New Export Control Requirements

New Requirements For H-1B, L-1, and O1A Visa Petitions


US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is changing its I-129 form (the visa petition for nonimmigrant worker) in significant ways.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services have suspended until Feb. 20, 2011, the requirement that Part 6 of Form I-129 be completed in connection with visa petitions for nonimmigrant workers. You will recall that Part 6 is a “Certification Regarding the Release of Controlled Technology or Technical Data to Foreign Persons in the United States.”

I-129s that have been -- or will be -- submitted by Johns Hopkins between the previously announced Dec. 22, 2010, deadline and February 20, 2011, will not be evaluated based on the answer provided in Part 6. Please note, however, that your Export Control Office, in cooperation with the offices that process your visa request packets, would prefer to continue operating as though no suspension is in effect. This will provide all segments of Johns Hopkins affected by this new requirement with time to adjust to the new terminology and administrative duties necessary to ensure that we correctly and efficiently submit our I-129s going forward.

If you anticipate a need to request that an H-1B, H-1B1 (Chile and Singapore), L-1, or O-1A visa petition be submitted for a foreign citizen to work in your Johns Hopkins department, center, etc., we recommend that you first view our Introduction to Export Controls at

http://jhuresearch.jhu.edu/EC/EC_show_intro.htm

and then read our page on the new I-129 Export Control Certification Process

http://jhuresearch.jhu.edu/EC/I-129_EC_Cert.htm

Opposition to this certification requirement has not subsided in the academic community. We hope that the USCIS will in the days ahead either modify the certification in ways that significantly reduce the labor required for us to complete it, or even better, eliminate it altogether. Until that time, your Export Control Office and offices serving the needs of our international scholars and employees will do their best to help you adjust to this new requirement.