue reading “Knock, Knock: Who’s there?”

Client Alert: Amended Petitions Required When Relocating H-1B Employees

Most business immigration practitioners tell H-1B employers an amended or new H-1B petition, along with a corresponding Labor Condition Application (LCA), is required whenever there is a material change in the terms and conditions of employment. But whether a change in the employment location constitutes a material change requiring an amended petition has been a topic of much discussion. Continue reading “Client Alert: Amended Petitions Required When Relocating H-1B Employees”

Texas Denies Immigrant Children Their U.S. Citizenship

Birthright citizenship is a hotly debated topic. The United States and Canada are one of the few nations that automatically grant citizenship so expansively to children born within their borders. Anyone born in the U.S. is considered an American citizen regardless of whether the parents are U.S. citizens, legal residents, temporary visitors, or illegal immigrants in the U.S. Continue reading “Texas Denies Immigrant Children Their U.S. Citizenship”

Executive Action Update: 3 Year EADs Issued After 2/16/15 Injunction Must Be Returned

It is no surprise that the implementation of this administration’s executive actions has run into a series of political and legal snags. But what is surprising is the administration’s response or overall handling of the matter. Continue reading “Executive Action Update: 3 Year EADs Issued After 2/16/15 Injunction Must Be Returned”

Bienvenidos a Habana

And so it begins. After more than 50 years of icy relations, Jeffrey DeLaurentis (a U.S. diplomat at the U.S. Interests Section in Havana) delivered a note from President Barak Obama to Cuban President Raul Castro restoring diplomatic relations. Continue reading “Bienvenidos a Habana”

I-9 Update: Green Cards Do Not Always Have a Signature

U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (“USCIS”) recently released an alert advising employers that green cards do not always have a signature. For example, USCIS will waive the signature requirement for children under the age of consent or individuals who are physically unable to provide a signature. Continue reading “I-9 Update: Green Cards Do Not Always Have a Signature”

When Is Paying an Honorarium Permissible?

Determining when is appropriate to pay an honorarium to a foreign national on a visitor’s visa often presents a conundrum. Our immigration system is nothing short of complicated with its alphabet soup of visas, but paying a foreign national also presents tax implications. Continue reading “When Is Paying an Honorarium Permissible?”

Alert: Preliminary Injunction is Denied–H-4 EAD Program Moves Forward

As previously reported, a group of former employees of Southern California Edison (who claim they were laid off and replaced by H-1B workers) filed a lawsuit in the United States District for the District of Columbia against the administration challenging the H-4 final rule on the grounds that the rule exceeds DHS’s authority and directly contradicts certain provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, as amended, in Save Jobs USA vs. U.S. Dep’t. of Homeland Security, Civil Action No. 1:15-cv-615. Continue reading “Alert: Preliminary Injunction is Denied–H-4 EAD Program Moves Forward”

Cuba: La Perla de las Antillas

Now that summer is here, hopefully most of us are planning our vacations. Although most summers, I return to my native Puerto Rico to visit family and spend some time at the beach, I’m always reading the newspaper (digitally these days) to look for new places to travel. If you’ve been reading the news over the past several months, there have been quite a few articles about a new Caribbean destination for travelers: Cuba. Continue reading “Cuba: La Perla de las Antillas”