As has been widely reported in the media, the U.S. government temporarily ceased operations deemed non-essential as of October 1, 2013. This is a result of the failure of the U.S. Congress to agree on a new budget for federal operations. Many normal government functions...
The U.S. government is in a state of partial shutdown as of October 1, 2013 due to an inability to obtain congressional agreement on appropriations. As of October 1st, the Department of Labor iCert system is unavailable. This system is used for both PERM labor...
If the U.S. Congress cannot reach an agreement on a funding extension before midnight tonight, there will be what is commonly referred to as a government shutdown, effective October 1, 2013. In such a situation, government services are not completely eliminated. However, government operations are...
The U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) recently addressed questions related to efforts to verify the employment authorization of contractors. The issue is whether it is appropriate for a general contractor to request employment authorization documentation from...
This article has been updated. The new MurthyDotCom InfoArticle is entitled Requirement to Prove Ability to Pay in an I-140 Petition (22.Nov.2016). The team of Murthy Law Firm attorneys who write our NewsBriefs and InfoArticles make every effort to keep readers informed with the most...
Immigration law is full of complex legal and procedural concerns. At times, however, simple matters and small details can create disruptions within the system. Such is the case with a recent problem, which has since been resolved, at the U.S. Department of State (DOS) National...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is working to update and improve the operations of the National Customer Service Center (NCSC). More specifically, the USCIS is taking steps to expand and modernize the existing phone and online USCIS informational systems. Voice Prompts Simplified and Website...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently released a new version of the form for employment eligibility verification (I-9). Employers must use the I-9 form at the time when employees are hired in the United States, to verify employment authorization. While there is a...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has taken a major step by releasing the first volume of their new Policy Manual. This Manual will replace the current Adjudicators Field Manual (AFM) as well as a number of USCIS policy memos. The first volume covers...
Fiscal year 2012 (FY12) was the busiest year on record for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) audits of employers' employment eligibility verification (I-9 forms). Beyond just the number of investigations, fines and even arrests also grew dramatically during the past three fiscal years for...
