US Immigration News

US President Obama announced yesterday that "America is open for business" and detailed a new approach the country is planning to take in order to make it easier for foreign visitors from certain Countries to travel to the US in an effort to boost tourism and create jobs.

US Senator Mark Warner vowed to look into the "disproportionate number" of H-1B visas being denied in India. There have also been concerns over the increase in certain categories of visa fees.Senator Warner, who recently visited India, met with Indian officials and corporate leaders who expressed their concern over the increase in US visa fees and the number of US H-1B visa applications being refused.

From 1 January 2012, five states in the US have implemented new laws requiring employers to register for and use the federal E-Verify system to confirm that their immigrant employees are legally allowed to work in the US.Most of the new laws were passed following the US Supreme Court's May 2011 decision to uphold Arizona's right to make the use of the online employment authorization tool, E-Verify compulsory for Arizona based employers. The tool allows employers to make sure immigrants have the proper work visa to work in the US.

With this month marking the two year anniversary of Haiti's massive earthquake, members of the US Congress along with Haitian-American community leaders are urging the Obama administration to expedite visas for more Haitians to live and work in the US.Specifically, they are asking to fast-track visas for tens of thousands of Haitians whose applications have already been approved but could take many more years for a visa to be issued. This is due to a cap on the number of visas that the US grants each year.

The US Travel Association is pushing Congress to pass new legislation to ease US visitor visa restrictions in the hope that tourism to the US will increase. International visitors are expected to spend more than $152 billion in the year 2012, but tourists could offer an even larger boost to the US economy if the current bill before Congress passes so that it is easier to obtain visitor visas.

Talks between the US and India regarding H-1B and L-1 visas and trade issues have been postponed indefinitely. US officials said that the talks were being held at the wrong time. India is unlikely to agree to its number one priority; Increased market access for US firms to India's consumers.