Weekly News Impacting Global Employers Covered by Greenberg Traurig’s Business Immigration & Compliance Practice
In This Issue
The President’s Administration Extends Temporary Protected Status to Nicaragua and Honduras
Shaun Staller
The U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security announced last week that he will extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to eligible nationals of Nicaragua and Honduras for an additional 18 months. The extension is effective from January 6, 2015 through July 5, 2016. In general terms, the TPS designation may be extended to a foreign country by the … Continue Reading
India to Implement Electronic Visa System in Time for the Holidays
Shaun Staller
The Indian government is embracing the spirit of giving this holiday season as it announced its plans to unroll an electronic travel authorization (ETA) system by the end of October. This development in immigration processing comes on the tails of a successful year operating a visa-on-arrival program, which experienced an increase of 39.2% in the … Continue Reading
A Canadian Doctor Learns the Hard Way Not to Exceed the Scope of His U.S. Work Authorization
Shaun Staller
Ophthalmologist Ashish Sanon was born in India and trained in Canada, of which he is a naturalized citizen. For the past sixteen years, Dr. Sanon has resided in the United States and operated an ophthalmological practice out of Florida. As it turns out, his practice here has been quite successful, billing $5 million over the … Continue Reading
U.S. Consulate In Ottawa Rescheduling All Visa Appointments Scheduled For Today
Ian Macdonald
All visa appointments scheduled for today at the U.S. Consulate in Ottawa are being rescheduled for another date and time. This is in response to the unfortunate events that occurred yesterday in Ottawa. Security at all U.S. Consulates worldwide is expected to be heightened as officials monitor the situation closely. Visa applicants across the world … Continue Reading
Visa-Free Entry to Philippines for Some Chinese and Indian Nationals
Rebecca Schechter
Chinese and Indian nationals with unexpired U.S., Australian, Canadian, Japanese or Schengen visas may now enter the Philippines as tourists or business visitors without first having to obtain visas. Chinese and Indian visitors can extend their seven-day, visa-free admission up to 14 additional days for a maximum of 21 days. However, it should be noted … Continue Reading
The Hard Lessons of Hiring Unauthorized Workers
Scott Decker
Employment of unauthorized workers can have serious consequences for both the workers and the employers who knowingly employ them. This hard lesson was learned last week by the owners of a Chinese restaurant located in the Charleston, South Carolina area. Dao Ping Lin and his wife Jin Xian Yang owned and operated the Osaka restaurant … Continue Reading
DOL Announces Historical PERM and LCA Records will be Purged
Nataliya Binshteyn
Employers should take note of two important changes announced by the Department of Labor. First, after a 30-day period of public notice and review, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) approved the revised retention schedule of the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC), determining that PERM labor certification applications and supporting documentation may be … Continue Reading
U.S. Consulate in Calgary Closed for the Month of November
Shaun Staller
The U.S. Consulate General in Calgary, Canada will be closed for visa appointments for the month of November 2014. The closure results from planned renovations to the facility. Visa processing in Calgary is planned to commence as normal in December 2014. For individuals in the Calgary area who require a visa to travel to the … Continue Reading
National Visa Center Announces Fee Changes
Kate Kalmykov
Effective September 12, 2014, the Department of State will increase the Immigrant Visa Application Processing Fees for family-based immigrant visa petition types, and decrease the Immigrant Visa Application Processing fees for all other immigrant visa petition types. Therefore, applicants who received a fee invoice prior to September 12, 2014, will be eligible to pay the … Continue Reading
Norwegian Embassy in Malawi Issues Visas for 12 Countries
Rebecca Schechter
In addition to Norway, the Embassy of Norway located in Lilongwe, Malawi now handles visa applications for Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Italy, France, Belgium, Spain, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, as well as Schengen visa applications. The Embassy website boasts that no other Norwegian diplomatic mission represents so many countries.… Continue Reading
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