The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) has submitted a public comment in order to strengthen the proposal of the Department of Homemade Security (DHS) to change the regulations for the H-1B visa program.
CIS argued that some aspects of DHS’s proposed rule make it easier for fraud and abuse in the Person in Specialty Occupation visa, known as the H-1B program, stressing that these rules don’t do enough to protect US and international workers, VisaGuide.World reports
Moreover, CIS instructed DHS to withdraw unauthorized provisions that, if promulgated, would allow employers who do not qualify for cap-exempt workers to nevertheless game the system, as well as allow certain F-1 nonimmigrant visa holders (students) to automatically extend their stay and work in the United States after graduation, in direct violation of the law.
In addition, CIS suggested that DHS should change its regulatory definition of “specialty occupation” in order to match what Congress requires. It also proposed that employers should demonstrate they can pay their current and requested workers before the USCIS approves an H-1B petition.
CIS also recommended that DHS improve the Person in Specialty Occupation program by making USCIS choose the H-1B registrations with the highest salaries when there’s more demand than the annual cap, instead of conducting a random lottery.
Such policy would encourage employers to offer higher wages, or to petition for positions requiring higher skills and higher-skilled workers that are commensurate with higher wage levels, to increase the likelihood of selection for an eventual petition.
The Center for Immigration Studies believes that this reform would discourage abuse of this scheme in order to fill lower-paid, lower-skilled positions, which has permitted businesses to replace or undercut US workers and underpay beneficiaries of H-1B.
It also called on the Biden administration to cancel policies that prohibit DHS officers from finding immigration and labor violations in many parts of the US. CIS also said that without strong actions to deter wrongdoing, including robust enforcement, the program remains vulnerable to fraud and abuse and will continue to undermine US workers who often work alongside and compete with beneficiaries of H-1B.
In October this year, the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) presented a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) aiming to modernize the H-1B temporary work visa program.
The changes published through the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), among others, consisted of streamlining eligibility requirements, improving program efficiency, strengthening integrity measures, providing greater benefits and flexibilities for employers and workers.