Immigration Risk and Compliance in the Trump Era
President Trump has directed federal agencies to "ensure that H-1B visas are awarded to the most-skilled or highest-paid beneficiaries." As a result, immigration enforcement actions against U.S. employers are on the rise. This includes Department of Labor investigations ensuring H-1B employers are meeting their LCA obligations regarding wages, notice, and Public Access File documentation; scrutiny of employers' use of "B-1" business visitor visas; and by definition their I-9 programs. Regulators suspect abuse by employers seeking to circumvent the H-1B quota and wage obligations. This session helps you navigate and thrive in an increasingly complex and scrutinized immigration environment.
Learning Objectives:
- Evaluate the employer's H-1B, B-1 and I-9 compliance risks and opportunities, including ways in which HR can help create a culture of compliance within the organization.
- Understand what DOL Wage and Hour investigators review when they conduct LCA audits and afford the ability to explain to stakeholders the employer's obligations to pay not only prevailing wages, but also wages that are in line with similarly situated U.S. workers, and what makes workers "similarly situated."
- Examine current DOL policy on providing paper versus electronic notice to employees at the worksite, and make informed decisions on how to comply and avoid the serious risks of noncompliance.
- Learn to structure a B-1 business traveler program that considers and is sensitive to those activities that can and cannot be performed without a work permit and integrates compliance touchpoints throughout the B-1 lifecycle.
- Identify strategies for timely completion of Forms I-9 given the increasing prevalence of remote hires and a diffuse workforce.
- Learn to prepare employees for new levels of scrutiny at airports when entering the United States, including requests for documentation, electronic equipment searches, and to educate them on their rights and obligations.
- Review and assess the risks associated with H-1B, B-1 and I-9 programs, and learn about adjustments that ensure compliance and mitigate risk.
Andrew Greenfield
Andrew Greenfield is an immigration attorney with over 25 years of experience advising HR and global mobility professionals on U.S. immigration and nationality law and policy and related corporate compliance programs. He counsels clients across industries on visa and work permit matters and the immigration consequences of mergers and acquisitions and other corporate reorganizations, as well as I-9/E-Verify, H-1B/LCA and PERM compliance, and representation during government audits and investigations. Andrew is the managing partner of Fragomen’s Washington, DC, office and a member of the firm’s executive committee, which directs and manages the firm’s 50+ offices in over 30 countries.