U.S. Immigration Updates– Week of April 17, 2023
Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) Reconsiders Denials based on ETA-9089 Question H.10-B
The Department of Labor’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) posted an announcement on April 14, 2023, regarding recent permanent labor certification applications that were denied where the employer did not explicitly answer the question in field H.10-B of Form ETA-9089, Application for Permanent Employment Certification.
OFLC said it has “thoroughly reviewed” past and current permanent labor certification (PERM) applications with respect to how question H.10-B on the Form ETA-9089 has been completed. As a result of this review, OFLC concluded that some employers have not consistently answered the question accurately by providing acceptable alternate job titles. Rather, they include statements such as “see H.14 – Special Skills.” OFLC has recently denied such applications for being incomplete.
OFLC evaluated these denials and determined that while they are “appropriate,” it has stopped issuing denials for this issue for pending applications and “will not deny for this reason for any application submitted on or before May 30, 2023, by which point OFLC expects to be accepting the updated version of Form ETA-9089 in the Foreign Labor Application Gateway system. Further, OFLC will overturn denials based solely on this issue.”
OFLC said it recognizes that “as it transitions to the updated version of Form ETA-9089, which will incorporate Form ETA-9141 into PERM applications, there may be questions about whether employers should alter how they complete Form ETA-9141 as a result of this announcement. OFLC is considering that issue and will issue guidance in the near future if we determine that such guidance is necessary.”
SOURCE: ABIL Immigration Insider, April 16, 2022; and https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/foreign-labor
May 2023 Visa Bulletin Predicts Further Retrogressions in Employment-Based Categories
The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for May 2023 includes a variety of updates:
· Retrogression is likely in the final action dates for China and India in EB-1 visa number availability in the coming months.
· EB-2 final action dates for the Rest of the World, Mexico, and Philippines categories have retrogressed further to 15FEB22 due to higher-than-expected demand, following retrogression in April.
· The India EB-2 and EB-5 final action dates will retrogress “as early as next month” to keep visa issuances within their annual per-country limits. “Every effort will be made in October to return the final action dates to at least the final action dates announced for April,” the bulletin says.
· The EB-3 final action date of 01JUN22 is effective in May for the Rest of the World, Mexico, and the Philippines.
· “[F]urther corrective action” is likely in the final action dates for the EB-3 “Other Workers” category for the Rest of the World, Mexico, and the Philippines in the coming months.
SOURCE: ABIL Immigration Insider, April 16, 2022; and https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-bulletin/2023/visa-bulletin-for-may-2023.html
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Announces Online Change of Address Form for Noncitizens
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced a new online change-of-address form for noncitizens. The new form gives noncitizens the option to update their address online in addition to the existing options of doing so by phone or in person at a field office. It will be deployed “in a rolling release with full availability anticipated in the coming weeks,” ICE said.
After successfully entering a valid mailing address, if the noncitizen is currently in removal proceedings, the interactive online form will show the noncitizen information on how to also change their address with the immigration court as required. Noncitizens who are eligible for but have not yet received a Notice to Appear, meaning those who were released on conditional parole with an alternative to detention, may be prompted to state whether they want to receive their Notice to Appear by mail or in person by scheduling an appointment at an Enforcement and Removal field office.
The new online form “will enable noncitizens to comply with their immigration obligations more easily and improve the accuracy of address information reported to ICE by utilizing address autofill to ensure U.S. Postal Service standardization,” ICE said.
SOURCE: ABIL Immigration Insider, April 16, 2022; and https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-announces-online-tool-noncitizens-provide-change-address