USCIS ISSUES H-1B FILING GUIDANCE

March, 2006

Washington D.C. - USCIS will begin accepting filings for the FY2007 H-1B cap on April 1, 2006. In anticipation of this event, USCIS is reminding the public of important regulatory requirements. H-1B petitioners should keep this emphasis in mind as they prepare petitions in order to avoid delays in processing and possible Requests For Evidence (RFE).

8CFR 214.2(h)(2)(B) requires that petitioners provide a detailed itinerary of the dates and places where work will be performed if those services will be provided in more than one location. For example, a labor contractor or consultant who hires H-1B workers to work at client sites must provide in advance an itinerary with dates and places where the worker will perform that work.

In addition, 8 CFR 214.1(c)(4) requires that an applicant for extension of status has maintained his or her nonimmigrant status. In situation in which an H-1B worker is changing to an employer other than the one for which the initial H-1B petition was approved, USCIS will require that the worker changing employers demonstrate that he or she actually did perform work for the original petitioning employer for a significant length of time. In situations in which the H-1B worker is processing abroad, USCIS will work closely with the Department of State to ensure that this same level of integrity is applied to consular processed H-1Bs.

Note: This Memorandum is designed to alert clients to general developments in law in the United States of America and to planning opportunities. Such developments and opportunities are necessarily discussed in general terms, and therefore, should not be acted upon without professional advise.

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