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H1B Visa 
New Visa (T1)for High-Tech Jobs Introduced
A proposal for a new visa category which would allow US companies to hire foreign workers to fill the nearly 350,000 vacant positions in the infotech field was introduced by Sen. Charles Robb, D-Va. Robb's proposal would require the foreign worker to have an
- advanced degree in mathematics, science, engineering or computer science.
- a job offer for at least $60,000, and
- be a recent graduate of a U.S. master's or doctoral programs. The visa would cost each business $1,000 per employee which would be used to provide scholarships in high technology fields at U.S. public schools.
Senator Robb stated that the new high-tech visa would only be short-term solution. He provided, "Our economy has grown, the number of quality jobs has increased and a new and increasingly more important form of commerce has been born. But as with any burgeoning industry, there are likely to be growing pains, and the most significant one that we see now is the shortage of skilled workers The long-term challenge is to find ways to upgrade the skills of our existing work force and to improve the quality of our education system so that the next generation of Americans has the skills needed to maintain our global dominance in the technology area."
Although Congress recently raised the H-1B cap from 65,000 to 115,000, high-tech companies argue that the increase is not enough and are lobbying hard for the new legislation. Susan Williams DeFife, chief executive officer of womenCONNECT.com, an Internet site for women in business argued, "We have to delay projects, and in the Internet industry where change occurs daily and competitors are springing up all around you, waiting to execute a project can be lethal."
Excess H-1B Visas issued for 1999 fiscal year in error
The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) has confirmed that they issued visas in excess of the 115,000 allowed by the H-1B visa cap for the 1999 fiscal year (FY99). Although they are not sure how many additional visas were issued, the number has been estimated between 10,000 - 20,000! An outside auditor has reportedly been hired by the INS in order to determine the actual number of visas that were issued in excess of the allowable quota.
Reportedly, the INS first noticed the error in June, but did no report about it until now, as they were working to confirm it throughout the summer. The cause of the error is unknown at this point, ranging from human error to glitches in the software.
The main pressing question on everyone's minds is: What is going to happen to the people and companies who were issued these additional visas? This is an unresolved question at this time. Currently, both the INS and Congress are working to come up with suggestions and solutions about how to handle the results of this miscalculation.
Some reported suggestions include:
- Telling the visa holders to cease work activities and return to their home countries (which, obviously, is facing major opposition from many areas).
- Putting the excess visas toward the current fiscal year for the year 2000 (FY00) (which is also quite a controversial issue, as it would dramatically decrease the available visas for this year). [Harris Miller, the president of the Information Technology Association of America, said that the INS should not deduct its error against the quota for this next fiscal year], and
- Assigning the numbers to earlier fiscal years when the cap was not reached. We do not have any information as to the likelihood of any of the above-mentioned possibilities, or any others this is simply what has been suggested so far by Congress and the INS.
It has also been suggested that one additional consequence of this error may be to further encourage and support legislation in favor of a major reform of the INS, some of which include: splitting it up, dismantling it, and distributing its responsibilities to other government entities.
An interesting side note is that we have a breakdown by nationality of the percentage of H-1B visa usage for FY99 as of the June count (108,386 visas):
- 46% of the recipients of the visa numbers went to individuals from India, 10% from China
- 4% from Canada
- 3% from the Philippines.
Other nationalities who were issued visa numbers include individuals from: Japan, Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.
QIS Faces Hefty Fine For Falsifying Visas
In last week's plea agreement, Quality Information Systems, Inc., (QIS) a computer company based in Troy, MI, agreed to a whopping $450,000 fine for their participation in falsifying information on at least 68 visas. The company, founded in 1995 and owned by Subhakar "Sam" Surapaneni, first tweaked the U.S. government's interest in November 1997 when Surapaneni, returning from a trip abroad, was found by US Customs agents to be carrying nearly $50,000 in cash. He had admitted to carrying about $7,000. Quality officially came under investigation last year when a wrongful-discharge lawsuit alleged Immigration and Naturalization Service violations. Federal investigators learned that Quality brought dozens of workers from India, many under false claims, and at one point, found 18 individuals living in a three-bedroom home rented by the company in sub-standard conditions.
Of the 68 falsified visas, it was found that none of the individuals were working in the positions for which their visas had been granted, were not receiving salaries stated, and some not working at all. In addition to the fine, Quality also agreed to pay restitution to the immigrants involved and disclose financial records to the government. However, Surapaneni, a Wayne State University graduate whose company grossed approximately $25 million in 1998, still faces the possibility of a prison term at sentencing.
US Government postpones issue of raising H1-B Visas until 2000
There has been a proposal pending before Congress to raise the number of H1-B visas permitted during any given year. However, it has been stalled at least until next year.
In testimony before Congress, a CEO of a Fairfax, Va. based News and Career Information Service detailed the problems regarding the infotech labor crunch. She testified that her company spent months trying to fill a system administrator position and finally found a qualified candidate from Mexico. It took an additional 4 months to get the H1-B approval for the woman to begin working. She further testified that these types of delays are particularly difficult for a new company to deal with. This problem is compounded by the fact that the current cap of 115,000 could be reached by March or April 2000 or possibly earlier if the INS issued too many H1-B visas last year and applies the overage to next year's cap.
INS Web-Site Enhanced to Provide Easier Service
The INS has recently overhauled its entire web-site, making it easier for immigrants and lawyers both to find answers and the needed forms. In the past, it has been extremely difficult for people to obtain many of the forms they need, but now they should all be available for download on the web-site.
In addition, the INS is including a lot more information on this newer web-site. There will be background about the Service itself, such as its goals and budget, and also information regarding immigration policies and procedures. The INS will provide statistical information regarding immigrants, and will also include news releases for the public.
The INS is putting a lot of money into this endeavor - about $300,000 to launch the web-site and about $2 million each year to maintain it. According to INS Commissioner Doris Meissner, this is part of the agency's efforts to "put the 'S' of service back into INS."
You can visit the updated INS Web site at http://www.ins.usdoj.gov
Please verify from the right sources , this is only information what i have with me when i did this for myself .
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