We recently reported that on November 29, 2011 the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act (H.R. 3012) by a vote of 389-15. If enacted as passed by the House of Representatives, H.R. 3012 would eliminate the per-country limit, currently 7%, on employment-based green card allocation for any given country during the government’s fiscal year. However, the bill would only reallocate visas and would not increase the overall number of immigrant visas available each year.
H.R. 3012 then moved to the U.S. Senate for consideration. On November 30, 2011 Senator Grassley (R-IA) placed the bill on hold, and, on December 15, 2011, offered an amendment that would make dramatic changes to the bill, including elimination of the family-based per county limit increase and reducing the employment-based per country limit to 15%. Additionally, Senator Grassley’s amendment would eliminate the diversity visa (lottery) program and amend the bill to introduce increased enforcement and U.S. worker protection provisions to the H-1B and L-1 visa programs.
Senator Grassley’s amendment was met with objection, and, as a result, H.R. 3012 will remain on hold. The American Immigration Lawyers Association reports that while other senators may try to negotiate a compromise to move the bill forward, at this time, such a compromise appears unlikely.
Gibney will continue to monitor the progress of this legislation in the Senate and provide updates as they become available. If you have any questions regarding this alert, please do not hesitate to contact your designated Gibney representative or email immigrationalerts@gibney.com.
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This immigration article is provided as general information for clients and friends of Gibney, Anthony & Flaherty, LLP. It does not constitute, and should not be construed as, legal advice. The contents of this article may be considered attorney advertising in some states.