Top 5 Immigration Challenges Facing IT Employers (and what you can do to minimize the headaches) 3 FEBRUARY 2011

H-1B Cap Annual quota of 65,000 Even in a slow year, not nearly enough to meet demand Cap just hit this week

H-1B Cap - Solutions Timing Cap exemption strategies Recruit from US schools Masters cap Cap-Gap and extrensions Consider alternative categories

H-1B Audits USCIS conducting site visits across the US to determine compliance Inexperienced contractors and sloppiness verifying information Employers also getting regularly audited by DOL (are your public access files in perfect orders?)

H-1B Audits - Solutions Conduct your own audits first to make sure paperwork is in order Make sure your staff is trained on how to respond to a site visit Develop guidelines to ensure your paperwork is in order and readily accessible

Neufeld Memo Staffing cases now have a much higher approval threshold USCIS routinely denying cases for staffing companies where employees are not clearly controlled by the contractor. Staffing cases now have a much higher approval threshold Serious drop in filings from these employers

Neufeld Memo - Solutions Carefully document control in your contracts Consider more placement arrangements instead of staffing ones Consider co-employment arrangements where client is petitioner

I-9 Audits Massive new federal enforcement effort – 1000% increase in fines over last three years Potential state law consequences under new business license statutes

I-9 Audits - Solutions regular self audits good training centralize recordkeeping electronic I-9 systems E-Verify Procedures in place to deal with audits

Security Clearances consulates are delaying Indian and other cases for months for security clearances no way to know until you travel almost nothing you can do to speed things up

Security Clearances - Solutions Don’t travel Be far enough along in green card process to have advance parole document

Final tidbits President’s State of the Union Export control rules now on I-129 form Maintain green card status even if you have a work card Start up visa Green card quota issues

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