Immigration Visa Lawyer Blog

Our law firm is delighted to announce to our clients nationwide that it was nominated for the 2008 TechColumbus innovations award in the category of "outstanding product" for its creation of the immigration case management software called VisaTurbo. We are also happy to state that our product was also chosen as a finalist in the competition which drew more than 160 astute competitor companies all having less than 50 employees.

In 1999 brothers Gus and Sam Shihab, the owners of a law firm immigration our law firm embarked on a project for designing and launching online case management software which would propel them forward ahead of their peers and provide unprecedented quality legal services. The product was called VisaPlanner which was launched in 2002. VsaPlanner is the predecessor of the current software called VisaTurbo. Currently VisaTurbo includes more 20,000 record entries, documents and notes pertaining to their client case processing status.

Being immigrants themselves, Gus and Sam Shihab are two lawyers among 10,000 other immigration lawyers nationwide. They realized that the key to success in this practice is to be close to their clients and this software has been successful in achieving this goal. Few law firms have undertaken a similar project and those include some of the largest immigration law firms in the country. About the same time, other software providers have designed similar products that are now for sale to immigration law practitioners. Holding engineering degrees from The Ohio State University, Gus and Sam employed a full time in-house software engineer Kevin Dagostine who wrote the program under their constant direction and supervision. Gus and Sam Shihab provided instructions regarding architecture, software functionality, deliverables, and look and feel. While other software development companies who designed similar products employ dozens of software engineers and programmers to design their commercial product, our law firm has been successful in simultaneously and independently designing an identical product with 70% functionality with their current team.

Continue reading " Columbus Immigration Lawyers Nominated Finalists in Innovations Award Competition for Outstanding Product Which Processes H1B visas " »

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Posted In: H-1B Visa

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Despite recent news, the US continues as a fertile grounds for foreign investors. Unemployment rates are relatively low in many US Cities including Columbus, Ohio and Washington, DC, where our firm maintains offices. There are several available visa alternatives for foreign investors seeking temporary employment in the United States. This article focuses on three viable investor options including Intracompany Transferee (L-1), Treaty Trader (E-1) and Treaty Investor (E-2).

The L-1 visa category is a temporary visa for Intracompany Transferees. It allows companies abroad to establish a presence in the United States by transferring a worker with a qualifying employment position, i.e., an “executive” or “manager” (an L-1A) or a worker with “specialized skill” (an L-1B), to a qualifying business such as a U.S. affiliate, parent, or subsidiary entity on a temporary work basis. The employee must have worked for the foreign company for one continuous year out of the preceding three years. Larger multi-national corporations who frequently transfer employees may seek a “Blanket L-1” which allows it to transfer executives rather quickly. Finally, executives and mangers may seek permanent residency (a “green card”) under requirements which mirror those under L-1.

The qualifying employment positions necessary for the L-1 visa are narrowly defined terms under Federal law that must be rigidly followed when applying for this category. Generally, “mangers” and “executives” are higher-level employees who have significant managerial, supervisory and policy making authority. A person with “specialized knowledge” is a vital employee with unique knowledge of the company product or service that does not meet the definition of an executive or manager. It is not necessary for the employee to have held the same position abroad as the intended job in the U.S., as long as the employee was a manger, executive or worker with specialized knowledge and continues to be one of those qualifying positions in the U.S. company. L-1B workers can remain in the U.S. up to five years, while L-1A executives and managers are allowed to stay for up to seven years.

It is also necessary to prove there is a “qualifying business relationship” between the foreign and U.S. companies which means that the relationship is either one of parent/subsidiary or affiliate. Key corporate documents will therefore be necessary components of the application. Federal Regulations allow a new parent, subsidiary, branch or affiliate office in the U.S. to employ a manager or executive under a “new office” petition which will only be approved for one year. Thereafter it may be extended upon proof that the business is active and operating and requires an executive or manager.

Continue reading " Nonimmigrant Visa Solutions for Foreign Investors " »

Posted by Gus M. Shihab | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: E-2 Visa , Foreign Investors , Intracompany Transfers , L-1 Visa

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What are the elements that constitute an approvable H-1B petition? This is the question that my clients who call my Columbus, Ohio office ask frequently. What can the employer and employee do to help their visa attorney get the best results for them. I have a client in Washington, DC once tell me, please give me a list of your most important items that would help you get my case approved.

As an H1b attorney who filed more than 1000 petitions in my career, there are 3 main issues in mind that would determine whether an H1b petition will be approvable: 1) issues related to the employer; 2) issues related to the position; and 3) issues related to the prospective employee.

Issues related to the employer normally depend on whether the employer has the ability to pay the wages of the prospective employee, whether the employer is truly an employer and not an agent who places employees at temporary assignments without controlling much of their activities. Depending on the size of the employer, the USCIS will take a differing position. Our firm has for more than a decade represented large employers having more than 30,000 employees obtain visas and green cards. I have also represented many small firms whereby we filed H1B petitions for their prospective employees. If you are a large employer, chances that USCIS is comfortable about the size of the organization and will trust that the employer does have the ability to pay the wages of the employee and that it also passes the IRS test of employer-employee relationship in that it controls the activities of the employee on a daily basis.

Now, when it comes to the smaller employer, the story is drastically different. The smaller employer (less than 50 employees) has additional documentations to submit to create this comfort level depending on the circumstances. These additional documentation include, but are not limited to, the existence of in-house projects, business plans, contracts for work, financial information and many more. When it comes to smaller employers, proper planning must be undertaken as the days of USCIS rubber stamping H1B visas are over. In addition, it is important to note that USCIS is now keeping a keen eye at smaller employers as there is a feeling that such smaller employers do violate the regulations frequently. Smaller employers are encouraged to plan their H1b petitions with competent H1b lawyer, one who has many years of experience in H1b petitions in order to assure that contradictory information is not filed. This is what our firm has preached for almost a decade: get your story right before the USCIS! This is concerted effort between H1b immigration lawyer and the employer jointly.

Continue reading " H1B Lawyer on Filing Approvable H1B Petitions " »

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Posted In: H-1B Visa

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As an H1B attorney, I have observed a recent alarming increase in the frequency of Requests for Evidence (RFE) issued against H1b petitions filed by smaller Information Technology firms. There is no geographical pattern for the location of such IT consultants as I observed this flurry of record RFEs coming against our clients based in Columbus, Ohio, Washington, DC, or anywhere for that matter. The RFEs are extremely lengthy and require the submission of voluminous documentation, some of which has nothing with the regulatory requirements for Specialty Occupation (H1B). For instance, some of the RFEs demand the submission of zoning permits, floor plans of the premises occupied by the company, tax records, a list of all H visas submitted, and more; but the most concerning request usually proof that the petitioner is an employer, not an “agent.”

Although an “agent” technically may petition for an H-1B worker, once the Service believes that the employer is acting as an agent, it imposes extremely taxing documentary requirements on the petitioner that go above and beyond the normal kinds of paperwork that evidence most employment relationships. Once USCIS believes the employer is acting as an agent, its demands for evidence can become impossible to fulfill and may trap the employer in an impossible spiral in which all of its petitions become suspect in the eyes of the Service. Once an employer has fallen into such a trap, it may prove nearly impossible to get out of and result in disastrous consequences for the employer’s business.

In essence the petitioner is placed on the defensive to invoke the IRS of whether there exists and employer employee relationship since the H1B employees may work at a “worksite” other than the petitioner’s offices. USCIS charges such petitioners as a “staffing agencies” and requires a detailed itinerary of activities of the H1b beneficiary.

Continue reading " USCIS Increasing RFEs Against H1b Petitions Filed by Small IT Companies " »

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Posted In: H-1B Visa

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Employees are the building blocks of any successful and prosperous company. Such successful companies know that they should hold on to their employees during hard times as their employees held the company together during good times. A client of mine located in Michigan recently informed me that he has recently requested a 10% wage reduction from all of his employees. Since the company was unable to do so for the H1B visa employees, as the law requires the employer to pay H1B holders the higher of either prevailing wages or actual wages, the employer turned to me for advice. I advised the employer to convert the H1b visa holders to part time and re-petition the USCIS to reduce their hours, and hence, their compensation.

Employers are able to employ foreign nationals in full or part time positions. Thus, this is powerful tool that can be utilized by employers who are concerned about keeping their staff during financial challenges it is facing. For instance, employers may be able to concurrently petition H1b visa employees who hold full time H1b employment with other employers, in a part time H1B visa in their own company. The H-1B visa is concurrent in the sense that the employee has an H1B visa status with more than one employer simultaneously.

Alternatively, the employer could petition an H1b visa employee to work for it on part time basis who would not not necessarily maintain full time H1B visa status elsewhere . In essence this would become a non-concurrent part time H1b visa petition. Example of this include converting an H-1B visa employee within the same company from full time to part time H-1B status or or by transferring an H-1B visa employee from full time status from another company to part time H-1B visa status into the company.

Continue reading " H1B Visa Lawyer on Part Time H1B Visas During Difficult Economic Times " »

Posted by Gus M. Shihab | Permalink | Email This Post

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As immigration lawyer, I am presented with these questions frequently: what are the circumstances that would justify extending an H-1b visa beyond the maximum period allowed by statute? Or how can I extend my H1b visa beyond six years?

Congress dealt with this issue by passing legislation in 2000. The USCIS subsequently published several “guidance memoranda” in which it created criteria for extending H-1B visas beyond 6 years. In order to understand these criteria, I have created all the scenarios which will cause USCIS to either approve or deny an extension beyond the 6 year limit.

• Brief History

Prior to the enactment of The American Competitiveness in the Twenty First Century Act of 2000 (AC21) foreign nationals present in the US on H-1B visas, and who could not reach the point of I-485 in the permanent residence process, simply had to pack their bags and go home at the conclusion of the six (6) year term. The labor certification process (which forms the basis for the majority of permanent residence applications) had been riddled with protracted and overlapping administrative processes that took years. Such delays often caused aliens on H-1b visas to reach the maximum six (6) year limit and depart the United States prior to completing their permanent residence process. For those lucky ones whose employers were willing to continue the permanent residence process despite their departure, they were able to return back to the US after an interruption caused by the aforementioned six (6) year limitation.

The departure of these H-1B visa holders after six years of service working in their field in the US, created in my opinion, a lost opportunities for the foreign nationals, the employers and for the US at large. Many employers forfeited the services of highly trained and skilled employees as well as their investment in visa sponsorship, extensions and in applying for the permanent residence processes.

Congress realized this problem and in 2000 it introduced AC21 which sought to allow H-1B employees to extend their status beyond the maximum allowable six (6) year limit, if they reached certain stages in their permanent residence application processes.

• Permanent Residence Process

The most popular method of applying for employment based permanent residence is through labor certification, now called PERM. A PERM application is filed electronically before the US Department of Labor (USDOL) and it is intended to assure that the permanent employment of a foreign national does not displace equally qualified US workers. Once this process is complete, the employer must then file an immigrant petition for alien worker (I-140). Currently, employees are able to concurrently file an application for permanent residence (i-485) along with the I-140 petition. The I-485 application is the last step in the permanent residence process and its approval results in the issuance of permanent residence, also known as green card, to the foreign national.

Congress also created a quota system which assures that America continues to be a cross section of people from all nationalities. Hence, it instituted a “per country” limitation system to assure that nationals from one country do not become proportionally more populous in the US than others. This per country quota system favors foreign nationals who have higher academic or professional achievements coming from the same country. For instance, currently nationals of India have a significant backlog in the permanent residence process due to the proportionally higher number of Indian nationals who have applied for immigration when compared with other nationals. Within that specific Indian per country limitation system, those whose permanent employment requires the attainment of higher educational or professional achievements will receive their permanent residence status sooner. This is what is referred to as the employment based immigration preference system also known as EB-1, EB-2, and EB-3.

The Visa Bulletin, issued monthly by the US Department of State, publishes the dates that allow certain applicants to move forward with their permanent residence process based on the start date of their immigration process, also known as the priority date.

• H-1B Visa Time Recapture:

One of the most common ways to extend H visa beyond what might seem as a six year limitation is to recapture time the foreign national spent outside the US. So long as absence was not for brief vacations, the law allows the foreign national to precisely spend six (6) years in the US on H-1B visa. Hence, if an alien took a leave of absence for an extended period of time, he or she could request that such time be “recaptured” and the alien could request that his H-1b visa status be extended for those missed days. Another manner in which the alien could recapture lost time is through applying for an extension of the H visa to recover time between the initial issuance of the H-1b visa while the alien was outside the US, and the time that he or she enters the US on H status. For instance, if the H-1b visa approval was issued for a start date of October 1, 2003, but the alien, due to visa processing or other reasons, first enters the US on February 1, 2004, the alien is entitled to request a 4 month extension to be tacked on beyond September 30, 2009.

• Extension Beyond Six (6) Years When Labor Certification is Filed

1. PERM Application Pending For More Than One Year: If an alien has a pending PERM application which had been filed by his employer 365 days or more prior to the alien reaching 6 years on H-1B visa, then the alien is entitled to successive one year extensions. This is true even if the employer who filed the original PERM application is not the same employer who now seeks to extend the H-1B visa beyond six years.

a. Example: Employer “A” files a PERM application for Joe Alien who at the time of the application has already been in H-1B status for 4 years and 9 months. Six months after the filing of the PERM application, Joe Alien transfers his H-1B visa to Employer “B.” One passes after the filing of the PERM application and it remains pending. Employer “B” now uses the fact that there is still a pending PERM application which Employer “A” filed for Joe Alien to request extension of Joe Alien’s H-1B visa status for another year to continue to work for Employer “B.” Under this scenario, the USCIS will approve this extension beyond six years even though It was Employer “A” who originally filed the labor application and Employer “B” filed the extension.

Continue reading " H1B Attorney Untangles the Convoluted Rules of H-1B Extensions Beyond Six Years (7th Year H1B Extensions): " »

Posted by Gus M. Shihab | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: H-1B Visa

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In order to file for the extension or transfer of H-1B visa status, the alien must prove have an extension or transfer petition filed prior to the expiration of the alien’s current status and the alien must have maintained status throughout. Maintaining valid status means that the H1B employee must be paid at all times by the petitioning employer.

There are many unfortunate situations which might cause an H-1B visa holder to fall out of status. These situations include those who have done so inadvertently, those who have not been paid by their employers for work done, or those who have filed complaint against their employers and who have subsequently received retaliatory treatment by their employers. H-1B holders are, in many ways, at the whim of the employer and are very vulnerable. That is why Congress has enacted various legislation to protect those workers who had fallen out of status through no fault of their own. Please bear in mind that there are complex legal issues involved in re-instating status to one who, through no fault of his own, had fallen out of status which requires the assistance of competent legal H1b lawyer.

I have seen these issues more frequently recently out of our offices located in Columbus, Ohio and Cleveland Ohio. The same applies for our Washington, DC office. But most frequently, I have had a number of clients visit us in our Michigan offices to also find ways to re-instate their status.

Here are the situations that might occur causing an H1B visa holder to fall out of status thereby restricting his or her ability to change or extend her H1b visa with another employer:

• When H-1B Visa Holder Falls Out of Status Due to Inadvertent Technical Violations:
There are myriad situations where an H-1B visa holder fell out of status through no fault of his. An example of this is where an H-1B visa employee moves from one job to another and the employer fails or neglects to file an H-1B visa transfer petition with the USCIS. Another example I have seen lately, alien moves from job to another unbeknownst to him that the immigration lawyer negligently files an H-1b visa petition requesting consular processing instead of transfer. In both of these scenarios, the employee H-1B visa holder had done nothing to cause this confusion and the fact that he is now out of status. Sometimes, the inadvertence is not discovered for several months after the fact.

Continue reading " Extending or Transferring H-1B Visa When Alien is Out of Status " »

Posted by Gus M. Shihab | Permalink | Email This Post

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One of the most concerning moments in my practice as an immigration attorney, or as some call me: H1b lawyer, is when my client falls out of compliance without even knowing it. Because employment in general is a fluid matter, I mean by that employees come and go continuously; a company which employs foreign nationals could become an H-1b Dependent Employer and not even know it. Failing to comply with the regulations if an employer becomes H1b dependent could could be cost the payment of penalties if the US Department of Labor ever audits the employer.

Our firm services employers nationwide, however, they usually meet with me in one of my offices located in Columbus, Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio, and Southfield, Michigan or in the nation’s capital, Washington, DC. I am on a constant communication with my clients to assure that they continue in compliance with the regulatory directives when it comes to the employment of foreign workers. It is important for an employer who regularly employs foreign nationals to keep open communication channels with a competent immigration lawyer. This communications relative to the hiring, terminating and the resignation of the foreign national on H-1b visas.

The immigration attorney could predict when an employer becomes H1B dependent which then requires him to undertake additional measures to protect the employer. For instance, the regulations at 8 CFR §214.2(h)(11)(i) require the employer to “immediately notify the Service of any changes in the terms and conditions of employment of an H-1B employee.” such changtes include when an H-1b visa employee resigns or is otherwise terminated. By having such an open relationship with an H1b lawyer, the attorney should be keeping a running tally of the number of H1b workers present on the employer’s payroll at any given time. Why is this important? It is because the ratio of an employer’s H1b employees can cause to unwittingly take on additional legal obligations.

• How Does An Employer Become H-1B Dependent?

Most of the time, the determination is rather simple and arithmetic:

- 25 or fewer full-time equivalent (FTE) employees, including 8 or more H-1Bs;

- 26-50 FTE employees, including 13 or more H-1Bs; and

- 51 or more FTE employees, including at least 15% H-1Bs.

Continue reading " H1B Dependent Employers Must Maintain Relationship with Immigration Lawyer " »

Posted by Gus M. Shihab | Permalink | Email This Post

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Recapturing H-1B time

The burden of proof is on the employee to prove that time is eligible to recapture. It is crucial to keep accurate records of all entry and exit dates into and from the United States. If passport stamps are not readable or only partly readable, all dates should be separately notated and recorded. USCIS will not make these calculations when it adjudicates the petition unless instructed to do so. If you are unsure about how to do this call us at any of our offices in Columbus, Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio, Southfield Michigan, or Washington, DC.

File Labor Certification as soon as possible

The worst scenario occurs when an employee on H-1B status nears the end of the allowable six years without any legal means of attaining an extension. Extensions beyond the statutory six year linit are all based on having a filed or approved labor certification or I-140, so it is important to begin this process as soon as possible. Six years may seem more than an adequate period of time, but any number of complications could arise that delay filing.

In addition to starting the process, it is important to follow through requests for documentation such as experience letters. Documents such as these can be time consuming to procure so promptness and follow through are important

Continue reading " H1B Attorney Advice Bits For Employer and Employee " »

Posted by Gus M. Shihab | Permalink | Email This Post

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While driving to his office one morning, Gus M. Shihab, an H-1B visa attorney whose firm covers four cities in the US, Gus focuses on his tasks for the day. He and his longtime partner and brother, attorney Sam Shihab, travel to all four of their firms’ offices in Columbus, Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio, Southfield Michigan, and Washington, D.C. to meet with clients. On this particular morning, Gus is thinking to himself: “as promised, today I must file 10 H-1B visas.”

Gus’ offices are located in the prestigious central business districts of their respective cities, and the one in Columbus, Ohio, is no exception. Located in the Capitol Square Office Tower, overlooking the bustling location of the State Capital Building, and connected to the Hyatt Regency, Gus’ office is located on the 15th floor. Gus walks into his firm and proceeds to his office, greeting his assistant Teri on the way. Gus changes his voicemail greeting daily. He has religiously done so for the last 10 years.

“First things come first,” he whispers to himself. He walks over to the break room to get a cup of dark roast coffee. On the way, he sees Zachary and Kristen, two competent paralegals in the hallway. Gus says “guys, in my office in 5 minutes.” Zachary and Kristen look to each other and nod with great attention. They know when Gus has something important on his mind. They also know the type of lawyer he is: though he enjoys his work, he takes it very seriously.

Exactly five minutes later, a meeting is convened in Gus’ office. He looks at Kristen and Zachary and says “we have the task of filing 10 H-1B visas today for Sunrise Central, Inc. and for Zoozoo X Limited, LLC.”

“I received all the forms back today from the clients. I am ready to file these cases on behalf of Sunrise Central, Inc.” Zacchary proclaims. Kristen says “All are ready except for the equivalency evaluations on Zoozoo X Limited, LLC.” Gus exalts “You two both have done a good job.”

“Let me make sure that you know what our main mission is,” he adds. Zachary and Kristen look at each other in exclamation as Gus sips his dark roast and looks at them intensely.

Kristen starts “we are an immigration law firm” and Zachary finishes “we do immigration filing on behalf of our clients.”

But Gus says “not exactly.” A moment passes. Then Gus inquires “run me through the activities that make up an H-1B visa case.”

Kristen says “O.K. We must collect data from the employer and employee.” Gus nods and Kristen continues. “Then we must review the proposed position description and make sure that it fits into the regulatory standards as a Specialty Occupation worthy of an H-1B visa.”

“We must make sure that the employee’s credentials are equivalent to a bachelor’s degree or better from an accredited US University, we research prevailing wages, and complete a Labor Condition Application. We then send the employer an internal notice to be posted at the ‘worksite,’” Zachary continues. Gus proceeds “…we fill the rest of the forms, put together public access file, etc., etc.”

Gus smiles big and says “but as a law firm, when have we truly done our job?” Zachary and Kristen look at each puzzled and look back at Gus as he continues. “Our job is not complete until we have represented our client.” At this point, Zachary and Kristen know that Gus is on to something. Gus says “we represent our client as a law firm when we show them how to avoid pitfalls in the H-1B visa program.”

Continue reading " One Day in the Life of an H1B Visa Lawyer " »

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Every year, thousands of students in F-1 status complete their education programs and wish to work temporarily in the United States on H-1B status. Between the time when these students complete their education programs and the time when they plan to begin working, many of them desire to travel abroad for various reasons, such as to vacation, visit family, etc.

As an H-1B attorney, the most common question is this: “I graduated from Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. My prospective Employer in Michigan filed my H-1B application. During the pending H-1B petition is filed, can I travel outside the US?"

It is the unofficial policy of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to permit travel when the person has an approved H-1B petition and an approved application to change status from F-1 to H-1B. If the H-1B visa is still pending, a travel outside the US may cause the request to change status be denied. The H-1B petition will be approved but you must interview at a US embassy abroad before you can enter the US on H-1B status.

The F-1 foreign national should depart from and reenter the US prior to the effective date of the change of status and after the H-1B is approved. Your H-1B attorney will most likely advise not to travel on F-1 in the event the application to change status is still pending.

Despite the apparent benefits of the limited ability to travel, F-1 students should be warned against traveling due to other issues that may make travel difficult for them.

For example, in some cases, F-1 students who were approved for H-1B status have had their registrations erased automatically and in error from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). In these cases, the students’ F-1 status could not be verified at the border, despite having valid Form I-20 Certificates of Eligibility for student status.

Continue reading " Can I Travel While my H-1B Filing is Pending After Graduating From College? " »

Posted by Sam Shihab Esq. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: F-1 Student Visa , H-1B Visa

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As an immigration attorney, I view my job as a partnership arrangement with my clients. Each non-immigrant visa that I process, be it an H-1B visa or otherwise, or a green card for that purpose, is truly a joint venture between myself and my client that I am servicing. Since we are coming up on the 2009 H-1B visa cap season, I believe that I should focus on describing the best possible partnership I, or any H-1B lawyer in our firm, could have with the employer and the employee; a partnership that would yield the best result for all parties concerned. In our Columbus, Ohio office, (the same goes for our Cleveland, Ohio, Washington, D.C, or Michigan offices) our clients utilize our online immigration case management system that we designed called, VisaTurbo to inform us about new H-1B visa cases. In other words, employers do not have to call our office to let us know that they need to process a dozen new H-1B visas, rather, they go into their secured accounts and add all of the necessary information about the identity of the prospective international employees that they would like join their company on H-1B visas.

From that point, the partnership begins. VisaTurbo sends the immigration attorney in our office an automated e-mail letting him/her know that a dozen of employees have been added for H-1B visa processing. The H-1B attorney assigned to the particular employer immediately contacts the prospective employees to provide them with their passwords to enter VisaTurbo and input all of the information that the H-1B visa attorney needs to get the H-1B Visa processed as quickly and as efficiently as possible. Here are the steps that the employee must carefully undertake in order for the H-1B visa attorney obtains the desired result:

1. Input Information in the “Profile”: The prospective employee is asked to populate the fields in the several tabs including: personal, contacts, visa stamping history, I-94, entry/exit dates, passport, education and employment biographic information. Please bear in mind the partnership approach our office deals with these types of visas: be precise, be complete, be efficient, and include as much information as possible. I always tell my clients “give me more information; don’t give me less.” Also please remember that the USCIS is interested in learning about your background and how you qualify for the H-1b position. Hence, this is the time for you to be as detailed as possible and provide as much descriptive profile as possible.

There is another reason why you should be as detailed about your background, if you had held H-1b visa or status within the last 6 years, you may not need to apply towards the 2009 H-1B visa cap and you could qualify for H-1B visa portability. Another example: if you had obtained your Master’s Degree from the US, you are eligible for the 20,000 visas set aside and hence will have higher chances to be selected in the 2010 H-1B visa quota. There are countless reasons as to why you should be descriptive, deliberate, accurate and informative. Now you can begin to see what I mean by partnership: I need your information to put together the best case for you, you need me to represent you before the US Department of Labor and US Citizenship and Immigration Service.

Continue reading " How Do I Help My H1B Attorney Get Me the Best Result? " »

Posted by Gus M. Shihab | Permalink | Email This Post

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With more than 28 years of combined experience as immigration attorneys, our firm has represented hundreds of employers and employees in more than a thousand H-1b visas before the US Department of Labor and the US Citizenship and Immigration Service. Even though our offices are located in Columbus, and Cleveland, Ohio as well as Michigan and Washington, DC, we interact with employers all over the US. From this experience, I know that employers are always searching for the right H-1b attorney, one who can truly represent their interests as well as those of their employees in a cost effective as well as efficient manner. When it comes to H-1B visa processing, it is important to understand the role of effective H-1B visa lawyer in advancing the interest of the employer and employee. Here are some pointers that are important to keep in mind in choosing the right lawyer:

• Communication: A lawyer who is willing to put forth the time and effort to communicate with the employer and employees during the H-1b visa processing. Choose an H-1b visa attorney who is available and who is responsive.

• Public Access File: I have seen many H-1B visa attorneys who do not do so and rely on the employer to put these important documents together. I believe this is a dangerous trend especially if the employer is H-1B dependent. If you look at the regulations, you know right away that this function must be accomplished by the lawyer. Hence, it is highly advisable to choose an H-1B lawyer who is willing to put this important document together for the employer. Failure to prepare and keep the public access file may result in costly US Department of Labor investigations and penalties.

• Automation: It is highly important to make certain that the lawyer utilizes online case management software like VisaTurbo. VisaTurbo is secured software that was designed by our law firm for the dissemination and sharing of all documents coming in and out of the lawyer office from all parties concerned. Make certain that the H-1B lawyer you choose has such software as many others like VisaTurbo are available in the market.

• Experience: Processing of an H-1B visa requires experience with the needs of small and large employers. The smaller employer (less than 200 employees) is unique and USCIS has recently stepped up their Request for Evidence for H-1B visas processed by smaller employers. A lawyer who is experienced in processing H-1B visas for smaller employers can avoid many pitfalls that could truly delay the processing of H-1b visas.

Continue reading " Choosing the Right H-1B Visa Lawyer During the 2009 H-1B Cap Season " »

Posted by Gus M. Shihab | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: H-1B Visa

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We are pleased to announce that Shihab & Associates is updating its website, www.shihab.net. In order to implement state of the art features, it was necessary to go for a complete redesign. The site's new features and the fresh design, are easier to navigate and will contain new content that the old site did not contain. The added content aims to provide a more client-oriented description of immigration requirements and processes. Our hope is that we can make such information more easily accessible and understandable to our website visitors and clients, so that they can make an informed decision regarding immigration matters.

Our case management VisaTurbo is still accessible at www.visaturbo.com. Please enjoy our H-1B blog as we will continue to publish more H-1B related topics regularly.

Our contract information are listed below for your convenience:

Columbus, OH: 65 East State Street, Suite 1550, Columbus, Ohio 43215 Phone: (614) 224-2428 Fax: (614) 224-5080

Cleveland, OH: 600 Superior Ave. East, Suite 1300, Cleveland, Ohio 44114 Phone: (216) 479-7670 Fax: (800) 878-9405

Washington, D.C. 1725 I Street Northwest, Suite 300, Washington, D.C. 20006 Phone: (202) 373-1535 Fax: (800) 878-9405

Southfield, MI: 2000 Town Center Drive, Suite 1930, Southfield, MI 48075 Phone: (248) 351-5678 Fax: (800) 878-9405

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Posted In: H-1B Visa

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