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United States
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Some Employers Report Petition Revocation Notices after USCIS Site Visits
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March 1, 2010
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Executive Summary
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Some employers have reported receiving U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services notices of intent to revoke an immigration petition and requests for additional information after the agency has conducted a worksite visit to verify the facts stated in a petition. So far, the notices are not widespread, but could become more common as the site visit program expands.
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According to recent reports, some employers have received a notice of intent to revoke (NOIR) a nonimmigrant visa petition some time after undergoing a worksite visit conducted by the fraud unit of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). These notices which can be prompted by even minor changes in employment circumstances between the filing of a petition and a site visit typically ask the employer to show ongoing compliance with the petition approval. Recent notices have been issued primarily in H-1B cases. As USCIS continues its site inspection program, more employers could receive these notices.
In recent months, USCISs Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) unit has been conducting more frequent site visits of employers that have filed nonimmigrant visa petitions on behalf of foreign workers. The purpose of the visits is to verify the accuracy of the information in a specific petition. During a visit, an FDNS officer usually interviews a company representative and the foreign beneficiary, using a standard list of questions. The officer may also tour the premises and ask for employment or immigration records. After conducting a visit, the officer makes an internal report of his or her findings.
Most site visits are uneventful, but in some cases employment circumstances may have changed between the time the immigration petition was originally approved and the time a site visit takes place. For example, the employer may have changed locations or the foreign beneficiary of a petition may have resigned and moved to a new employer. If there appear to be differences between the information provided in an immigration petition and the circumstances that exist at the time of the FDNS site visit, USCIS can decide to reopen the case and issue a NOIR to examine whether the foreign national remains eligible for the nonimmigrant classification and whether both the employer and employee are complying with the terms of the immigration category.
USCIS plans to conduct as many as 25,000 FDNS site visits this fiscal year. Though only a small number of organizations have thus far reported notices of intent to revoke a petition after a site visit, employers could begin to see more NOIRs as site inspections become more frequent. If your organization receives a notice of intent to revoke a petition, contact your designated Fragomen professional immediately.
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2010 Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, LLP
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