2015 Old Blog

by Caroline Tang, VISANOW's Senior Manager of Legal Services

Robert Goodlatte, the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, has introduced a bill, the Agricultural Guestworker Act of 2013, to replace the existing H-2A agricultural visa program with a new H-2C visa program. The bill proposes to allow up to 500,000 temporary agricultural laborers into the United States per year. That number is subject to change by the Secretary of Agriculture. The visa would allow workers to stay in the US for up to 18 months, as opposed to the maximum of 1 year currently issued to H-2A visa holders.

Since it was first proposed in the U.S. Senate in 2001, the DREAM Act (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act) has held the promise of a better life for undocumented immigrants in the U.S. The special path to citizenship for DREAMers in the 2013 immigration reform bill is being proclaimed the "best version yet" with more immigrants standing to benefit than ever before.

Last week, the Senate "Gang of Eight officially released their proposal for comprehensive immigration reform. Immigrants and immigration advocates are already discussing the possibility of a new path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, but it is important to remember that no new immigration laws have passed yet.

A bipartisan group of senators, known as the Gang of Eight, has proposed an overhaul of the current immigration system. The Senate bill, titled the "Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013" focuses on strengthening border security, providing a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, improving the employee verification program for employers, and establishing more visa availability for foreign workers.

After months of congressional and industry negotiations behind closed doors, details regarding the proposed immigration reform bill are finally being revealed. Of course, nothing is set in stone and the terms of immigration reform could change significantly by the time a bill is passed and signed (if that even occurs). With that in mind, below are significant changes that will affect our clients and foreign national employees.

Sure, the tech industry has a vested interest in immigration reform due to the amount of high-skilled STEM workers that its fast-paced industry needs. But in a lightning-fast and electronic industry, Mark Zuckerberg has succeeded in reminding us how personal the immigration issue really is.

On June 15, 2012 Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano announced that undocumented individuals who arrived in the U.S. prior to their 16^th birthday may apply for deferred action as long as all requirements are met. For a list of requirements, please refer to our previous blog post written by Jennifer Zimberg, esq. Deferred action essentially acts as a "get out of jail free card for a two-year period, providing relief from removal from the country or from entering into removal proceedings for undocumented individuals who qualify. It also provides work authorization. The question is, what happens after these two years pass?

As in many highly-charged debates, we've heard some extreme views both for and against immigration reform. And, like other political and social movements in U.S. history, there is truth to both sides of the issue.

Civil- and social-rights movements have catalyzed many of the most important and most historic changes in the United States. As a diverse nation, we have a colorful - and painful - history of social reformation over the years.