When will I get my Green Card? - Green Card Calculator for EB category

If you ever wondered "When will I get my Green Card?", here is the 'Green Card' calculator for Employment- Based category. As per recent data released by USCIS on May 26th, 2011 on EB I-485 inventory this is a calculation that tells an individal how many I-485 applicants are there before them in the queue under their filed preference category. Beyond this, calculations are extended to predict how many years will it take an individual to receive a green card from current date (as per GMT).

Last Edited for October Inventory - December 29, 2011

Data beyond July 2007

Data beyond July 2007 is segregated from PERM data with respective to 'Priority Date'. To segregate EB2 and EB3, PWD minimum salary was used as a basis instead of assumption of 50:50. Ratio 50:50 do not holds true for many countries. Please see table below, which outlines PERM distribution for EB2 and EB3 for different countries.

Spillover Estimation - System will recommend spillover that we expect to receive in coming years for each country and category . EB2-India & China - PERM distribution for different priority date in EB2 - India and China was calculated. This distribution will control how spillover will be distributed among EB2-IC as dates will progress for different Priority Dates. System would try to average the Spillover among EB2-India and China in such a way that number of years required to reach similar PDs are as close as possible. For each fiscal year, system assumes following spillover.

In general distribution of EB2-IC PERM Ratio for different PD year is as shown below. In general, waiting time for Indian nationals in EB2 and EB3 category looks terrible. Since density of applicants per month in EB2-India is so high, that in long run EB2-China will not receive majority of spillover (couple hundred or few thousands). Since EB2 will not be cleared for atleast next 5-6 years, spillover expeccted to EB3 category is minimum. EB3-India will get some indirect- spillover each year due to EB3 to EB2 upgrades or porting which will cause queue to clear faster than anticipated. Individuals with PD close to 2004 -2006 will see ample benefit of this every year. Apparently, if EB2-I will stop receiving spillover or receive minimum spillover in coming years, wait time for EB3-India and EB2-India will end up same. If you will note EB3-India has only 102k estimated demand vs. 165k for EB2-India for PD - March 2011. This whole ordeal is very depressing and visa recapture bill is only hope for EB community.

In addition, you can also put an assumption for a spillover that your category and country would receive every year and see how this changes the scenario. Please see assumptions below. Please ensure that you enter "User ENTERED" value exactly as shown in table below.

I-140 Conversion Rate

 This data is solely taken from published data on website - http://www.immigrationwatch.com/uscis-processing-statistics.html ,and is just tabulated and presented here in different format. We have updated our green calculator to include I-140 conversion rate based on this data, Green Calculator, thus will not assume 100% I-140 approval rate for approved PERMs . This conversion rate is only used for calculation for any cut-off dates which are beyond July 2007.  For any priority date which is after or on October of the particular year, calculator will use the percentage approval rate value from the next year, thus assuming PERM approval time of 90 days.

Tabulated list below also considered volume of applications received at NSC and TSC in order to arrive at average I-140 and I-485 approval percentage, and succesively used those values to calculate 'rolling successive percentage'. Green Card calculator will use 'rolling successive average' to arrive at reduced number of applicants before your priority date to calculate estimated wait time. System will recommend I-140 conversion rate for each priority date.

I-140 conversion rate is also an 'USER ENTERED' entry where you can input values in 'Percentage' only. For e.g. If you will assume percentage as '75', entered value should be '0.75' or '75%'.



Multiple PERM Factor
This is still ongoing effort and we are still looking into estimating reduction in demand due to multiple PERMs owned by an indiviudal and his/her spouse. Based on the poll that we have on our website, double filings within a family looks significant factor to estimate demand beyond July 2007 PD. As per our current poll status there are only 220 real PERMs out of 329 filed PERM that will contrubite to demand. This is around factor of 65%.  

System will recommend 'Multiple PERM factor' based on your country and category. Multiple PERM factor is also an 'USER ENTERED' entry where you can input values in 'Percentage' only.

PWMB - PWMB is taken care of in green card calculator. In general PWMB number for a PD month is added to the current inventory for the successive PD month. For e.g. if PWMB for EB3-ROW with PD Sep -2005 is '50' , this number is added in PD Oct-2005 inventory. This is done because that demand will not be realised until specific PD will become current. Please click this to see post that refers PWMB for EB3 category.

For EB2-India and China, PWMB is added to the following inventory assuming PD in coming visa bulletin will move in increments as stated in table below.EW - (Others) - In addition to other category it will aslo calculate number for applicants for EW (Others) category. Due to complication in calculation it cannot estimate wait time as of now. We will update it going forward.
It is assumed that 7% of the total annual EB Visa Numbers (140,000) are allocated to each of the four retrogressed countries while the remaining 72% visa numbers are available to the Rest of the World. Visa numbers allotment for EB4 and EB5 are considered separately.

F.A.Q. - Why GC calculator is estimating more wait time compared to last one?
a) Our OLD calculator was predicting PERM distribution of 50:50 between EB2 and EB3, which is not true for most of the categories. This ratio has changed when analyzing as per PWD data. General trend is posted above.

b) Earlier annual PERM data was NOT distributed as per Priority Date but was simply divided among each month assuming equal applications number. This is not true. Number of applications for each category is increased for PD 2008 and PD 2009 due to recent approvals of audit cases. Data now is strictly divided as per Priority date (with error of +/- 5 days). For each PERM approval family size is assumed 2.25. There may be many individuals with late PD 2010-PD 2011 who are single but by the time they will get green card, annual family size may increase.

c) Wait time has tremendously increased due to addition of People Who Missed the Boat (PWMB) during July 2007 fiasco. These numbers are significant for each country and category. See our earlier post regarding PWMB. For example numbers considering dependents are for EB3-ROW is 13000, and for EB2-I is 9500. These data are added to respective inventory and number of application prior 2007 has increased.

Factors a), b) and c) are major reason for seeing this whole big difference. But now GC calculator is real representation of wait time for PDs post July 2007.

d) Post PD 2007, when calculating some of the PERM approvals, some of the porting application may be repeated but again as most of us think upgrade demand is small, it should not be large factor.

Total Visa Available Annually - We assume that entire annual limit is available to each category as per statutory limit, but this may not be true as some of the countries do end up getting more than 7% visas than annual limit and other's less. In such case user can input number of visas , a country and a category is receiving as per current trend. Calculator assumes annual limit but this field is User ENTERED.

Consular Processing demand (CP) - System automatically assumes CP demand for different country and category. Users can also assume this demand as '0' or enter specific percentage (%). This field is User ENTERED.

PD becoming 'CURRENT' and "Green Card in Hand" time - System calculates time from today when you can expect to become current. In addition to this you can input current USCIS processing time to estimate "Green Card in hand" time. In general it is recommended that if your I-485 case is pre-adjudicated assume 1 month and if new filing assume 4-8 months. This field is User ENTERED.

Green Card Calculator was also fixed to remove some of the demand that is prior to current priority cut-off dates from the released inventory. One bug in the spillover calculation was also as pointed by one user.

Note : This calculator is estimating wait time assuming DOS will not make dates current for any category (unlikely). These are on average generic wait time, and actual time may vary on case to case basis.

FOR EB2-India and China - Please enter TOTAL Spillover EB2-IC will receive. System recommends Total Spillover based on above spillover assumptions.



Note: To be able to use this feature you must be running "Excel 2003 or later and Internet Explorer" or "Excel 2010 and Firefox". Works better with Internet Explorer.

Planning on H1B Stamping in India - Please read this on 221(g)

For all the H1B holder planning to stamp their H1B visa in coming months should read this important information on murthy.com.

H1B and H-4 Visa Applications in India Plagued by 221(g) Refusals: Part 1 Posted 14.Jan.2011

Historically, the U.S. consulates in India have had a reputation for closely scrutinizing visa applications. The standards at the consulates for H1B visas were quite strict, even prior to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS's) implementation of stricter adjudications policies. Recently, however, the consular rates of reported issuance of 221(g) visa refusals and denials have reached a critical level. At the present time, it would be wise for H1B workers employed by IT consulting companies, as well as their H-4 spouses, that they limit international travel unless it is absolutely necessary. Those working for employers in other sectors also face risks that should be carefully considered before traveling internationally and applying for visa stamps abroad.

221(g) Ineligibility

The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) Section 221(g) is a fairly generic provision, which states that consular officers cannot issue visas to applicants who are ineligible to receive the visas under any section of law, or if the visa applications do not comply with immigration laws and regulations. Put simply, 221(g) is a catchall provision for refusing a visa if, in the opinion of the consular officer, the applicant has not proven eligibility for visa issuance. The 221(g) is classified as a visa "refusal" and must be revealed as such in any later visa applications. This was addressed in our news article, 221(g) Visa Stamp is Considered a Visa Refusal (18.Dec.2009), available on MurthyDotCom.

For many applicants, the 221(g) notification (issued on various colors of paper) is not the end of the road. It is not uncommon for 221(g) visa refusals to be used by the consulates as a way of issuing requests for evidence (RFEs). They contain preprinted lists of documents, and consular officers check off the boxes corresponding to the additional documents needed to make their final decisions.

Some 221(g) notices are for administrative processing. These do not require additional documents from the applicant. They involve internal background checks on the applicant and/or the petitioning employer, if applicable.

Cases Receiving 221(g)s

The 221(g) can be issued in any type of visa application. We are receiving daily inquiries and requests for assistance from individuals and their employers after problems arise in their visa applications. The cases coming into the Murthy Law Firm and Murthy Immigration Services, Pvt. Ltd. (MISPL) in Chennai, India, most commonly involve IT consulting company employees applying for H1B visas. However, we are also receiving inquiries from individuals in other lines of work who have received the same treatment. While these types of cases represent a smaller proportion of those experiencing problems, it has become a common occurrence.

Why Visa Applicants Receive 221(g) Refusals

The 221(g) provisions have been used for many years to request additional documentation, or to put the application on "hold," pending additional background and security checks. What is occurring at the present time, however, is the seemingly universal use of a laundry list 221(g) in many H1B cases, without regard to the content of the H1B petition itself or documents and information offered at the interview.

Read More on Murthy.com

How to know if old I-140 has been revoked by previous employer?

If an individual filing a green card under employment-based category has changed job and now planning to port priority date from previous filed Labor certification, he will at least need an approved I-140 from previous employer to recapture priority dates.

As per Yates Memo, in the context of employment-based immigration, visa petitions filed under the EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 categories are entitled to the earliest priority date where a subsequent I-140 immigrant visa petition in any of these categories is submitted and approved, unless the prior petition was revoked due to fraud. So, unless case is revoked due to fraud, you should be able to recapture old priority date.

But there are many cases with USCIS, where old priority date is not recaptured on new filings even if previous employer revokes old approved I-140 due to retaliation or due to company's policy to annually revoke cases for former employees. In these circumstances, employee or new employer should call National Service Center and talk to representative and remind them about Yates Memo, which clearly says earliest priority date should be recaptured unless petition was revoked due to fraud or misrepresentation. If you will talk to them nicely and puftorth your case by referencing Yates Memo, you might be able to convince them to recapture old PD. See excerpt from Yates Memo below.

From: William R. Yates

Date: 09/23/05

Re: Interim Guidance Regarding the Impact of the Department of Labor’s (DOL) PERM Rule on Determining Labor Certification Validity, Priority Dates for Employment-Based Form I-140 Petitions, Duplicate Labor Certification Requests and Requests for Extension of H-1B Status Beyond the 6<sup>th Year.

Revisions to Adjudicator’s Field Manual (AFM) Chapters 22.2(b)(2), 22.2(b)(3)(B), 22.2(b)(3)(F), (22.2(b)(5) and 33.3(g)(8) (AFM Update AD 05-15)
.....</sup>

^{In those cases where the alien’s priority date is established by the filing of the labor certification, once the alien’s Form I-140 petition has been approved, the alien beneficiary retains his or her priority date as established by the filing of the labor certification for any future Form I-140 petitions, unless the previously approved Form I-140 petition has been revoked because of fraud or willful misrepresentation. This includes cases where a change of employer has occurred; however, the new employer must obtain a new labor certification if the classification requested requires a labor certification}

How to know if old I-140 has been revoked by previous employer?

There is no easy way to know if previous employer has revoked your old approved I-140. The best way to know this is to call your previous employer or attorney and see if your previously approved I-140 is still good. If that is not an option, other way to predict this is to check if there is any 'Soft LUD' on your previously approved I-140. If there is no update on your case status after final action (i.e. approval notice sent date), then you may be in good shape and your I-140 is still good. Please see '. Other than this there is no better way to know status on previously filed petition.

H1B FY 2011 Cap Count - 14 January 2011

As per recent release by USCIS, regular cap has utilized till date 60,700 visas. As per American Immigration Lawyer Association (AILA), USCIS has 6,350 H-1B Singapore and Chile unused numbers from FY 2010. The readers should remember that available visa numbers for regular cap cases is not 65,000. Not all H-1B visa are subject to this annual cap. Please note that up to 6,800 visas may be set aside from the cap of 65,000 during each fiscal year for the H-1B1 program under the terms of the legislation implementing the U.S.-Chile and U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreements. Unused numbers in this pool are made available for H-1B use for the next fiscal year. From last year we still have these 6,350 unused visa numbers. Taking this into account, H1B Cap for FY 2011 will not be reached until regular cap has utilized around 64,350 total visas under regular cap. Just to remind our readers, all application submitted under Masters Cap will be counted towards regular cap.

Can one leave sponsoring employer soon after getting Green Card?

A green card job offer is legally considered a future full-time and permanent job offer. Therefore, the employee must have a good-faith intention to work for the employer after the green card is approved, and the employer must have a good-faith intention to employ the employee after the green card is approved. Even if one worked for the sponsoring employer for several years while pursuing the green card process, that would not count as future intent. Generally, 6 months to 1 year after obtaining the green card is a safe time period to change employment. Failure to stay at the sponsoring employer may result in problems at the naturalization stage.

The official rule is that you must not have any preconceived intention to leave the job when you get your Green Card. In general, working for the company for one year after getting the GC is normally considered sufficient. If individual want to leave job after filing I-485, he/she should work for sponsoring employee for at least 180 days before they can file for AC21 portability.

To be on safer side, I would not change jobs before a year. It is just matter of time when your miscalculated decision can come back and bite you. As they say "Fools Rush In".

Priority Date - How to recapture from previously filed petition ?

Generally speaking, the filing date of the visa petition determines the priority date of the alien beneficiary, and his or her place on the waiting list for an immigrant visa.

Employment Based

Immigrant workers being sponsored for labor certifications or PERM are an exception to above rule; the labor certification filing date with the Department of Labor controls as the priority date.

In the context of employment-based immigration, visa petitions filed under the EB-1, EB-2, or EB-3 categories are entitled to the earliest priority date where a subsequent immigrant visa petition (usually I-140) in any of these categories is submitted and approved, unless the prior petition was revoked due to fraud. However, these priority dates are not transferable to the EB-4 or EB-5 categories, or family-sponsored visa petitions.

Once immigrant petition for alien has been approved, he or she can move to new employment. In order to recapture previous priority date, alien has to start their green card process again with his employer. This involves submission of new PERM for new job to DOL. Once PERM is approved, request to capture previous priority date can be sent to USCIS when filing for new I-140 or during filing I-485. Please note, you will need an approved I-140 to recapture priority date. Old PERM approval is not sufficient. Proof of previously approved I-140 could be send to USCIS in form of copy of approval notice, copy of receipt notice or image capture of approval of case on USCIS website.


Family Based

Recapturing an earlier priority date for a subsequent family-based visa petition is more complicated. Here’s a brief overview of the U.S. family-based immigration system: immediate relative (spouse or unmarried child under 21 years old of U.S. citizen); 1st preference (unmarried child over 21 years old of U.S. citizen); 2nd preference (F2A – spouse and unmarried child under 21 years old of permanent resident, and F2B – unmarried child over 21 years old of permanent resident); 3rd preference (married child of U.S. citizen); and 4th preference (brother or sister of U.S. citizen). It is important to note that there is no category for married children of permanent residents.

Regulations implementing U.S. immigration law provide specifically when priority dates can be recaptured for a family petition. Generally speaking, a beneficiary can recapture an earlier priority date if the petitioner and the beneficiary are the same, the petitioner is filing in the same preference category, and the prior I-130 visa petition was not terminated or revoked. For example, if an unmarried child of a U.S. citizen over the age of 21 years old (1st preference category) marries while the petition is pending, then the beneficiary is automatically converted to the 3rd preference category but they will keep the original priority date. However, if an unmarried child of a permanent resident (2nd preference) marries while the petition is pending, then the petition is automatically revoked as a matter of law because no category exists for permanent residents to petition married children. Any subsequent petition that the permanent resident parent files on that child’s behalf (such as a 3rd preference visa when the parent becomes a U.S. citizen) will entail a new filing (priority) date.

Another complicated situation where priority dates can be recaptured involves the children of unmarried sons or daughters who are the principal beneficiaries of their parents’ petitions filed in the 2nd preference category. If these children (derivative beneficiaries) turn 21 years old, they lose their derivative status and move from the F2A category to F2B. Moreover, the children will require a new immigrant visa petition filed on their behalf. Fortunately, these derivative beneficiaries who “aged-out” will be able to retain the original priority date of their initial petition.

Priority dates directly determine when an individual can immigrate to the United States or adjust their status to permanent residency. As you can see, attempting to recapture an earlier priority date to ensure more timely immigration can be complex. Individuals seeking assistance with recapturing a priority date from a prior petition should consult with knowledgeable and experienced immigration attorneys.

Visa Bulletin - February 2011

February 2011 Visa Bulletin was released on 12th January 2011. As predicted there was no major movement for employment based category. EB-2 China progressed by 8 days into July 2006. EB-2 India is still standstill. Major movement for the EB-2 employment based category for India and China will be seen in month of June-July 2011, only when unused visa numbers will be available due to spillover from EB2- ROW and EB-1 . Until then one should expect small or no movement in EB-2 category. Eb-3 movement was observed for India and China. This will still progress at snail pace for rest of the year. Family Based category will see retrogression for rest of the year.

Family Based :

As per February Visa Bulletin, family categories had seen as much of the advancement of the last two years has been reversed with major retrogression.

RETROGRESSION OF FAMILY CUT-OFF DATES

Continued heavy applicant demand for numbers in the Family Fourth preference category has required the retrogression of the Worldwide, China-mainland born, Dominican Republic, and India cut-off date for the month of February.

It has also been necessary to retrogress the Dominican Republic F2B category for the month of February.

Further retrogressions cannot be ruled out should demand continue at the current levels for some categories and countries.

Please Note: Applicants entitled to immigrant status become documentarily qualified at their own initiative and convenience. By no means has every applicant with a priority date earlier than a prevailing cut-off date been processed for final visa action. On the contrary, visa allotments are made only on the basis of the total applicants reported documentarily qualified each month, compared with the amount of available numbers. For example, during the past month, over 17,300 of the applicants who have become documentarily qualified in the Family preference categories have priority dates earlier than the cut-off dates established for January. Demand for visa numbers can fluctuate from one month to another, with the inevitable impact on cut-off dates.

Employment Based :

Employment 1st - still current in all categories.

Employment 2nd - weak movement for India and China; just a one week improvement for China (01 Jul 2006) and stalled again for India (8 May 2006).

Employment 3rd - modest movement; 8 days advance for most countries to 01 April 2005; two week advance for China to 01 Jan 2004; India moves up two week to 22 February 2002. Mexico jumps 2 months to 08 July 2003 and the Philippines jumps by 8 days to 01 April 2005.

Employment 3rd Other Workers – most countries moved by one week at 01 May 2003; India moves up 22 February 2002; Mexico jumps to 01 May 2003.

Employment 4th - still current in all categories.

Employment 5th - still current in all categories.

H1B FY 2011 Cap Count - 7th Jan 2011

As per recent release by USCIS, regular cap has utilized till date 58,700 visas. As per American Immigration Lawyer Association (AILA), USCIS has 6,350 H-1B Singapore and Chile unused numbers from FY 2010. The readers should remember that available visa numbers for regular cap cases is not 65,000. Not all H-1B visa are subject to this annual cap. Please note that up to 6,800 visas may be set aside from the cap of 65,000 during each fiscal year for the H-1B1 program under the terms of the legislation implementing the U.S.-Chile and U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreements. Unused numbers in this pool are made available for H-1B use for the next fiscal year. From last year we still have these 6,350 unused visa numbers. Taking this into account, H1B Cap for FY 2011 will not be reached until regular cap has utilized around 64,350 total visas under regular cap. Just to remind our readers, all application submitted under Masters Cap will be counted towards regular cap.

How to contact USCIS National Customer Service Center ?

Yesterday USCIS released guide on the services provided by USCIS. This is a quick cheat sheet for anyone who is trying to get in contact with USCIS Customer Representative regarding recently filed cases, queries or any discrepancy in their receipt or approval notice. This Customer Service Reference Guide provides information on the services provided by USCIS. This guide is a duplicate of the information used by the representatives at the National Customer Service Center to answer calls on our toll free numbers.

For information about a particular immigration benefit or service, please select the appropriate topic on the menu below. USCIS encourages petitioners to go through this information before calling National Service Center. This is the comprehensive information that is available online. Individual should bookmark this page for future reference.

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• Getting Ready to File (326KB PDF)

• Need to Order Form (21KB PDF)

• Benefits for U.S. Citizens (1375KB PDF)

• Benefits for Permanent Residents (1447KB PDF)

• Nonimmigrants (1579KB PDF)

• Refugees and Asylees (320KB PDF)

• Filing for Permanent Residence based on Employment (207KB PDF)

• Filing for Permanent Residence Based on a Family Petition (331KB PDF)

• Employer Responsibility ( PDF)

• Employment Authorization (140KB PDF)

• Temporary Protected Status (534KB PDF)

• Special Programs (233KB PDF)

• Hiring a Foreign National for Short-Term Employment (1915KB PDF)

• Helping a Foreign National Employee Get Permanent Resident Status (676KB PDF)

• Treaty Traders and Investors (416KB PDF)

Source : USCIS Customer Service Guide

'Hard' vs 'Soft' LUD - How to use it to track your case status with USCIS?

If you heard people talking about keeping track of 'Soft' and 'Hard' LUDs on forums and other websites, and wondered what it is, now you can understand what is LUDs and how you can use them to track any activity on your petition that is pending with USCIS. LUD is an abbreviation for 'Last Updated Date'. In order to track any activity on your pending petition, you will first need to register an account with USCIS to check your case status online.

Here is a link to register for USCIS case tracking system. Once you are registered to the system, you will need to add each case you want to track based on receipt number on notice that you had recently received from USCIS. You will see your case as shown below. You can track LUD (Last Updated Date) on your case in column shown with red box below.


You can go into each case to check your status. USCIS allows an individual to setup an email or mobile alert to track case status update.


Hard LUDs
"Hard" LUD (Last Updated Date) is one where you see status update to your case. Example from "Initial Review" to "Decision". Here you know why case was updated; you can see the update status online. You can even get an email or mobile alert, if you had opted for this option. However, the status will only change if the USCIS updates your case from one to other (receipt notice, approval notice, request for evidence (RFE), notice of intent to deny (NOID), card production, or other documents) or on receipt of response to RFE, NOID or request to premium process the case.

Soft LUDs
"Soft LUD" is one where you will not see any change in status or get an email alert from USCIS. These are the internal activities that occur at USCIS. For example your I-485 case has been processed and ready to be approved, but USCIS could not approve it because your priority date is not current. Others like your fingerprints get added in the system, your background check results are received, your case was moved internally from one cabinet to other or moved from one service center to other etc. You can track this by logging into USCIS Case Status system and checking "Last Updated" column in your portfolio. If you know that you expect any update in your case due to FP or background check or your I-485 is about to process, you can track this based on "Soft LUD". But again, this is all based on guesstimate and no one other than USCIS knows what is the real reason behind the update. My personal opinion is that I would not lose my sleep over tracking Soft LUDs. You will never get anything useful from it.

Bill in House to Eliminate DV Lottery Program and Reallocate Visa Numbers to Employment Based Green Card

Recently Senator Issa (R-CA) introduced a bill in house to eliminate the diversity immigrant program and to re-allocate those visas to certain employment-based immigrants who obtain an advanced degree in the United States in field of science or medicine. According to proposed bill visas shall be made available, in a number not to exceed 55,000, to qualified immigrants who--

• are a member of a profession holding an advanced degree obtained within the United States;
• ·obtained such degree within the United States during the 5-year period preceding the date on which the petition filed under section 204(a)(1)(F) for classification under this subparagraph is filed; or has resided continuously in the United States in a lawful nonimmigrant status since obtaining such degree; and
• whose services in the sciences or medicine

Why Introducing this Bill a good idea?

The diversity visa program applicant need not be skilled, professional, have an advanced degree or in an occupation that US is in dearth of. They are just picked randomly. When they come to US they may not be able to contribute to the economy immediately. It should be noted that to qualify for a Diversity Visa, you only need a high school education or its equivalent or to qualify on the basis of your work experience, individual must, within the past five years, have two years of experience in an occupation that is designated as Job Zone 4 or 5, classified in a Specific Vocational Preparation (SVP) range of 7.0 or higher. Additionally it is also limited to certain countries that are poorly represented yet in the US. People from countries such as Philippines, Mexico and other nationalities are automatically not included in the list as a result. This program was good when it was first enacted to encourage more diversity but since then US has been a melting pot of vastly diversified population, so this may not be necessary any more. There is no doubt that America needs talented and skilled workers in science and medicine for continuous economic growth to keep their competitive edge over other countries. It doesn't make sense for an individual who has studied in an US University and currently employed by an US employer to go back home and compete with US companies rather than staying here and contributing towards innovation in their field.

Will this bill pass in House?

Number of Bills to stop the Diversity Visa category has been introduced in Congress regularly almost since the DV program started with the last Comprehensive Immigration Reform in 1989. None of these bills have ever made it very far in House. So in my opinion, readers should not be disappointed if this bill is killed in the House once again.

You can read complete text of the H.R.43.IH Bill here.

How to Obtain an Emergency Advance Parole (AP) Document?

If your current status is Adjustment of Status (AOS) Pending and you are currently working on EAD, it is very important that you renew your Advance Parole (AP) document in timely manner, well in advance. If an individual leaves a country under AOS pending status with their AP application pending or AP document due expire when they are traveling outside of country, they will abandon their status in United Status. Subsequently their I-485 application will be denied.

USCIS do understand that circumstance may arise when an individual has to travel outside country in emergency. USCIS has a procedure that should be followed to obtain emergency AP document under these circumstances.

Emergency Travel

Overview

In case of an emergency, and before leaving the United States, you should know what documents will be required to reenter the United States as well as understand whether or not your departure will negatively impact your application(s) for immigration benefits.

As a general rule, any person who is not a U.S. citizen or non-citizen U.S. national is subject to immigration review each time the person seeks admission to the United States from any place outside the United States. Even if you have already been admitted as a permanent resident (you have a green card) you are subject to review by an immigration official. If, during such review, you are determined to be inadmissible (even though you may have been admissible previously), you may be denied admission.

If you are seeking admission or parole at a port of entry you generally must have in your possession a valid and unexpired travel document (e.g. a green card, U.S. visa, an advance parole document) to present to the officer at the port of entry.

Depending on your immigration status or if you have an application for an immigration benefit pending, different types of travel documents may be required if you (including permanent residents) wish to return to the United States lawfully after travel abroad. These documents should be applied for, in certain cases, prior to your departure from the United States. Please see the "Travel Documents" link to the left for more information on the types of travel documents.

Caution

Travel outside of the United States may have severe consequences if you are in the process of adjusting your status (applying for a green card). In general, if you are seeking immigrant status (a green card) and depart the United States without the appropriate documentation (i.e. advance parole) you may be inadmissible to the United States upon return, or even if admitted, you may be found to have abandoned your application.

If you have been admitted as a nonimmigrant and have applied to extend the period of authorized nonimmigrant stay, or have applied to change to a different nonimmigrant status, you will automatically abandon the application if you leave the United States before USCIS makes a decision on the advance parole application. Receipt of an advance parole document does NOT prevent abandonment of the change of status or extension of stay application. Upon returning to the United States, you are likely to be denied admission if your current status has expired.

For the reasons stated above, it is important that you obtain the proper documentation before leaving the United States. Also, you should keep in mind that admission into the United States is not guaranteed even if the appropriate documents are obtained. In all cases, you are still subject to immigration inspection or examination at a port of entry to determine whether you are admissible into the country and whether you are eligible for the immigration status sought.

Asylum applicants, asylees, refugees, and lawful permanent residents who obtained such status based on their asylum or refugee status are also subject to special rules with regard to traveling outside the United States. Additional information regarding traveling outside the United States as well as the consequences that could result if an asylum applicant, an asylee, a refugee, or a lawful permanent resident who obtained such status based on his or her asylum or refugee status returns to his or her country of claimed persecution may be found in the Fact Sheet entitled "Traveling Outside the United States as an Asylum Applicant, an Asylee, or a Lawful Permanent Resident Who Obtained Such Status Based on Asylum Status" (see link to the right).

Unlawful Presence

If you depart the United States after accruing certain periods of unlawful presence in the United States (time spent in the United States illegally) you may be barred from admission for either three years or ten years, depending on the amount of unlawful presence an individual has accrued. Any departure from the United States may trigger this ground of inadmissibility, even if you have obtained an advance parole document.

If you have accrued more than 180 days, but less than 1 year, of unlawful presence and who voluntarily depart the United States before the start of removal proceedings are inadmissible if you seek admission within 3 years of the date of their departure. If you have accrued 1 year or more of unlawful presence and you depart the United States, whether or not removal proceedings have started, you are inadmissible if you seek admission within 10 years of the date of departure.

Criteria for Expedited Processing of an Application

USCIS will expedite an application, including an application for a travel document, Form I-131, in certain situations, which may include:

• Severe financial loss to company or individual
• Extreme emergent situation
• Humanitarian situation
• Nonprofit status of requesting organization in furtherance of the cultural and social interests of the United States
• Department of Defense or National Interest Situation (Note: Request must come from official United States Government entity and state that delay will be detrimental to our Government.)
• USCIS error
• Compelling interest of USCIS

You may maket an expedite request by contacting the National Customer Service Center (NCSC) at 1-800-375-5283 or by submitting a written request and supporting documentation with your application.

Emergency Advance Parole Documents

If you are experiencing an extremely urgent situation, you may visit your local office to request an emergency advance parole document. When visiting a local office to request emergency advance parole, you should bring the following items:

• A completed and signed Form I-131, Application for Travel Document
• The correct I-131 filing fee
• Evidence to support the emergency request (e.g. medical documentation, death certificate)
• Two passport-style photos.

How to File

To apply for an emergency travel document, you must file Form I-131, Application for a Travel Document, complete with supporting documentation, photos and applicable fees (see link to the right). See the application for specific filing instructions.

Where to File

Where to file the Form I-131 depends on the benefit sought. See the form instruction page for details. Your local office may accept an emergency advance parole application if you are experiencing an extremely urgent situation. Business trips, weddings, holiday parties, and other planned events would usually not be considered an emergency situation. If you are filing Form I-131 for an emergency travel document at your local office based on an extremely urgent situation, you are encouraged to make an Infopass appointment first. See link to the right, "Make an Appointment (Infopass)."

When to File

You must apply for the travel document before leaving the United States. Generally, an applicant for a travel document must also complete biometrics capture at an Application Support Center (ASC) prior to departure from the United States. Failure to do so may cause the applicant to lose permission to reenter the country and lead to the denial of any other applications pending.

Source : www.uscis.gov

H1B FY 2011 - Still 1000 Visas Available under Regular Cap

AS of 31st December 2010, USCIS announced that atleast 1000 visa numbers are still available under Regular Cap Quota. Masters Quota has been reached. USCIS is still accepting application under Master's quota that will be counted towards regular cap. Regular Cap eligible petitioned received till date is 57,300

Visas Still Available : H1B FY 2011 Cap Count - 24 December 2010

As per recent release by USCIS, Masters Cap has been reached. Still 2000 visa are available under regular cap. The readers should remember that available cap numbers for regular cap cases are not 65,000. Not all H-1B visa are subject to this annual cap. Please note that up to 6,800 visas may be set aside from the cap of 65,000 during each fiscal year for the H-1B1 program under the terms of the legislation implementing the U.S.-Chile and U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreements. Unused numbers in this pool are made available for H-1B use for the next fiscal year.

Regular Cap still has 2000 visas left. If you are looking to sponsor your employee, please 'Hurry Up!!!'

H1B FY 2011 Cap Count
Regular Cap Reached	55800
Regular Cap Limit	65000
Masters Cap Reached	20000
Masters Cap Limit	20000
Last Counted	24th December 2010

H1B FY 2012 : List of Disqualified Employers

H1B FY 2012 season will be here soon. It is advisable that the prospective aspirants for H1B FY 2012 should be aware of the debarred or disqualified employer for this season. Please make sure you do not become a bait to any of these employers for your H1B filing. These employers are willful violator employer and are black-listed.

What is a “willful violator employer”?

“Willful violator” or “willful violator employer,” means an employer that meets all of the following standards:

• A finding of violation by the employer is entered in either of the following two types of enforcement proceeding:
  
• A Department of Labor proceeding under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) § 212(n)(2); (8 U.S.C. § 1182(n)(2)(C); or
  
• A Department of Justice proceeding under INA § 212(n)(5); (8 U.S.C.§ 1182(n)(5).)
• The agency finds that the employer has committed either a willful failure or a misrepresentation of a material fact (two of the Labor Condition Application (LCA) attestations; and
  
• The agency’s finding is entered on or after October 21, 1998.

A willful violator employer must comply with additional attestations under any LCA it files within five years of the willful violation finding. The only exception is when an LCA is filed for and used exclusively for exempt H-1B workers (see WH Fact Sheet #62Q).

Willful violators and H-1B-dependent employers (see WH Fact Sheet #62C) which file an LCA must meet the following additional requirements:

• The employer has not displaced a U.S. worker at the time of filing an H-1B visa petition (see WH Fact Sheet #62N);
  
• Before placing an H-1B worker at a secondary employer’s work site, the employer has inquired as to the secondary employer’s intent to displace a U.S. worker (see WH Fact Sheet #62N);
  
• The employer has taken good faith steps to recruit U.S. workers (see WH Fact Sheets #62O and #62P); and
  
• The employer has offered the job to any equally or better qualified U.S. worker who applies for the job for which the H-1B worker is sought (see WH Fact Sheets #62O and #62P).

Willful violators are subject to random investigations by the Department of Labor for a period of up to five years from the date that the employer is determined to be a willful violator. The Wage and Hour Division maintains a current list of such H-1B willful violators.

All requirements listed above can be found in 20 CFR § 655 Subparts H & I and the Immigration and Nationality Act § 212(n).

H-1B Debarred/Disqualified List of Employers

The Wage and Hour Division maintains the list below of willful violator employers under the H-1B program.

Employer Name	Willful Violator	Debarment Period
4MY2C, Inc. d/b/a Goldilocks Corp. 10329 Painter Ave. Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670	YES	6/1/2009 to 5/31/2011
Allied Rehabilitation and Pain Management, Inc., Allied Rehabilitation Services, Inc., Optimal Network Resources, Inc., and Ortho-Neuro Rehabilitation, Inc. 989 University Drive Pontiac, MI 48342	YES	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2011
Allied Solutions Group, Inc. d/b/a Allied Solutions Group 4836 Brecksville Rd., Suite 3 Richfield, OH 44286	YES	10/31/2010 to 10/30/2012
Asian Journal Publications, Inc. 1150 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90017	YES	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2012
Bradley Consulting Services, Inc. Maria Bradley 3357 Pitcher Plant Circle Pensacola, FL 32506	YES	6/1/2009 to 5/31/2011
Citizens Mortgage Corporation and John DeLosSantos, Individually and as President 26-01 Pollack Ave. Fair Lawn, NJ 07410	YES	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2012
Comdata Consulting, Inc. 2775 Algonquin Rd., Suite 240 Rolling Meadows, IL 60008	YES	9/30/2010 to 9/29/2012
Complete Systems Solutions, Inc. d/b/a CSSI 560 Sutter Street #400 San Francisco, CA 94102	YES	6/1/2009 to 5/31/2011
Cyberworld Enterprise Technologies, Inc. d/b/a Tekstrom, Inc. DE Industrial Park Suites 101-1022 18 Shea Way Newark, DE 19713	NO	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2011
Healthcrest Enterprises, Inc. 3125 S. Pickwick Place Suite B Springfield, MO 65804	NO	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2011
Integrated Global Systems, Inc. 14 Washington Road Building 2, Suite 212 Princeton Junction, NJ 08550	YES	1/1/2010 to 12/31/2011
Juno Healthcare Staffing System, Inc. and Dante Teodoro, Individually and as President 91-31 Queens Boulevard Suite 608 Elmhurst, NY 11373	YES	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2012
K-Soft Information Technologies, Inc. 9951 Atlantic Boulevard Suite 450 Jacksonville, FL 32255	YES	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2012
Magnolia Pool Supply, Inc. 9571 Magnolia Ave. Riverside, CA 92503	YES	6/1/2009 to 5/31/2011
Mahadeep Virk DMD Puyallup P.S. d/b/a Avenue Dental Care 11707 101st Avenue Court East Puyallup, WA 98373	YES	9/30/2010 to 9/29/2012
Mertz, Bitelman & Associates Law Office P.C. 45 West 34th Street Suite 202 New York, NY 10001	YES	6/30/2010 to 6/29/2012
MQ Solutions LLC and its members and controlling agents Mrs. Ellen Esquerra Durman, and Mr. Mark Durman 1400 Marcia Drive La Habra, CA 90631-2477	NO	10/31/2010 to 10/30/2012
Multicare Therapy Center 1527 Route 27 Suite 1100 Somerset, NJ 08873	YES	1/1/2010 to 12/31/2011
Netultimate.Com, Inc. Sounder Dilipan 8116 Arlington Blvd. Apt. 121 Falls Church, VA 22042	NO	6/1/2009 to 5/31/2011
New Hope Solutions, Inc. 2731 Sawbury Blvd. Columbus, Ohio 43235	YES	1/1/2009 to 12/31/2010
Pegasus Consulting Group, Inc. 90 Woodbridge Center Dr. Woodbridge, NJ 07095	YES	6/1/2009 to 5/31/2011
Pegasus Consulting Group, Inc. a/k/a Pegasus Systems, Inc. 100 Matawan Road Matawan, NJ 07747	YES	5/31/2011 to 5/30/2013
Professional Technology Staffing, Inc. d/b/a PTSI 560 Sutter Street #400 San Francisco, CA 94102	YES	6/1/2009 to 5/31/2011
Quest Software Services, Inc. 6825 Hobson Valley Dr. Suite 102 Woodbridge, IL 60517	NO	6/30/2010 to 6/29/2011
R-Tech Group, Ltd. a/k/a R-Tech, Ltd. Kala Ramasamy and Balaguru Ramasamy P.O. Box 423 Keego Harbor, MI 48320	YES	1/1/2009 to 12/31/2010
S J B Enterprises 611 S. Catlina Street, #315 Los Angeles, CA 90005	YES	1/1/2010 to 12/31/2011
Satya Marg Solutions, Inc. One Woodbridge Center Suite 440 Woodbridge, NJ 07095	NO	6/30/2010 to 6/29/2011
Sphero Trading Inc. d/b/a US Resources Co. 2951 Marion Drive #115 Las Vegas, NV 89115	YES	6/1/2009 to 5/31/2011
Tekstrom, Inc. DE Industrial Park Suites 101-1022 18 Shea Way Newark, DE 19713	NO	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2011
Tisco Group, Inc. 21800 Haggerty Road Suite 204 Northville, MI 48167	NO	1/1/2010 to 12/31/2010
United States Professional, LLC d/b/a USP, LLC 13014 N. Dale Mabry Highway Suite 109 Tampa, FL 33618	YES	7/31/2010 to 7/30/2012
WinVision, Inc. 1556 Halford Avenue, Suite 275 Santa Clara, CA 95051	YES	9/30/2010 to 9/29/2012

Last Updated on November 2, 2010

Source: www.dol.gov

GRE 2011 - Change in Format

With start of year 2011, we would like to remind our student community aspiring for admission to graduate schools, ETS will be changing the format for GRE Examination starting August 2011.

The Calculator: good or bad?

This new feature introduced by ETS looks very exciting at first view. The calculator will surely help the students in Problem Solving and Data Interpretation questions. This will make the calculations much easier, but not the overall test.

With the new format in-place, it is expected that a new question pattern will be introduced that will have lengthier calculations. Also, the answers to questions from some topics like Permutations and Combinations, Probability and Algebra, whose answers were left in nCr, factorial or sqrt form will have to be solved completely to match the options!

Advice – Start practicing questions with higher difficulty level. Use New GRE softwares (with calculators) to practice questions. You can practice questions from TopGrecoaching.com with Microsoft-Windows On-screen calculator.


Changes in Problem solving problems: Practical problems
ETS has constantly been putting efforts to make the test more practical. The new model of the paper will provide it with further more freedom to put in more practical questions. But what difference does it make to a test taker??
Take a look at the following example:-


Question Text:
There are two trains A and B of same lengths. Each starts simultaneously in the opposite direction from two different cities C and D on same track. The two trains meet at a point E. They arrive at their destinations 9 and 4 hours respectively after their meeting each other at E. Assuming that the trains travel at uniform speed and do not stop in between, at what rate does the second train B travels if the first train travels at 80 km per hour?


Answer Explanation:
We form that VA/VB = ?tb/ta
VA/VB = ?9/4 = 3/2
VA = 3/2 x 80 = 120 km/hrs.
To be deleted-(Source: edited question from-http://www.topcatcoaching.com/admin/cms/showQuestion/0/7202/188/107/168 )
The above question is a simple Time-Speed-Distance question. The solution is small. But the practical aspect introduces lots of redundant information and makes the question difficult to comprehend. The questions will further increase in length and complexity of details, though the amount of mathematical calculations needed would remain same.
Advice - Do not skip lengthier questions while practicing. Practice more question on – Time-Speed-Distance, Probability, and Set theory. Avoid direct equation based questions.


Changes in Verbal Ability Section: - More emphasis on Cognitive abilities.
ETS intends to bring more ‘thinking’ into the exam pattern. Earlier the RC questions on GRE were relatively direct and simple. With this new pattern in place, we can expect more of the following types:-

• Inference based questions
• Conclusion based
• Point of view of Author
• Author will support which of the following
• Main Idea of the passage
• Reasoning based questions
• Summary based questions
• Assumption based questions

The answers to above questions require relatively better understanding of passage.


Advice
Read the passage thoroughly.
Do not skim the passage. While reading the passage, take note of changes in author’s style and tone, carefully analyze the turns caused by words, such as – Although, Unfortunately, Sadly, In spite of, likely, etc. Majority of the questions will lie around them.


Changes in Analytical Writing (AWA): - More focused
Again, more cognitive ability is expected from the students. The ETS will be more strict while evaluating the responses in GRE AWA. Students would be expected to write more direct and focused essays. In short, no stories and no out-of-the-topic content.

Your answers should reflect your analytical writing skills, which includes reasoning abilities, critical reasoning and logical reasoning.


Advice
1. Read the Topic carefully and give a good thought before start writing.
2. Try to analyze both pros and cons of the topic; they will reflect your reasoning abilities.
3. Your examples should be more relevant and appropriate to the context.
4. Write a clear and direct introductory paragraph, showing your clarity of the topic

Start Preparing for the Launch in 2011. Here Are Important Dates You Need to Know:

Table with important dates about the GRE revised General Test

MONTH	MILESTONE
2010
JULY	Free test prep available to test takers
2011
AUGUST – SEPTEMBER	August 1: First day of testing for revised test For tests administered in August – September, scores will be reported starting in early November
OCTOBER	For tests administered in October, scores will be reported starting in mid-November*
NOVEMBER	For tests administered in November, scores will be reported starting in late November*
DECEMBER	Score reporting returns to the regular reporting period (10 – 15 days after test date)*

Dates reflect scores sent through SCORELINK® Internet Delivery Service. Scores reported on paper reports will be sent approximately one week later. Check back for a more detailed reporting schedule in early 2011.

*Score reports for paper-based administrations will continue to be reported six weeks after test date.

Source : http://www.topcoaching.com/ and http://www.ets.org