Start Preparing for your New H1-B Worker NOW!

The H-1B cap is approaching fast, and early planning and processing is recommended!

The filing period for new H-1B visa petitions to be counted against the annual H-1B quota (the “H-1B cap”) for FY (“Fiscal Year”) 2016 begins on April 1, 2015. To ensure timely receipt, and to have the best chance of your case being accepted under the cap, petitions must be submitted the first week of April 2015 for a visa that will begin on October 2015.

The annual limit for new H-1Bs is 65,000 , with an additional 20,000 visas available to H-1B applicants who possess a Master’s or higher degree from a U.S. academic institution. An applicant qualifies for an H-1B under the additional 20,000 allotment if he/she has completed all requirements for the advanced degree at the time the petition is filed.

In 2014, the annual FY-2015 limit for new H-1Bs was reached immediately, with USCIS receiving over 172,500 applications during the first week of filing. We anticipate that the FY-2016 cap may be reached at the same pace and increased rate of filings. Consequently, it is important that employers plan and process their FY 2016 H-1B petitions early. 

What is an H-1B Visa?

The H-1B is an employer-sponsored nonimmigrant visa classification which allows foreign individuals to work for up to six (6) years in a specialty occupation. “Employer-sponsored” means that the employer must apply for the H-1B on behalf of the prospective H-1B employee through the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).  “Specialty occupation” means a position that requires specialized knowledge and skills, and at least a related bachelor’s degree in that specialty. The H-1B also requires that the H-1B employer pay the H-1B employee the same or higher wage than is paid to workers in similar occupations in the geographical area of the proposed employment.

Please contact our if you have any questions pertaining to the FY-2016 H-1B petition filing procedures or would like to begin the process.

CBP Launches Border Wait Time App

According to their government website, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently launched the Border Wait Time app making it easier for travelers to plan their trip across the border. The app provides estimated wait times and open lane status at land ports of entry allowing travelers to make an informed decision of where and when to cross the border. Wait times for pedestrian and passenger and commercial vehicle crossings are broken down by lane type (standard, SENTRI, NEXUS, FAST, Ready Lane, etc.). Travelers can download the app for free from Apple’s App Store and Google Play.

“CBP continues to deploy technology that enhances the travel experience at all of our ports of entry,” said Commissioner R. Gil Kerlikowske. “The launch of this app will provide travelers crossing the land border with more information when and where they need it.”

The app is a one-stop shop for cross border travel. Travelers can locate the three ports of entry closest to their location and then map the best route to the crossing of their choice. For example, the app allows travelers in the Buffalo, New York area to compare wait times at the Peace Bridge, Rainbow Bridge and Lewiston Queenston Bridge and will then direct them to whichever crossing they chose.

The app was developed by CBP and does not require individuals to register or provide any personal information. CBP does not store or have access to any information regarding travelers using the app.

The Border Wait Time app is just one example of CBP’s effort to create a traveler-friendly processing environment. CBP has deployed Automated Passport Control (APC) kiosks to more than 25 airports, including most recently at preclearance locations in Edmonton, Canada and Aruba. Much like APC, CBP launched Mobile Passport Control, the first authorized app to expedite a traveler’s entry into the United States, at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport this summer. CBP has also enrolled more than three million travelers in trusted traveler programs such as Global Entry, NEXUS and SENTRI. These programs allow CBP officers to process travelers safely and efficiently while enhancing security and reducing operational costs.

Source: Click here for the original article.

NEW Business Opportunity: German Restaurant

Business purchase opportunity–A client of the law firm has asked us to post the following information about the sale of the Schnitzel Kitchen German Restaurant

Location: 6525 Superior Ave., Unit B, Sarasota, FL, 34231 on the Gulf Coast of Mexico in the Southwestern Region of Florida.

Very successful running Business with maximum occupation of 42 Seats. Ideal Location within a very busy strip mall center.Specializing in German Cuisine with beer and wine. Restaurant has immense potential  for increase in business sales.

The owner was a Chef in Germany for over 25 years and offers to stay in business and train new owner and/or staff.

Very close to the world famous Quartz Sand Beach on the Island of Siesta Key   (just across the Siesta Key Bridge). On Highway 75  easy and fast to all famous  Park attractions  in Florida like Disney World, Sea World,  Cape Canaveral (Kennedy Space Center)  and the famous southern Keys.

Perfect for starting a new Business, adding on to an existing business, as an occupation for retirement, as an investment, or as a basis  for a US Visa Immigration Application.

 Asking: $ 150,000   (Euro € 120.000 according to exchange rate)

For a Virtual Picture Tour, Click Here

Please contact Loyd Robbins,   Harry E. Robbins Assoc., Inc.

3733 Tuttle Ave., Sarasota, FL, 34239,

Fax: 941-922-3627

Phone: 941-356-9659

Cell: 941-726-9381

Immigrant Students Can Find Enhanced Resources at DHS Website

Reposted from DHS bulletin.

Numbers and origin of international students in US from January-April 2014.  Image by Charles Reed

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) launched an enhanced Study in the States website Monday with four new features.  The features enable the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), housed within U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), to convey pertinent information to stakeholders about the international student process in a clear and interactive manner.

The new features include: 

• An interactive glossary
• An “Ask a Question” section
• An enhanced School Search page
• A mobile-ready version of Study in the States

“Being an international student is a complex process that involves several government agencies, and the new Study in the States tools will help students and schools easily find the latest news, information, interactive guides and videos they need,” said SEVP Director Lou Farrell.

The revamped site also features streamlined navigation and a blog geared to international students and school officials. Users can translate the site into multiple languages.  

The Study in the States website serves as an information hub for the international student community.  It brings together the various federal agencies that play a role in implementing our student visa and exchange visitor programs, including ICE, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Study in the States was launched by former Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano in 2011, as part of a larger DHS initiative to enhance economic, scientific and technological competitiveness by finding new ways to encourage the most talented international students to study and learn about expanded post-graduate opportunities in the United States.  This initiative includes a focus on streamlining the student visa process, enhancing coordination among government agencies and keeping international students better informed about student visa rules and regulations.  

SEVP monitors approximately one million international students pursuing academic or vocational studies (F and M visa holders) in the United States and their dependents. It also certifies schools and programs that enroll these students.  The U.S. Department of State monitors exchange visitors (J visa holders) and their dependents, and oversees exchange visitor programs.

Both use the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) to protect national security by ensuring that students, visitors and schools comply with U.S. laws.  SEVP also collects and shares SEVIS information with government partners, including CBP and USCIS, so only legitimate international students and exchange visitors gain entry into the United States.

HSI reviews potential SEVIS records for potential violations and refers cases with potential national security or public safety concerns to its field offices for further investigation. Additionally, SEVP’s Analysis and Operations Center reviews student and school records for administrative compliance with federal regulations related to studying in the United States.

75% of International Students Come from Asia

Reposted from USCIS Press Release

Summary: International student enrollment up 2 percent at US schools, 75 percent of students from Asia

Photo by Charles Reed

WASHINGTON – The Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), part of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), released “SEVIS by the Numbers,” a quarterly report of international students studying in the United States, Wednesday. The report is based on data from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), a Web-based system that includes information on international students, exchange visitors and their dependents while they are in the United States.

As of April 1, almost 1.02 million international students were enrolled in nearly 9,000 U.S. schools using an F (academic) or M (vocational) visa. This marks a two percent increase from January. Seventy-five percent of all international students were from Asia, with 29 percent from China. Saudi Arabia and India had the greatest percentage increase of students studying in the United States at 10 and eight percent, respectively, when compared to January statistics. The top 10 countries of citizenship for international students included: China, India, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Mexico and Brazil.

The April report also included key insight into which international students pursue STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) coursework. Sixty-seven percent of international students studying STEM fields were male. Forty-three percent of all international STEM students studied engineering. Seventy-eight percent of international students from India studied STEM fields, while only eight percent of international students from Japan studied STEM fields.

Other key points from the report include: 77 percent of SEVP-certified schools had between zero and 50 international students; 72 percent of international students were enrolled in bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral programs; and California, New York and Florida had the most SEVP-certified schools. A school must be SEVP-certified before it can enroll international students.

The full report can be viewed here. Report data was extracted from SEVIS April 1. It provides a point in time snapshot of data related to international students studying in the United States. Data for the previous “SEVIS by the Numbers” was extracted from SEVIS Jan. 15.

SEVP monitors approximately one million international students pursuing academic or vocational studies (F and M visa holders) in the United States and their dependents. It also certifies schools and programs that enroll these students. The U.S. Department of State monitors exchange visitors (J visa holders) and their dependents, and oversees exchange visitor programs.

Photo by Charles Reed

Both agencies use SEVIS to protect national security by ensuring that students, visitors and schools comply with U.S. laws. SEVP also collects and shares SEVIS information with government partners, including CBP and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, so only legitimate international students and exchange visitors gain entry into the United States.

HSI reviews potential SEVIS records for potential violations and refers cases with potential national security or public safety concerns to its field offices for further investigation. Additionally, SEVP’s Analysis and Operations Center reviews student and school records for administrative compliance with federal regulations related to studying in the United States.

Learn more about SEVP at www.ICE.gov/SEVP.

Swiss-Italian Immigrant Brings Healing to Sarasota

Fiorenza Arigoni is a Sarasota immigrant who decided to trade the shores of Lake Maggiore in Switzerland for the shores of the Gulf Coast.  She is also a licensed massage therapist and acupuncturist.  She relieves pain in others.  How she went from the Swiss Alps to Gulf Coast beaches is a story of hard work and perseverance.

Sarasota Immigrant Fiorenza Arigoni

Fiorenza grew up in the Italian Alps speaking 3 languages; French, German, and Italian.  When she was 22 she spent a year in the States and quickly felt at home.  She enjoyed the energy and the feeling of great potential.  She couldn’t stay in the US at that time so she returned to Switzerland, started a small business selling ice cream, and started a family.

10 years later two friends of Fiorenza’s made the move to the States, started a new business, Life Force Academy, and wrote back telling her she should come over too.  With the marriage ending and 4 young children she decided it was time to look for new opportunities.  She moved to the US to live and work.

Once she arrived she immediately began studying.  The ice cream business was no longer for her, she wanted to relieve pain in others, so she went first to Massage Therapy School and later to Acupuncture School.  She obtained student visas for her children and kept renewing B-1/B-2 Visitor Visas for herself.  This uncertain situation continued for several years while Fiorenza worked to obtain her license.

Fiorenza’s legal status stabilized in 2000 when Life Force Academy sponsored her for an H-1B Work Visa to work for them as an acupuncturist.  One year later she applied for obtained a Green Card.  A few years after that she obtained US citizenship.

Today Fiorenza makes house calls on behalf of Life Force Academy.  She helps Sarasota residents free themselves from pain through acupuncture and massage therapy.  She absolutely loves what she does and it shows.  Her clients have written such testimonials as:

26 years ago I had Colles fracture on my right wrist. I had many different treatments, including 5 injections on my cervical spine, without results. After 26 years, Fiorenza gave me relief with acupuncture; my hand straightened out and I can use it and my fingers normally. She also takes care of my arthritis and my old age aches and pains. My sinus pain disappears within minutes from the acupuncture treatments.

Fiorenza Arigoni combines her background as a skilled massage therapist with her expertise as a licensed acupuncturist beautifully. Her knowledge about the workings of the human body, from both Western and Eastern perspectives, is a boon to us, her clients, in the maintenance of all-around good health. 

She plans to continue working for Life Force Academy and expanding her client base.  She is truly living her dream.

To contact Fiorenza visit her website: lifeforceacademy.com or call: 941-284-6476.

Florida College Presidents To Congress: Pass Immigration Reform

This article is reposted from Miami radio station WLRN’s website.

Florida college and university presidents are calling on Congress to pass immigration reform this year, saying it would be better for the state’s economy if foreign students could stay after graduation, instead of being forced to take their diplomas and leave.

The “brain drain” of U.S.-educated foreign students is worrying economic and education leaders who say the students soon become competitors.

Enlarge image

Credit Florida Immigrant Coalition

 

In a conference call with reporters Monday, University of Miami President Donna Shalala said a high percentage of non-citizens earn degrees in the high-paying STEM fields – science, technology, engineering and mathematics – and then depart.

“Half of all of Ph.D. and masters students in the STEM fields in our research universities are students who come from other countries,” Shalala said. “Many of them would like to stay, and we need immigration reform to give them that opportunity and to capture the talent that we’re educating.”

In a Sept. 16 letter to Florida’s Congressional delegation, Shalala and the other presidents wrote that in 2009, 53 percent of students earning masters or doctoral degrees in STEM fields from Florida’s research-intensive universities were non-citizens. More than 60 percent of students earning recent doctorates in engineering were non-citizens.

“As soon as we hand them their diploma, we also basically are handing them an airline ticket and saying, ‘Thanks very much for coming here – go home,'” said Ed Moore, president of the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida.

What’s worse, he said, is that those students usually end up working for Florida’s competitors in the global economy.

“Say they’re from China. They may end up being hired by a company in Brazil or a company in Italy or a company in England,” Moore said. “They go there and work to compete against American industry on the global market. It makes absolutely no sense.”

The Democratic-led U.S. Senate passed a comprehensive immigration reform bill in June. It includes a path to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants, a temporary worker program and more visas for skilled non-citizens. But the measure is stalled in the Republican-led House of Representatives.

Conservative opposition is fierce. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who has played a leading role in the debate, was booed at the Americans for Prosperity conference in Orlando last month, taking the stage to shouts of “No amnesty!” – a reference to allowing illegal immigrants to become U.S citizens.

But Anthony Catanese, president of the Florida Institute of Technology, said he doesn’t see the issue as a political one.

“Getting these young people to the highest level of American technological education and then making them return – I think we should see that as a non-controversial reason for getting the STEM graduates, especially at the graduate level, to have an opportunity to work for the United States and put them on a path toward citizenship,” Catanese said.

In their letter to Florida’s U.S. House members, the presidents noted that a recent study by the Partnership for a New American Economy and the American Enterprise Institute found that for every 100 foreign-born graduates of a U.S. graduate program who stay in the country, working in a STEM field, 262 jobs are created for American workers.

“Immigrants are more than twice as likely to start a business, and immigrant-owned businesses in Florida generate about $13.3 billion in income for the state each year,” they wrote. “But in Florida our share of foreign-born STEM advanced degree holders working in STEM fields decreased by 17 percent between 2000 and 2010.”

Moore said that many House members have said they have too many other issues on their plates to deal with immigration reform.

“That’s nonsense,” he said. “I know they’re busy in Syria and all these other issues, but immigration should stay on the front burner of Congressional action this year.”

Labor Shortfall Threatens Construction Boom

This article, reposted from the Sarasota Observer, is about the skilled labor shortfall in construction and compliments our earlier repost on this subject.  We hope that immigrants and potential immigrants to the Sarasota area find this information useful.

Labor shortfall threatens construction boom

Area contractors, such as Sutter Roofing Company, contracted for the Sarasota County Courthouse roof-replacement project, report that a labor shortage in the construction industry could raise building prices and slow the pace of area growth.

When the economy derailed in 2008, Doug Sutter, vice president of Sutter Roofing Co., made a tough choice. He decided to keep as many of his workers employed as possible through the lean years of the Great Recession, sacrificing his bottom line to keep a firm grip on what he predicted would one day be a limited commodity — skilled labor.

“We really did a good job of trying to keep our core guys through the downturn,” Sutter said. “We tried to find ways to keep guys busy because we knew finding skilled labor would be a problem coming out of the recession.  We saw this coming.”

After five years of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, a shortage of skilled labor threatens to take the wind out of the sails of Sarasota’s resurrected construction industry. The problem is that a lack of workers threatens to drive up construction costs and limit the amount of projects contractors are able to tackle.

“I hope we can keep the boom going, but we have to get more people into the industry,” Sutter said. “The labor shortage is a big, big concern, particularly in skilled labor.”

The construction industry in Sarasota County is considered a bellwether for the area’s economy and a driver of economic growth. According to a county report, property tax revenue is projected to increase by about $6 million next year, due to a 4.2% increase in property values countywide. And many area businesses and lawmakers point to a new round of development projects popping up around the county as an indication that Sarasota’s economy is on the mend. But the skilled-labor shortfall could limit the economic benefits of resurgent development and add uncertainty to government budgets.

Mary Slapp, executive director of the Gulf Coast Builders Exchange, acknowledged that an increase in building costs may affect the scale of new projects, but said the real casualty of the labor shortfall will be the pace of growth.

“I hear from the general contractors that they’re not going to bid because they don’t have the labor,” Slapp said.

Brian Jones, director of development for Core Construction, said he noticed smaller sub-contractors turning down jobs, but it wasn’t until CECO Concrete Construction, the nation’s largest concrete subcontractor, stopped taking new jobs in Florida for 2014 that the scale of the problem became apparent.

“That caught us off guard,” Jones said. “We didn’t expect a contractor as big as that to start canceling jobs.”

The problem is one of supply and demand. In 2006, prior to the downturn, the Sarasota County area construction industry employed more than 32,000 workers, according to Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (FDEO) data. But the recession hit Sarasota’s construction industry hard. By 2010, the construction workforce slimmed down by more than half, dipping below 15,000 workers. And, despite the recent development rebound, the industry workforce has been stuck at around 15,000 for the past two years and shows little to no signs of growth. The FDEO reports that Sarasota’s construction workforce was 15,600 in July 2013 — a 3.2% drop from July 2012.

“These things have a way of working themselves out,” Jones said, referring to the labor shortage. “But it means prices will have to go up.”

Slapp said that much of Sarasota County’s construction workforce uprooted to other areas of the country such as Texas and the Carolinas, where construction was less affected by the economic downturn.

“When you have to feed your family, you go where the jobs are,” Slapp said. “Now we have to find a way to lure them back.”

Sutter added that new government regulations such as E-Verify and the Affordable Health Care Act’s employer mandate are burdens for businesses seeking to hire new workers.

“It certainly thins the herd,” Sutter said, referring to E-Verify, an Internet-based program used to determine an employee’s eligibility to work in the U.S. “But, there really isn’t much of a herd, anyway.”

The labor shortage could also throw area governments a budgetary curveball.

Scott Lempe, chief operating officer for the Sarasota County School Board, said cost increases could send some projects to the chopping block.

“I anticipate the costs to tick up,” Lempe said. “If the cost of material or labor goes up dramatically, then it would force us to reevaluate the number and magnitude of projects we can take on.”

Sarasota County Commissioner Christine Robinson said the county budget has yet to feel the labor shortage’s effects.

“In the short term, I don’t see it as huge problem,” Robinson said. “But we may have to take another look at our budget in the future.”

Robinson said an increase in construction costs would likely lead to a decrease in funds available for smaller projects that periodically pop up and are paid for out of the county’s unfunded projects list.

“We tend to budget conservatively,” Robinson said. “If costs start to go up dramatically, our unfunded project list may be unfulfilled. We’ve already seen the price of asphalt affect our road renovations.”

According to area contractors and lawmakers, luring skilled workers back to the area is not the only solution to the labor shortfall. There should also be an emphasis, they said, on locally run skilled-labor training programs.

Slapp lauded skilled-labor programs at SCTI intended to teach marketable skills.

“Folks are going to be leery about going into the construction industry after the recession,” Slapp said. “But skilled tradesmen will never be out of work. We need to emphasize the importance of learning a skill and being a good worker.”

Robinson added that programs such as a proposed local hiring initiative and the Suncoast Workforce project facilitate linking contractors to workers, allowing for a more efficient use of the existing labor force.

Sutter, whose company recently secured contracts to do the roofing renovations at the Sarasota County Courthouse and the new Macy’s being built at the Mall at University Town Center, said the labor shortage hasn’t forced him to turn down any projects — for now.

“Our biggest concern used to be securing financing and keeping our workers employed,” Sutter said. “Now it’s trying to find enough workers to get all our new projects off the ground.”

Construction jobs
By the numbers:
32,200: Sarasota construction industry workforce, July 2006
15,600: Sarasota construction industry workforce, July 2013
7%: Current estimated unemployment rate for Sarasota County
7.1%: Current estimated Florida unemployment rate
7.3%: Current national unemployment rate
320,000: Number of construction workers who dropped out of the national workforce during the Great Recession
$27,220: Median annual construction worker salary in Florida
$49,350: Median annual construction worker salary in New York

Construction Firms Seek More Workers from Abroad

Facing an acute labor shortage, big firms are lobbying to lift caps on foreign construction workers.

Source: http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20130904/ARTICLE/130909855/2107/BUSINESS?Title=Growing-labor-shortage-worries-construction-firms

A national survey of construction firms found 74 percent were having problems finding qualified workers amid growing labor shortages in the industry.

Comprehensive Immigration Reform Means Potential Point-Based Visa System

The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill (S. 744,  “The Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act,”) could overhaul the entire immigration system.  It could accelerate current Green Card applications, increase options for immigrant workers, investors, and entrepreneurs.  It could enable immigrant students to obtain green cards upon completion of certain courses of study.  It could create a path to legalization and citizenship for this nation’s 11 million undocumented immigrants.

In addition, the bill could introduce a merit-based visa.  Once enacted, it would enable 120,000 immigrants to obtain permanent visas each year through the accumulation of points based on their skills, employment history, and level of education.  Visas would be allocated in two tiers with 50% of visas in each tier.  Tier one would encompass high-skilled immigrants and tier 2 would encompass low-skilled immigrants.  The points would be allocated as follows:

In both tiers employment history will play the biggest role, followed by education.  This system seeks to attract the best and brightest to our shores, those who can contribute immediately to our economy.  It seeks to discourage “chain migration” by downplaying family ties.

Immigration Reform would eliminate the diversity visa, the green card lottery that the US government holds every year.  Through the lottery, 50,000 green cards are given to applicants from countries with less than 5,000 immigrants from the previous year.  The program was designed to increase diversity in our immigration system and adjust for the large numbers of immigrants that come from over-represented countries.  The merit-based system would partially replace this system as well as the allowance for siblings of US citizens to apply for family-sponsored visas.

The biggest advantage of the merit-based system would go to legal immigrants who are already working in the US.  Immigrants who currently hold an E-1, E-2, L-1, H-1B or other similar working visa do not have a clear path to a permanent visa.  These visas are temporary and the immigrant must re-qualify from scratch every time they wish to renew; previous successful renewals and time spent in the country are not taken into account.  This creates quite a bit of uncertainty.  A Merit-Based Visa would create a direct path to a permanent visa for such people.

Immigration Reform Means Economic Growth

Hidden Provisions of Senate Immigration Proposal Could Benefit Sarasota-Bradenton

5/6/2013

Sarasota, FL – Much of the recent discussion about immigration reform has centered on enforcement and legalization of undocumented aliens, but hidden in the Senate immigration bill are a number of proposals that could benefit the Sarasota-Bradenton area, including extended visitors visas for Canadians, a Retiree Visa, a short term visa for foreign executives and managers of companies with operations in the U.S. and a temporary visa and green card category for entrepreneurs.

Canadian Retirees (Sec. 4503)

It is important to note that the Senate bill is not the final word on immigration reform.  It must still go through the legislative process, which could cause it to be changed significantly.  Then, it must past the Senate.  At the same time, an immigration bill must also pass the House of Representatives and the two bills must be reconciled.  Supporters of these proposals should email Senator Marco Rubio (http://www.rubio.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contact) and Senator Bill Nelson (http://www.billnelson.senate.gov/contact/email.cfm) to express their views and preserve these provisions.  To read the full text of the bill as it stands please visit http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/s744/text.

About Jaensch Immigration Law Firm: The law firm was established in Sarasota in 1984 and provides a wide range of immigration legal services to students, investors, entrepreneurs, professional and skilled workers, athletes, coaches, aliens with extraordinary and exceptional credentials and more.  The law firm is comprised of five immigration lawyers, Peter J. Jaensch, P. Christopher Jaensch, Victoria Jaensch Karins, and Kevin Runyan.  The main website of Jaensch Immigration Law Firm is www.VisaAmerica.com.  For more information contact marketing coordinator, Michael Marquet, at 941-366-9841 or send email to mmarquet@VisaAmerica.com.

Gulf Coast Community Foundation Supports STEM Majors

Cover from the Biz941 article about STEM majors

To support the pursuit of STEM degrees in Sarasota the Gulf Coast Community Foundation recently launched a new, $2.5 million, five-year initiative that aims to deeply integrate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in our education system.  The effort is called STEMsmart.  It is part of a larger campaign that began in 2000 that provides resources and funding to secondary education, primarily in the science and math areas.  An assessment commissioned by the Gulf Coast Board indicated that retaining educated youth and preparing our workforce for targeted future industries are critical issues for our region.  Meanwhile, conversations with local school administrators, teachers, and students reinforced that science and math were areas that could be improved.

With the launch of the STEMsmart initiative, GCCF joins a growing national movement to provide teachers with the training and tools they need to prepare their students for the changing world.  The goals of the initiative include:

Help local schools embrace Florida’s new, more rigorous Next Generation standards

Assist teachers in teaching these new standards through professional development

Make STEM programs meaningful, relative, and fun through internships

Rally the community with a public information campaign about the importance of STEMsmart

The STEMsmart program includes an innovation award which seeks to recognize any organization, business, product or service that embodies the spirit of STEMsmart – integrated thinking powered by inspiration and invention in equal doses.  The monthly (and yearly) recognition will be much sought after, studied, celebrated, and publicized.  Go to www.stemsmart.org to tender your nomination.

Guest Editorial: America is Losing the Global Competition for Talent

Recent articles in “The Economist” point out the fact that America is losing its competitive advantage when it comes to attracting global talent.  Countries such as Canada, Australia, and Singapore are making it easier for foreign nationals to enter and set up a business.  In America, the immigration process is rife with inconvenience and uncertainty.  The number of visas available for skilled workers, or H1-Bs, has decreased from 100,000/year in 1999 to 65,000/year.  Green Card processing time has increased from as little as 18 months in the 1980s to up to 10 years.  Unlike other countries who have special visa categories for entrepreneurs, America has no such entrepreneurial visa.

Even Chile is doing more to attract global talent.   The small Latin-American nation has a new program, called Start-up Chile, that selects young firms and gives their founders the equivalent of $40,000 and a visa for one year.  The idea is to raise Chile’s profile as a hub for entrepreneurs and to foster entrepreneurialism among Chileans.  The program aims to bankroll 1,000 new companies by the end of next year.  Does anything like this exist in the United States?  No.

There are some options but they are circuitous and difficult, and there is never a guarantee of success.  One is the H1-B visa.  This visa is for skilled workers who are hired by U.S. companies.  But it is temporary and it’s validity is tied to the applicant’s original job.  If an H1-B immigrant wishes to apply for permanent residency they must keep their original job while they wait for their Green Card to be issued, which can take up to 10 years.  If the immigrant finds a better opportunity or wishes to start a new business they lose their H1-B status.

Another option for enterprising foreigners is the E2 Investor Visa.  To qualify, a prospective immigrant must invest a “significant” amount of money in an existing business or start a new business that promises to support the immigrant and employ Americans.  This is a good option for entrepreneurs but not every immigrant with a good idea has enough capital to start a new business upon arrival in the U.S.  In contrast, Start-up Chile is lending capital to promising companies upon arrival.

In today’s global economy, powered by the internet, businesses can serve their customers from anywhere.  Entrepreneurs are searching globally for attractive locations for their start-ups.  Basic infrastructure, peace, and a relatively wealthy and educated population are all elements for prosperity that make the United States attractive to foreign investors and entrepreneurs.  But our complicated immigration system is turning into a disadvantage, especially as other nations with the same basic elements for prosperity are making it easier to immigrate there and start a business.  The United States should do more to enable foreign entrepreneurs to see their dreams come true here.

Network with Foreign-Minded Professionals

Orlando Goes Global (Source: MoneyCorp)

Florida Judge Ends Unjust Tuition Rates for in-State Students

A judge in Miami ruled on Tuesday, September 4th, that students in public universities who are US citizens cannot be charged out-of-state tuition rates simply for having undocumented parents.  While in-state tuition at the University of Florida costs $205 per credit hour, out-of-state tuition costs $947 per credit hour and this is what some in-state students were being charged.  Moreover, having been born in the United States, they were citizens.

English: These are the member institions that comprise the State University System of Florida. 10 Universities, and 1 Liberal Arts College. Public domain map courtesy of The General Libraries, The University of Texas at Austin, modified to show member institions The image was modified from the public domain source by User:NorwalkJames Category:Maps of Florida (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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