Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative Deadline Approaches

Released December 11, 2008

The Department of State recommends that travelers apply now for travel documents that will be required at all land or sea border entry points as of June 1, 2009. On that date, under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) U.S. citizens will be required to present a government-approved document that denotes both citizenship and identity when entering the United States.

The U.S. Passport Book and the U.S. Passport Card are the premiere documents that denote both citizenship and identity. A list of other government-approved documents is available at http://www.getyouhome.gov/.

The U.S. Passport Card is a wallet-sized document designed specifically for new systems being installed at land border crossings to facilitate inspections. A Passport Card costs $45 for an adult and $35 for a child under age 16. When applied for in conjunction with a passport book or by a previous passport holder who is eligible for renewal, the Passport Card costs $20.

The Passport Card is valid only for entry to the United States at land border crossings and sea ports of entry when traveling from Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean region, and Bermuda. It is not valid for international air travel. The U.S. Passport Card is designed for the specific needs of the northern and southern border resident communities. It is not a globally interoperable travel document like the traditional U.S. Passport book.

The Passport Card incorporates vicinity-read radio frequency identification (RFID) technology. With this technology, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers are able to access photographs and other biographical information stored in secure government databases. For privacy protection, no personal information is stored on the electronic chip itself. The Department of State uses laser engraving and state-of-the-art security features to prevent counterfeiting and forgery. Additionally, the passport card is issued with a protective sleeve that prevents it from being read when not in use, reducing the possibility of its being tracked.

The Passport Card has been in production since July 2008. As of November 2008, more than 650,000 have been issued. Processing times for passport books and passport cards are approximately three weeks. First-time applicants or those under the age of 16 can apply at any of the more than 9,400 passport application acceptance facilities throughout the United States. Current passport holders, who are eligible to renew, can apply for a passport card by mail.
Information on how and where to apply for a U.S. Passport Card is available at travel.state.gov.

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Published by the U.S. Department of State Website at http://www.state.gov maintained by the Bureau of Public Affairs.

News Release from USCIS

This news release was posted on December 8, 2008.
USCIS Publishes new rule for non immigrant victims of Human Trafficking and specified criminal activity. If you would like to read the entire article click on the following link. http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/t_u_fs_8dec2008.pdf

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Vermont Service Center Practice Pointer: Preparing for the Worst, VSC provides Guidance on Layoffs and H1Bs.

If the underlying H-1B petition is pending and VSC learns through the media that the Petitioner is going out of business, the VSC will not immediately deny a pending petition. The VSC may send a Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID) based on a determination of statutory ineligibility derived from information not contained in the record of proceeding. This may be overcome with evidence of a successor-in-interest to the original Petitioner.

If the underlying H-1B petition is already approved, the general rule is that the approval of any petition is automatically revoked if the petitioner goes out of business, as the employer-employee relationship had ended. If the VSC determines ineligibility based on information not contained in the record of proceeding, the petitioner will first be put on notice with intent with intent to revoke but will be given the opportunity to overcome with evidence of a successor-in-interest to the original petition.

Effect of revocation of H-1B petition on the Beneficiary’s status: Once the underlying H-1B petition is revoked, the Beneficiary’s H-1B status terminates as of the date the employment ceased, pursuant to Matter of Lee, 11 I. & N. Dec. 601 (Reg. Comm. 1966), or the date the petition was revoked, whichever is later. The Beneficiary is in violation of status the day after the employment was terminated.

If a Beneficiary, who was issued a visa or otherwise provided nonimmigrant status and counted against the cap, is found to have been issued the visa or otherwise provided status by fraud or willfully misrepresenting a material fact, then the cap number is restored. Otherwise, any alien who has already been counted toward the cap contunies to be counted as such [INA §§ 214(g) (3) and (7)].

“AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 08120972 (posted Dec. 9, 2008)”

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