Attorney Murthy's Editorial for April 1999
Posted Apr 20, 1999

We are delighted to share with all of our readers, another edition of the Law Office of Sheela Murthy's informative Bulletin, which explains in simple, easy to read format the latest developments in immigration law, affecting our clients, prospective clients and the immigrant community in general.

The Immigrant Visa numbers for the month of May 1999 have fortunately moved forward for nationals of India in the employment-based second and third preferences, by about five weeks and a month, respectively. This is indeed good news for many since there was concern for awhile that the dates were crawling!

In the article dealing with Computer professionals and the Nebraska Service Center, we have outlined the factors that the INS looks at when they tend to investigate the qualifications of H1B professionals and the nature of cases the Chennai consulate tends to investigate for fraud. Although the list seems interminably long, the benefit is that we now at least understand the circumstances under which delays are likely and possible avenues by which to preempt an investigation by providing documents up front. It is not clear if some of the criteria established are in accordance with law or are unconstitutional, for example, the decision not to allow diplomas or certificates of non-academic universities from South India but allowing them from other parts of the world and for candidates from similar institutions who have been approved H1B visas in prior years.

We hope that the new LCA procedure for H1Bs speeds up the processing time for H1B petitions in the future. Only time will tell!

We have outlined answers to frequently requested information from e-mails and telephone calls to the Law Office of Sheela Murthy on H1B related issues. These issues are understandably a concern for many who fear that the six years on their H1B will expire prior to the issuance of the green card or in many cases, even prior to the approval of the labor certification by the U.S. Department of Labor.

We have provided a detailed analysis of the national interest waiver standards after the New York Department of Transportation case and the criteria which are now required to be addressed in advance of submitting an NIW Petition in order to obtain an approval.

As always, we have provided information on topics of general interest to immigrants, like procedures for the issuance of the Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card. The Law Office of Sheela Murthy has received several requests for an update on this topic. In addition, we continue the subject of the dream of most Americans to own a piece of the real property of this great country, with an overview of the issues to consider when buying a home.

We hope you will find the Immigration Law Bulletin of the Law Office of Sheela Murthy to be useful. We appreciate the opportunity to provide you with information and believe that each of you will contribute tremendously to this great country to make it better and richer. The greatness of the United States of America lies in the contributions of its immigrants and the day America forgets that will be the beginning of the end of the greatest nation on earth!