Views Blog – Business Immigration

Thanks for 32 Years !

Mike Hammond — Mon, 31 Jul 2023 19:39:51 +0000

In July of 1991, we started this law firm as Hammond and
Associates and in full transparency, there were no associates. July
of 2023 marks the transition from Hammond Neal Moore to CIP and
Envoy Global. We have gone from a small office in a strip center on
the outskirts of Dayton, Ohio to offices in downtown Cincinnati,
Phoenix, Dallas, and Los Angeles and a team of eighty (80). We are very grateful to all of our staff and clients that have made these last 32 years possible. We are very proud that our 1st corp. client who
started working with me in 1990 is still a client today. We have many other clients that have been with us for over 25 years and we are very thankful. We consider you partners in our success, and we hope
that we have, in some small way, contributed to your success. Many of you have become friends and trusted advisors and provided encouragement and business advice over the years. We owe a very
special gratitude to the late Ken Marskell who played such a key role in our growth in the healthcare space. We miss your kind heart, my friend. A very special thanks to my parents who have always
encouraged me and demonstrated love for others and the value of hard work. Love you both.

Whenever anyone asks me to what I attribute our success, I always have a quick answer of, its our people. They care! Really! They care about their clients and each other. Many years ago, we adopted
the mantra of “Throw One Starfish Back Each Day” (if you haven’t read the story, google it). The attitude of the little boy on the beach embodies the attitude of our people over the years. I could never
properly thank all of the staff who have contributed to our success but, a special thanks to the Franklin gang, all of whom have been with me for over 25 years, Sherry, Glenn, Eroica, Rita (retired but still
included), and Kimi (who didn’t quite start with us in Franklin but, shortly thereafter and who has made it over 20 years). I appreciate your dedication and your service and we would not be here today if it were not for you. A special thanks to my children, Ben and Kelsey who in the early years slept in the office multiple nights a week and learned to answer the phones, find closed files and run the copier.
The years have passed and Kelsey has been a paralegal for almost 10 years and my grandson Jaxon has now become a source of cheap labor and been taught to scan, sort and file thus, the tradition lives
on. To my partners, thanks for helping us to grow and position our firm to take this next step. To our current team, thanks for your hard work and sticking with us through the crazy time of COVID; the
move from our beloved Carew to our new home that we have come to love; for staying awake during all of the meetings and trainings and keeping an open mind and embracing all of the changes (or most of them) that this transition is bringing. We appreciate your trust and are confident that you will be rewarded.
We are very excited about this next chapter for our firm. The people at CIP and Envoy Global are great people who also care and we look forward to the opportunities that this merger will present for both
our clients and our employees. (view as PDF)

Thanks again and throw a starfish back today!

10 Year Anniversary Letter to Our Clients

20 Year Anniversary Letter to Our Clients

August Visa Bulletin

Mike Hammond — Sun, 16 Jul 2023 16:15:02 +0000

The Department of State (DOS) released the August Visa Bulletin and all categories across all countries are retrogressed. Given the “use it or lose it” laws in effect relative to immigrant visa (green card) usage, summer retrogression is not unusual and actually indicates that the USCIS and DOS are working efficiently and using all of the visas available however, the widespread nature of the current retrogression is screaming for legislative relief from Congress. The August Visa Bulletin is not a very accurate predictor of how long the wait will be for visa issuance; that will not be better judged until the October Visa bulletin is released in mid September.

HNM To Merge

Mike Hammond — Thu, 15 Jun 2023 14:05:22 +0000

HNM announced today that it is merging with GIA and CIP and partnering with Envoy Global to provide global immigration services. For more info. check out the joint press release.

Retrogression Strikes Again

Mike Hammond — Wed, 14 Jun 2023 21:03:26 +0000

The Department of State (DOS) has released the July Visa Bulletin and many categories saw further retrogression. Most notable was the India EB3 category which moved backward by over 2 years. All other EB3 categories retrogressed by 4 months. Forward movement is not expected until the new fiscal year in October and even further retrogression may occur in Aug or Sept.

International Nurses and Legislation

Mike Hammond — Wed, 14 Jun 2023 20:58:44 +0000

Our friend and a fellow immigration attorney, Chris Musillo recently published an update on legislative efforts to address the US nursing shortage via immigration legislation. Make sure to read the Times article cited in his blog post !

New Visa Fees

Mike Hammond — Wed, 14 Jun 2023 20:51:31 +0000

Effective June 17th, many classes of NIV visas (issued at a Consulate abroad) will increase. The DOS has released the new schedule. The increases are not significant with most only $15. The last time the DOS raised fees was 2012 and 2014.

New PERM Filing System

Mike Hammond — Wed, 14 Jun 2023 20:41:52 +0000

The DOL’s new FLAG system for the submission of PERM applications (Labor Certification Applications) goes into effect on June 1, 2023. Applications may no longer be filed under the old system. Practitioners expect there to be many “glitches” and “Oh ! We didn’t think about that” but, are optimistic that the system will be much better in the long run.

END OF COVID-19 I-9 FLEXIBILITIES

Lisa Galvan — Fri, 02 Jun 2023 14:30:35 +0000

The I-9 Employment Verification Process
U.S. employers are required to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals they hire using the Form I-9:
• After being offered the job, on or before the first day of employment, the employee must complete Part 1 of Form I-9.
• Within three business days of the start of employment, the employee must provide original documents to prove their identity AND authorization to work.
• The Employer must review the employees’ documents and complete and sign Part 2 of Form I-9.
• The Employer must maintain the Form I-9 and should keep copies of the supporting documents (only if an E-Verify employer) for a defined period.

Some employers may voluntarily use the E-Verify system to verify employees’ documents electronically with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). E-Verify does not replace the I-9 record-keeping requirement, but it gives employers confidence that an employees’ documents are legitimate. While it’s optional, some employers may be required to use E-Verify by a state or as a condition for federal contracting.

Current Pandemic Policies
During the pandemic, DHS implemented an inspection deferral policy. Under this policy, employers with employees working remotely could remain compliant by following these steps:
• New employees return Form I-9 with Section 1 completed and signed no later than the first day of employment (after accepting the job offer).
• Employers inspect identity and authorization documentation furnished by new employees AND complete and sign Section 2 of the I-9 through in-person OR REMOTE MEANS no later than three days after a new employee’s first day of work.

The End of Pandemic Policies
• The flexibility implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic for completing I-9s will end on July 31, 2023.
• As such, employers will have until August 30, 2023 to complete an in-person physical inspection of employee documents that were remotely inspected.

Steps Employers Should Take NOW
For any employees whose documents were reviewed through remote means, employers should TAKE STEPS NOW to complete an in-person physical examination of the documents. This is also an opportunity for employers to conduct an internal audit of their Form I-9s with their immigration attorney as well as a review of the SOPs of their employment verification procedures.
Please contact your HNM attorney with any questions.

June Visa Bulletin

Mike Hammond — Tue, 30 May 2023 22:12:21 +0000

The Department of State (DOS) has released the June Visa Bulletin and there were no changes. Retrogression remains a problem that needs a legislative solution. The USCIS posted that it will only honor the Final Action Date chart for I-485 filings.

PERM Filings

admin — Tue, 30 May 2023 22:06:05 +0000

The OFLC delayed the use of the new ETA 9089 PERM form and the filing platform but has announced that it will go into effect as of June 1, 2023. We do not expect a further delay.