US Immigration News

Research suggests that the Hispanic community will become the largest single ethnic grouping in California during March 2014. It is expected that Hispanics will then make up 39% of the population overtaking the 'white' population which accounts for 38.8%.

There is a growing Hispanic population in the US and many US political commentators predict that this will have a significant impact on US immigration policy in the years to come.

The new Indian ambassador to the United States, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, has told journalists that India is concerned at possible immigration reform legislation in the US that would make it more expensive for international outsourcing firms to apply for H-1B visas.

Mr Jaishankar told the AFP news agency that there could be tit-for-tat reprisals against US trade interests in India. He said that if the US Congress made it more difficult for Indian outsourcing firms to work in the US then he would be less likely to help American companies with problems in India.

The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) are to expand their US site inspection program to take in the employers of L-1 visas as well as H-1B visas. They will make unannounced site visits to prevent abuse of the L-1 visa by firms breaching 'anti job-shop rules'.

The visits are expected to begin in the first quarter of the 2014-15 fiscal year. The US fiscal year begins on October 1st. It is not yet clear whether site visits will only be made to sites where new L-1 petitions have been made or whether there will also be visits to existing L-1 sponsors.

John Boehner, the speaker of the House of Representatives has said that Republicans in the House (as the House of Representatives is known) are unlikely to support any bills reforming the US immigration system because they distrust President Obama.

Mr Boehner told journalists in Washington 'There's widespread doubt about whether this administration can be trusted to enforce our laws, and it's going to be difficult to move any immigration legislation until that changes'.

Mr Boehner said that immigration reform would be impossible until 'trust' was restored.

Jan Koum, a Ukrainian who settled in the US, has sold his WhatsApp mobile app to Facebook for $19bn. Mr Koum, 37, left Ukraine for the US when with his mother he was 16. His story is a classic 'rags-to-riches' American dream, immigrant tale.

Koum and his mother, both Jewish, left Ukraine in 1993 because of anti-Semitism. When they arrived in California in 1993, they were so poor that they relied on government hand-outs and 'food stamps' for survival. He taught himself computer programming using cheap, second-hand books.

Are you a US employer? Are you finding it difficult to find highly skilled workers? You may wish to consider the H-1B temporary work visa for graduate level employees.

If you want to do so, you still have time but the 2014 H-1B season is nearly upon us. USCIS will begin accepting applications on 1st April 2014. So, if you want to employ a degree level foreign worker in a 'specialty occupation' you should start preparing now. It is almost certain that the H-1B non-immigrant visa quota will be reached within a few days of 1st April 2014.