With the Trump administration adding thousands of new ICE enforcement officers and promising to focus more on worksite raids, site visits, and immigration-related audits and investigations, now is the time to ensure your organization is compliant with the immigration rules. Join us to learn the basics of the US immigration system and potential changes in the future so you can ensure your organization is compliant. We discussed the steps available to keep employees on the right immigration track and less anxious in connection with their visa and green card processes.

1. Immigration for Employers: Staying
Ahead of the Trump Administration
Peter Asaad, Maria Kallmeyer, Eric Ledbetter,
and Grant Sovern
May 11, 2017

2. Presenters
Peter Asaad
202.372.9522
peter.asaad@quarles.com
Eric Ledbetter
312.715.5018
eric.ledbetter@quarles.com
Maria Kallmeyer
312.715.5009
maria.kallmeyer@quarles.com
Grant Sovern
608.283.2668
grant.sovern@quarles.com
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3. Overview of US Immigration System
• Three levels of immigration benefits
• Nonimmigrant visas
• Alphabet soup of visas to enter and stay in the US
• Immigrant visas – green cards
• May stay permanently, work anywhere, come and go easily
• US citizenship
• And the 4th group – undocumented
• The governmental immigration agencies
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4. Nonimmigrant Visas
• Stay in the US for a finite period of time
• May only do the activity approved by the government
• A to V in the alphabet
• H-1B, professional workers
• L-1, intracompany transferees
• F-1/J-1, international students and interns
• TN, Canadian and Mexican professionals
• B-1/B-2, visitors for business or tourists
• O-1, people with extraordinary ability
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5. Immigrant Visas—Green Cards
• May stay in the US indefinitely
• May work/live anywhere, activity not restricted
• May travel in and out of the US freely
• Only four major ways to get a green card
• Family sponsorship by close family member: spouse, parent, child, or sibling
• Employer sponsorship, prove no American is qualified for the job
• Green Card Lottery (Diversity Visa Lottery)
• Asylees, refugees, victims of domestic violence, and others
• Can lose green card by committing certain crimes, not paying taxes, or leaving the US for long period of
time
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6. US Citizenship
• May vote in US elections, serve on juries, qualify for certain security clearances
• Once a citizen, the government cannot take it away unless the person lied in the application process
• Three ways to get citizenship
• Birth inside the US
• Derive citizenship through birth outside the US to US citizen parent
• Naturalize to become a citizen after having green card for 5 years (or 3 years if married to US citizen)
• Must take civics and English exam and prove no crimes during 5-year period
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7. Immigration Government Agencies
• Department of Homeland Security
• Citizenship & Immigration Services – grants immigration benefits
• Customs & Border Protection – authorize entry to US at borders and airports
• Immigration Customs & Enforcement – fines companies and deports people
• Department of State
• Runs US embassies and consulates around the world
• Grants visas to physically enter the US
• Recommends J-1 waiver applications
• Department of Labor
• Precertification necessary for some work visas and many green cards
• Department of Justice – runs immigration court system
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8. Trump Executive Orders – The Travel Ban 2.0, Executive
Order 13780
• March 6, 2017 Executive Order, "Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United
States" revokes the January 27 order. Stopped in federal litigation before it started.
• Travel ban on people coming from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen for 90 days, beginning on
March 16, 2017
• Ordered DHS, DOS and the Director of National Intelligence to review the information needed from each
country to review immigration benefits
• Called for "enhanced vetting procedures" and to "rigorously enforce" all current rules
• 120-day halt to refugee admissions, subject to exceptions
• Suspended visa interview waiver program
• What should you do?
• Know who your employees are
• Consider your action plan
• Do you have a travel policy or practice? How do you communicate it?
• Should current employees travel if they need a new visa?
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9. Executive Orders on Interior Immigration Enforcement
• Executive Order signed 1/25/17; implementing memo signed 2/20/17:
• Prioritizes enforcement/deportation among the various immigration agencies
• Narrows use of prosecutorial discretion (called parole authority) – "no longer exempt classes or categories of
removable immigrants" (except DACA and cases involving national security or extreme humanitarian need)
• Reinstates USCIS authorization to issue Notices To Appear in Immigration Court
• Expands 287(g) partnerships with local police to facilitate removals
• Removes privacy protections for non-citizens and non-permanent residents
• Calls for 10,000 more Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers
• Establishes Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement (VOICE)
• Establish formal programs to collect more fines and fees from undocumented individuals
• Increases Expedited Removal (deportation without hearing in front of judge) in certain situations
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10. White House Memo Regarding Business Immigration
• Review all immigration regulations related to business immigration
• Propose new parole regulations that would reform or terminate the current Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program
• Propose new regulations to reform business visa programs to protect American workers. This is likely
aimed at adding more requirements to the H-1B and L-1 processes.
• Consider ways to change the H-1B lottery allocation process – i.e., by wage level or skills
• Commence L-1 worksite audits/visits of L-1 employers and L-1 worksites— eventually add all
employment visas (O-1, TN, E)
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11. Proposed Order—Continued
• Establish an immigration commission to make immigration policy
• Propose new regulations to reform F-1/J-1 work options (OPT, CPT, and EADs for recent college graduates
to work as interns)
• Clarify (limit) what are acceptable activities in the US on B-1 visas
• Reform H-2A, agricultural worker visa program
• Incentivize more employers to use E-Verify
• Reform the Visa Bulletin and how green cards are made available
• Propose new E-2 regulations to conform with current law
• Propose new J-1 Summer Work program regulations
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12. Business Immigration Updates
• H-1B lottery update
• Temporary suspension of Premium Processing
• New(ish) I-9 Manual published on 1/22/17
• New(ish) regulation implemented on 1/17/17 to modernize immigration for high skilled workers
• 60 day grace period
• Reform Employment Authorization Document (EAD) process
• Improve Green Card portability
• Improve Priority Date retention
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13. S.180 and H.R. 1303: "H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2017"
• On 1/20/17, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) introduced the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2017 (S.180);
cosponsored by three Democratic senators
• On 3/2/17, Representative Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) introduced the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2017 (H.R.
1303).
• ...to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to reform and reduce fraud and abuse in certain visa
programs for temporary workers.
• ...to replace the existing H-1B lottery process with priority system that CIS will create, which would
prioritize H-1B petitions with higher salaries and non "H-1B-dependent" employers
• ...to increase Department of Labor audits/investigations of H-1B employers
• ...to prohibit companies that employ more than 50 percent of their US workforce on H or L visas from
obtaining any more H-1Bs
• ...to change the L-1 program to add a prevailing wage requirement similar to the H-1B, further restrict L-
1B specialized knowledge standards, and add a cap on the number of L-1s issued per year
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14. H.R.170: "Protect and Grow American Jobs Act"
• On 1/3/17, Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA) introduced the “Protect and Grow American Jobs Act,”
which amends the INA to revise the definition of "exempt H-1B nonimmigrant" to eliminate the masters
or higher degree requirement and raise the annual salary threshold requirement.
• ...to raise "H-1B dependent" exemption to $100k instead of $60k
• ...to discontinue current Master's degree exemption from H-1B dependency
• Result: those employers that employ a large portion of employees (usually more than 15 percent) on H-
1B visas must advertise and prove there are no Americans available for the job anytime the salary is less
than $100k
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15. H.R. 670: "High-Skilled Integrity and Fairness Act of 2017"
• On 1/24/17, Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) introduced the “High-Skilled Integrity and Fairness Act,”
to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to reform the H–1B visa program, and for other
purposes.
• ...to raise the wage at which an H-1B dependent employer would be exempt from the recruitment
requirement to $130k, and eliminate the Master's degree exemption (similar to Issa's bill)
• ...to increase H-1B prevailing wage requirements by eliminating the Level 1, entry-level prevailing wage
(not just for H-1B dependent employers)
• ...to eliminate the per-country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrants, to increase the
per-country numerical limitation for family-sponsored immigrants, and for other purposes (similar to
Chaffetz' bill)
• ...to replace H-1B lottery; instead select petitions with highest salaries first
• ...to set aside 20 percent of the 85,000 new H-1B visas for start-up companies with fewer than 50
employees
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16. H.R. 392: "Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act of 2017"
• On 1/10/17, Rep. Chaffetz, Jason (R-UT) introduced a bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act
• ...to eliminate the per-country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrants, to increase the
per-country numerical limitation for family-sponsored immigrants, and for other purposes.
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17. S. 128 and H.R. 496: "Bridge Act" – "Bar Removal of
Immigrants Who Dream and Grow the Economy"
• On 1/12/17, Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Dianne Feinstein
(D-CA), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Kamala Harris (D-CA) introduced the "Bar Removal
of Immigrants Who Dream and Grow the Economy," or BRIDGE Act.
• On 1/12/17, Mike Coffman (R-CO), Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), Carlos Curberlo (R-FL), Lucille Roybal-Allard (R-
FL), Jeff Denham (R-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), and Judy Chu (D-CA), introduced
the "Bar Removal of Immigrants Who Dream and Grow the Economy" (BRIDGE Act).
• ...to bar removal of DREAMers or those with DACA benefits
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18. S.898 and H.R. 4141 – "Conrad State 30 and Physician
Access Reauthorization Act"
• Senator Amy Klobuchar introduced on 4/7/2017 in the Senate
• Congressmen Brad Schneider and Darrell Issa introduced on 4/25/2017 in the House
• Aimed at increasing the number of doctors available to work in underserved and rural areas
• Reauthorizes the Conrad 30 program for three years
• Includes employment protections for Conrad 30 physicians, and makes technical fixes to the program
including:
• 90 day rule – 90 days after receiving the waiver, completing GME or receiving work authorization
• Clarifies extenuating circumstances for changing employers
• Gives six month extension for physicians who don't get one of 30 waivers available in a state
because the slots are full
• Changes the physician contract requirements
• Creates an option to increase the number of waivers in certain states and circumstances
• J-2 spouses are not subject to the two-year home country return requirement
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19. Top Actions Employers Should Do To Prepare
1. If company has H-1B or E-3 employees, self-audit DOL Public Access Files
• Also ask when was last H-1B dependency calculation performed
2. Determine if company already using E-Verify or could use it
3. Identify when was the last I-9 self-audit performed
4. Prepare HR, business managers, receptionists for unannounced "site visits" by government agencies (if
employees on work visas)
5. Develop consistent approach for H-1B contract workers
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20. Top Actions Employers Should Do To Prepare
6. Consider implementing travel plan/system to ensure employees from designated countries are not
stranded on business trips
7. Consider advising employees regarding rights/responsibilities during re-entry into the US
• Can employees share sensitive company information on their phone, laptop, or workbag with CBP officers? Is a
warrant ever needed?
• Who has a right to a lawyer during entry/inspection?
8. Have an emergency plan if immigration raid occurs
• What are the different types of warrants?
• Who to notify?
• Media relations?
• Employee messaging?
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21. © 2017 Quarles & Brady LLP -
This document provides
information of a general
nature. None of the
information contained herein
is intended as legal advice or
opinion relative to specific
matters, facts, situations or
issues. Additional facts and
information or future
developments may affect the
subjects addressed in this
document. You should consult
with a lawyer about your
particular circumstances
before acting on any of this
information because it may
not be applicable to you or
your situation.
Thank You! Questions?
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Peter Asaad
202.372.9522
peter.asaad@quarles.com
Eric Ledbetter
312.715.5018
eric.ledbetter@quarles.com
Maria Kallmeyer
312.715.5009
maria.kallmeyer@quarles.com
Grant Sovern
608.283.2668
grant.sovern@quarles.com