Dear USCIS Stakeholders:

Throughout the past year, USCIS has placed significant focus on advancing one of our immigration system’s foundational goals: promoting America’s economic prosperity. On numerous occasions, we gathered feedback on how to best maximize the potential of current immigration law to create jobs for U.S. workers, and this feedback greatly informed our actions. As a result, we have made significant progress in a number of areas of interest to stakeholders related to employment-based and high-skilled immigration. For example:

Adjudication of Petitions filed by Businesses Requesting L Intracompany Transferees

On October 12, 2011, USCIS conducted a specialized training session for adjudicators on the L-1B classification to reinforce the principles set forth in existing L-1B policy guidance. We will continue this training.

USCIS is revising Request for Evidence (RFE) templates for nonimmigrant employment-based categories, including the L intracompany transferee classification. Our RFE practices continue to be an area of intense review and reform.

On August 18, 2011, the USCIS Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) launched a new initiative to seek stakeholder input through the submission of amicus curiae briefs. The first request sought amicus briefs relating to the denial of an I-140 petition (Kazarian vs. USCIS). The AAO plans to request amicus briefs on a case related to the L-1B visa classification next.

USCIS will in the next week make available a new bundled filing option for businesses filing for multiple L intracompany transferees.
EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program

In May 2011, USCIS issued a proposal to streamline and enhance the EB-5 program, and we have since implemented the first of the proposed enhancements: direct access for EB-5 Regional Center applicants to reach adjudicators quickly. We have also retained business analysts to support our adjudicators and are in the process of selecting full-time economists to bolster our expertise. In addition, we have retained an outside consultant to reengineer our business process from beginning to end.

Industry-Specific Enhancements

In August 2011, USCIS announced a series of policy, operational, and outreach efforts to spur economic growth and job creation. Among other things, we clarified our policies to reflect the availability of the H-1B visa and the EB-2 national interest waiver to foreign-born entrepreneurs, and we are providing the needed training complement.

To build on these efforts, we announced last week a new Entrepreneurs in Residence initiative, which will help us harness the expertise of industry leaders to inform our policy development and our training, so that we better understand and more ably address the realities and needs of the business community we serve.

We learn from and value your feedback. Earlier this year, USCIS proposed a rule that would establish an advance registration process for U.S. employers seeking to file H-1B petitions for foreign workers in specialty occupations. Although we intended the process to be more efficient and cost-effective for businesses, the thoughtful public comments we received indicated that this system would in fact create many challenges for businesses. We have therefore decided to postpone issuing a final rule and instead assess how the proposed rule’s objectives can be achieved within the framework of our ongoing Transformation initiative.

A year ago, USCIS initiated an internal system change that altered where we send receipt notices (I-797). Last month, when the change went into effect, we heard from stakeholders that this change had an unintended negative external impact. We scheduled a stakeholder meeting, gained an understanding of the impact, and have decided to return to our previous practice of sending the original notice to the attorney or accredited representative’s address listed on the Form G-28. A copy will be sent to the address provided by the applicant or petitioner in the applicable form. This change will take effect in approximately six weeks due to the need to re-program our system. We appreciate the feedback you provided.

I look forward to continued collaboration with you on matters of importance to our nation’s economic prosperity and those whom we serve.

Thank you.

Alejandro N. Mayorkas
Director
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Department of Homeland Security

(Tuesday, May 24, 2011)

San Diego — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials are reminding foreign travelers and Mexican border crossing card (or “laser visa”) holders about requirements to enter the United States, how to obtain an I-94 permit, and when an I-94 permit is required in time for the busy summer travel season.

Under U.S. immigration law, an applicant for admission into the U.S. as a temporary visitor for business or pleasure must prove to a CBP officer that their projected stay in the U.S. will be temporary.

Unless otherwise exempted, each foreign traveler admitted into the United States is issued an I-94 permit (arrival/departure record), as evidence of the terms of their admission.

Mexican citizens entering the country through the southern land border with a border crossing card (“laser visa”) are exempted from the requirement for an I-94 permit unless they are intending to remain in the U.S. for more than 30-days and/or will travel more than 25 miles from the border. Applicants who present a border crossing card (or laser visa) are not eligible to work in the United States.

Those applicants requiring an I-94 permit must demonstrate that they are financially solvent and have sufficiently strong ties to their country of origin, including a home abroad they do not intend to abandon.

“Ties” are the various aspects of a person’s life that bind him or her to his or her country or residence. Some examples of ways to document these ties can be pay stubs for a person’s employment/income, a house or apartment mortgage or rental receipt, bank account records, utility bills, etc.

It is not possible to specify the documents applicants for admission should carry, since each applicant’s circumstances vary greatly. Applicants should carry with them whatever documents they think demonstrate their individual circumstances.

All traveling family members need to be present during the I-94 application process.

The I-94 permit, which costs $6, allows visitors to travel further than 25 miles from the border and remain in the U.S. for more than 30 days.

By U.S. law, a foreign traveler must posses his or her entry documents, and if required, the

I-94 permit, with them at all times while in the United States.

In addition, at checkpoints, U.S. Border Patrol agents check foreign travelers for entry documents and the I-94 permit. Travelers not in possession of their entry documents and an I-94 permit may have their visa cancelled and be deported from the United States.

For more information about the CBP form for an I-94 permit, please visit the CBP Web site.

(Filling Out Arrival-Departure Record, CBP Form I-94, for Nonimmigrant Visitors with a Visa for the U.S. )

(Entering the U.S. – Documents required for Foreign Nationals (International Travelers)

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation’s borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

Contact For This News Release is:

Jacqueline Wasiluk
CBP Public Affairs San Diego
Phone: (619) 744-5245

Thom Mrozek – Public Affairs Officer

(213) 894-6947

thom.mrozek@usdoj.gov

Return to the 2011 Press Release Index
Release No. 11-039

March 21, 2011

GOVERNMENT ATTORNEY SENTENCED TO NEARLY 18 YEARS IN PRISON FOR TAKING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN BRIBES FROM IMMIGRANTS SEEKING STATUS IN U.S.

LOS ANGELES – A senior attorney with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was sentenced this morning to 212 months in federal prison for taking nearly one-half million dollars in bribes from immigrants who were promised immigration benefits that would allow them to remain in the United States.

ICE Assistant Chief Counsel Constantine Peter Kallas, 40, of Alta Loma, received the 17⅔-year sentence from United States District Judge Terry J. Hatter Jr.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Hatter ordered Kallas to pay $296,865 in restitution after fraudulently receiving worker’s compensation benefits.

“Mr. Kallas has received one of the longest sentences ever seen in a public corruption case,” said United States Attorney André Birotte Jr. “Mr. Kallas took in hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes – money he obtained by exploiting his knowledge of the immigration system. The lengthy sentence reflects the seriousness of the crimes, which were a wholesale violation of the public trust.”

Following a three-week trial, a federal jury in April 2010 convicted Kallas of three dozen felony counts – conspiracy, six counts of bribery, two counts of obstruction of justice, seven counts of fraud and misuse of entry documents, three counts of aggravated identity theft, nine counts of making false statements to the Department of Labor, four counts of making false statements to obtain federal employee compensation, and four counts of tax evasion.

“This case presents an epic display of a public official’s greed,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum filed with the court.

“As a corrupt prosecutor, [Kallas] calculatingly terrorized the idea of justice and the concept of public service,” the memorandum continued. “[Kallas] carried out his crime scheme through elaborate forms of manipulation, lies, and obstructive conduct.”

Kallas has been in a federal jail since August 2008, about two months after he was arrested by special agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation at the San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino in Highland, California. Kallas was arrested after he took a $20,000 bribe from an immigrant during an incident that was captured on casino surveillance cameras and shown to the jury.

The June 2008 bribe was the last in a series of incidents in which Kallas and his wife, Maria, told illegal aliens that Kallas was an immigration official – either an immigration judge or some other type of high-level immigration official – and that Kallas could obtain immigration benefits for the aliens in exchange for bribes.

Steven Martinez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI in Los Angeles, stated: “Today’s lengthy sentence fits the significant crimes committed by Mr. Kallas and will undoubtedly deter others planning to abuse government power. Mr. Kallas was entrusted to help immigrants abide by the law, but instead he enabled them in breaking the law, by greedily taking advantage of their desperation.”

During a five-year period that ended with his arrest, the Kallases accepted payments from aliens that totaled at least $425,854.

Kallas took bribes from some illegal aliens who were offered “jobs” at companies Kallas and his wife had set up. As part of the scheme, Kallas filed fraudulent labor condition applications with the Department of Labor that falsely claimed the companies had offered employment to the aliens.

On December 16, 2006, Kallas appeared in Immigration Court and, without any authorization, used his position as an immigration prosecutor to ask a judge to dismiss removal proceedings against an immigrant.

Kallas misused the identities of several real persons by, among things, putting their names on fraudulent documents or on nominee bank accounts used to hide money from the Internal Revenue Service.

In some cases, Kallas attempted to solve immigrants’ problems by simply making their files disappear. When investigators searched the Kallas residence in June 2008, they discovered a hidden floor safe that contained more than $177,000 in cash and two dozen official immigration files.

Kallas also illegally obtained more money through workers compensation fraud and tax evasion, claiming total disability and zero income, even as he was conducting the elaborate bribery and fraud scheme.

Daniel R. Petrole, Acting Inspector General, United States Department of Labor, said: “Today’s sentencing highlights our efforts to investigate fraud against the Department of Labor. The defendant, who is a former Immigration and Customs Enforcement attorney, used shell companies to falsely petition aliens for employment visas. Moreover, he filed for full federal disability benefits for work-related injuries, yet was receiving thousands of dollars in income from his employment scheme. My office and our law enforcement partners remain committed toward combating these types of crimes.”

According to court documents, the bank records for the Kallases showed that, beyond his salary, approximately $950,000 had been deposited into the couple’s bank accounts since 2000.

“Corrupt public officials are disgraceful and reprehensible,” noted Leslie P. DeMarco, Special Agent in Charge of IRS – Criminal Investigation’s Los Angeles Field Office. “The crimes committed by Constantine Kallas – including bribery, tax evasion, obstruction of justice, false statements to government agencies, identity theft and workers compensation fraud – violated the trust placed in him as a public official. Today’s sentencing of Mr. Kallas to 212 months in federal prison, a significant sentence by any measure, demonstrates IRS – Criminal Investigation’s resolve to bring our financial expertise to bear and vigorously investigate public officials who set aside their duty for their own personal financial gain.”

Terri Tollefson, Special Agent in Charge for the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility, West, stated: “This sentence serves as a sobering warning about the consequences of violating the public’s trust. ICE played a pivotal role in the investigation that led to these criminal charges, and we will continue to hold our employees to the highest standards of professional conduct. Guarding against illegal or unethical behavior is not an option; it is an obligation we have to the people we serve.”

Maria Kallas, 41, also of Alta Loma, pleaded guilty to conspiracy, bribery and conspiracy to commit money laundering in November 2009. United States District Judge Robert J. Timlin is scheduled to sentence her on May 2.

Kallas joined ICE’s predecessor agency in June 1998, and he has been on unpaid leave since January 2007.

The case against the Kallases was investigated by ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, IRS – Criminal Investigation, and the United States Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.

#####

Release No. 11-039- Return to the 2011 Press Release Index

This advisory is for Japanese and other foreign nationals from the Pacific stranded in the United States due to the earthquakes and tsunami devastation in the Pacific. If you have exceeded or are about to exceed your authorized stay in the U.S. you may be permitted up to an additional 30 days to depart.

Visitors traveling under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP):

If you are at an airport, contact the U.S. Customs and Border Protection office at the airport.

All others, please visit the local U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office.

Visitors traveling under a nonimmigrant visa:

Visit the local U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office.
Bring your passport, evidence that you are stranded (such as an itinerary for the cancelled flight), and your I-94 departure record.

For additional immigration relief options, please visit the Special Situation page at the USCIS website at www.uscis.gov.

The company, Peri Software Solutions Inc. and its owner, Saravanan Periasamy, sponsored foreign workers to work as programmer analysts across the country under a visa program known as H-1B. Companies can hire temporary workers with these visas for professional jobs and must pay the same wages as U.S. workers who perform the same type of work.

But the labor department charged Peri Software Solutions with improperly compensating these employees and not providing the appropriate labor condition applications in their offices.

Periasamy said his company has hired new legal counsel and hiring managers for immigration issues and will inspect and audit its case files quarterly to ensure it is in line with current immigration laws.

“Peri is committed to exceeding whatever it takes to ensure that we are in full compliance,” Periasamy said in a statement. He also said the firm will launch a training program in an effort to boost the number of American employees at the company.

“As we move forward, Peri plans to develop new partnerships with the goal of creating more jobs and hiring more American workers,” he said.

The firm will pay nearly $640,000 in back wages and interest for 67 employees under this program, according to the labor department. The company must also pay nearly $127,000 in penalties for failing to provide notice of the filing of labor condition applications in the offices where the employees worked, according to the labor department. Peri Software is also prohibited from participating in the H-1B program for one year.

Published: Tuesday, December 07, 2010, 1:54 PM
Updated: Tuesday, December 07, 2010, 2:49 PM

The Star-Ledger Sarah Portlock – The Star-Ledger