Peddibhotla Law Firm
39899 Balentine Drive, Suite 118
Newark, CA 94560
(510) 498-1949
www.immi-law.com
contact@immi-law.com
Immigration Timeline
Exclusionary
policies; notably
Chines Exclusion
Act of 1882 (18751917)
1776
1875
Preference
category system
for admitting
foreign nationals
with special
skills.
1917
1952 1965
Amnesty
program
Anti-terrorism
legislation introduced;
Expanded deportable Post 9/11 enhanced
crimes; introduced
security and anti3 & 10 year bars
terrorism measures
(US PATRIOT Act).
DHS is born
H-4 Work
Authorization
proposed
1986
1990 1996
2000
2001
2011
2014
Watershed moment for
Asian Immigration
Open Door Policy
1st 100 Years
Per Country quota
system (1917-1951)
US eliminated
racial and national
origin quotas, but
established
Western and
Eastern
hemisphere
quotas.
Deferred Action
& DACA
H-1B Cap
temporarily
increased to 195K
for FY 2001-2003
(AC21)
Employment based
preference
categories
established. Nonimmigrant visa
categories of H-1B,
H-3, E, and L-1
redefined
What is Employment-based
Immigration Status?
• When an individual enters the U.S. on an
employment-based status, this means the
individual’s immigration status is tied to his/her
employment.
• The specific type of status may govern where, when,
and the nature of work the individual may engage in
while in the U.S. In most cases, the individual is only
permitted to work for one particular employer.
• Employment immigration is divided into: (1)
Temporary Work Visas; and (2) Immigrant Visas
(Green Card)
Temporary Work Visas
Common Types of Employment-Based Nonimmigrant Visa Categories
H
E
H-1B, Temporary workers in specialty
occupations
E-1, Treaty traders
H-2A, Temporary or seasonal agricultural
workers
E-2, Treaty investors
E-3, Specialty occupation professionals from
Australia
H-2B, Temporary non-agricultural
workers
O, Persons with extraordinary ability in the
sciences, arts, business, education, or
athletics
L
P, Professional athletes, artists, and
entertainers
L-1B, Intracompany transferees with
specialized knowledge
L-1A, Intracompany transferees in a
managerial or executive role
R, Religious workers
TN, NAFTA professionals from Canada or
Mexico
Immigrant Visas (“Green Card”)
Common Types of Employment-Based Immigrant Visa Categories
Category
Description
EB-1
For those with extraordinary ability in business,
arts or sciences, managers and executives of multinational businesses, and outstanding professors or
researcher;
EB-2
For members of the professions holding advanced
degrees or their equivalent, or for individuals with
exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or
business;
EB-3
For Skilled or Professional Workers
EB-4
For Special Immigrants
EB-5
For investors who are investing substantial funds
(at least $500,000 / $1 million dollars).
Immigration, Entrepreneurship, and Global Competitiveness
•
US has slipped to 4th place in the last decade in rankings by the World Economic Forum’s Global
Competitiveness Report and to fifth place in the Global Innovation Index. (US ranked 36 in performance
by secondary school students. US students only make up 25% of students enrolled in STEM degrees and
nearly 2/3 switch majors
•
Since 1965, US immigration policy has been largely built around family unification; and 2/3 of
permanent immigrants in the US are now admitted on the basis of family ties.
•
Only 15% of the Green Cards, are issued on employment / economic grounds;
• Though, larger numbers of immigrant workers can receive temporary work visas
•
The share of employment-based immigrants in the US is low compared to other English speaking
countries. In Australia it accounts for 2/3; and UK for 2/5
•
2006-20012: 24.3 % of Engineering & Technology start-ups had at least one key founder who was
foreign-born. In Silicon Valley, this number was 43.9 percent. (In Silicon Valley, Indians accounted for
32% of immigrant-founded companies
•
These companies employed roughly 560,000 workers and generated $63 billion in sales in 2012.
•
An increase in foreign STEM workers of 1 percent of total employment boosts the wages of native
college-educated workers by 4 percent to 6 percent and provides greater job opportunities for them, as
well.
•
Immigrants account for one quarter of patents, twice their share of the population, and are three times
more likely than native-born individuals to file a patent.
•
Best and the Brightest as well as Less-Skilled Workers are needed to enhance global competitiveness
Breakdown of Engineering and Technology Companies
Founded by Immigrants from 2006 to 2012 by Industry
Software , 22%
Innovation /
ManufacturingRelated Services, 45%
Bioscience, 11%
Environmental, 9%
Computers /
Defense / Aerospace,
Communications, 6%
3%
Semiconductors, 4%
Kauffman Foundation Report, Oct. 2012; Fig. 9
Birthplace of Engineering and Technology Founders
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
India
China
Kauffman Foundation Report, Oct. 2012, Fig. 4
United
Kingdom
Canada
Germany
White House AAPI Fact Sheet (2012)
• In fiscal year 2012, more than 91,000 individuals born in Asia obtained green
cards through employment-based immigrant visa petitions.
• But immigrants from India and China can wait 10 years or longer for some
employment-based immigrant visas. Close to 93,000 individuals waiting in the
employment-based immigrant backlog as of November 1, 2012, are from Asian
countries.
• In 2009, Indian immigrants represented 56% of all Masters students seeking
degrees in computer science and engineering, and China and India sent nearly
half of all foreign nationals pursuing science, technology, engineering, and math
(STEM) doctorates. Almost half of Asian immigrant adults have a bachelor’s
degree or higher.
• Petitioners from India (64%) and China (7.6%) continue to be the largest users of
the H-1B program.
• Four Indian firms — Cognizant, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro —
brought more than 26,000 Indians to work in the US in 2012 under the H-1B visa
scheme, according to research by Professor Ron Hira, of the Rochester Institute
of Technology.