(By Ted Gonder, USCIS Entrepreneur in Residence and Co-founder and Executive Director, Moneythink)

On May 8, I joined USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas and other key members of Chicago’s entrepreneurial community at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. The event focused on the connection between immigration and entrepreneurship. Among other things, I discussed my experience working as an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) at USCIS this past year.

As an EIR, I had the privilege of working with an incredible team of private sector entrepreneurs and investors as well as government experts in our nation's immigration service agency. Our goal as a team was to streamline the current immigration system for foreign entrepreneurs – specifically, those who lead high-tech, high-growth companies – to come to the United States, innovate new technologies, boost the economy and create jobs.

Charged with the task of making changes within the current immigration system, we focused our energy on a few key projects:

• building a diagnostic web tool, Entrepreneur Pathways, for foreign entrepreneurs to better understand which visa pathway they'd best be suited to pursue;
• instituting a series of "Startup 101" trainings for the adjudicators who review entrepreneurs' visa applications to better understand the conditions of tech entrepreneurship in the 21st century (and the importance of transnational talent); and
• identifying and clarifying certain terms and concepts that may provide underused opportunities for foreign entrepreneurs to start a business in the United States.

We coupled these internally-geared projects with externally-geared public engagements, including events at Georgia Tech and MIT, and a few open "town hall" engagements.

I am proud of the EIR team's success:

• the website diagnostic tool has seen approximately 30,000 hits;
• the Startup 101 trainings have been implemented for 425 adjudicators;
• policy recommendations have been made to senior USCIS leaders; and
• our external engagements with foreign students and entrepreneurs have been packed.

But despite these promising short-term metrics, the ultimate success of this initiative (and those that follow) will need to be shown through measuring its impact over time. Increased innovation in government (such as the White House’s Presidential Innovation Fellows program), and the entrepreneurial approach to problem solving that it offers, give me confidence that this focus on outcomes and metrics won't get lost in the wake of this early and pioneering initiative at USCIS.

When I began my work with USCIS, I was still a full-time student at the University of Chicago launching my company. Unlike the other EIRs on the team, I'd never taken a company public, raised millions, invested millions, or even created a technology product to which I could point and take credit. Rather, my experience was that of a student entrepreneur interested in bringing entrepreneurial solutions to scale in existing systems: I'd interned with a few startups, had built and scaled student organizations, and had traveled broadly. In my travels, and in my time at the University of Chicago, I'd made many friends who were either a) interested in moving to the United States to start a company but discouraged by what they'd heard about our immigration process, or b) living in the United States as students but planning on leaving after finishing school (or in some cases dropping out) to go start their companies in other countries. Many of them had advanced STEM degrees and successful track records. What they lacked was a clear pathway to stay in the United States; after all, the United States is still ranked as one of the best places to start a company.

In the last year working with USCIS as an EIR, I've learned a lot. The biggest takeaway by far has been the importance of empathy, dialogue, and listening. It's sometimes difficult for government employees to understand the specific conditions of 21st-century startups (e.g. the fact that we don't need millions of dollars for warehouses and servers anymore and can launch venture-backed companies from the local Starbucks); at the same time, it's not always clear to immigrant entrepreneurs just how hard the folks at USCIS work to make America a land of opportunity and prosperity. By engaging in a dialogue across groups, the EIR team was able to begin identifying realistic, effective paths of action with potential for direct results. I feel lucky and honored to have been part of such a pioneering and creative initiative.

Read more about the EIR team’s accomplishments in the summary USCIS released yesterday.

Employers should start using the revised Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9 that was released on March 8, 2013.  Beginning May 7, 2013, all employers must only use the revised Form I-9 (revision 03/08/13) for new hires.  Previous versions of the Form I-9 must not be used after May 6, 2013.  All previous versions will no longer be valid.

USCIS designed the new Form I-9 to make it easier for both employees and employers.  The new two-page form has larger print and an enhanced layout.  The instructions were expanded and include helpful examples.  New data fields give employees the option to enter their email address and telephone number.  The new Form I-9 is fillable and includes drop-down lists to assist in reducing errors and promoting consistency in the date, state and country of issuance fields.

A Few Tips for Employers:

• You will find the revision date of the new I-9 in the lower left corner (03/08/13).
• All current employees must have a Form I-9 on file.
• All new employees must be given the entire new Form I-9, including the "List of Acceptable Documents."
• You should only accept documents that are unexpired when completing an employee’s Form I-9.
• Be sure to keep both pages together. You should consider printing two-sided copies.
• E-Verify users - List B documents must contain a photo, and the Social Security number field must be filled in.

Want More Information?

• Join the thousands who have recently participated in a live, FREE Form I-9 webinar. Additional sessions have been added to meet the demand.
• Visit I-9 Central in English and Spanish for useful information for employers and  employees. You can subscribe to get updates.
• Download the updated Handbook for Employers, Guidance for Completing Form I-9 (M-274).
• Visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify to learn about E-Verify. The site also includes a link to enroll in the service so you can begin electronically checking the employment eligibility of your new hires. 

Employers are required to complete Form I-9 for all newly-hired employees to verify their identity and authorization to work in the United States. Visit I-9 Central.

Labels: e-verify

Posted by Laura Patching, Acting Chief, Office of Citizenship

(Español)

We are pleased to announce the FY 2013 Citizenship and Integration Grant Program, a nearly $10 million federal initiative designed to expand the availability of high-quality citizenship preparation services for permanent residents.

The application package for this competitive grant program is now available at www.grants.gov. We encourage all eligible applicants to apply. The deadline for applications is May 22, 2013.

Since September 2009, USCIS has awarded approximately $23.2 million through 142 grants to immigrant-serving organizations. We are proud of our grant recipients and their accomplishments. This funding has provided citizenship assistance to more than 51,000 permanent residents in 31 states and the District of Columbia. In the last four years, our grant recipients have worked diligently to support those who aspire to U.S. citizenship by:

• Enrolling 30,248 students in citizenship classes;
• Providing students with more than 70,000 hours of instruction;
• Providing naturalization eligibility screenings to 32,557 permanent residents; and
• Preparing and submitting 19,707 naturalization applications.

In addition, 17 organizations have earned Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) recognition and 42 staff members have attained BIA accreditation under the grant program. This is an important part of our efforts to build capacity in local communities.



Our grant recipients have also developed a number of innovative approaches to citizenship education. USCIS highlights and shares these promising practices through case studies and short tips published on the Citizenship Resource Center, many of which can easily be incorporated into existing programs.

To learn more about the Citizenship and Integration Grant Program, including helpful hints on preparing a proposal, please visit www.uscis.gov/grants.

Labels: Citizenship

(English)

Nos complace anunciar el Programa de Subsidios de Ciudadanía e Integración para el Año Fiscal 2013, una iniciativa federal de cerca de $10 millones que tiene el propósito de aumentar la disponibilidad de servicios de alto nivel para ayudar a los residentes permanentes a prepararse para la ciudadanía.

• Matricular 30,248 estudiantes en cursos de ciudadanía
• Proveer a los estudiantes más de 70,000 horas de instrucción
• Proveer evaluaciones de elegibilidad a la naturalización a 32,557 residentes permanentes
• Preparar y presentar 19,707 solicitudes de naturalización.

Las organizaciones que han recibido estos subsidios también han desarrollado varias estrategias novedosas para brindar educación sobre ciudadanía. USCIS comparte estas prácticas prometedoras por medio de estudios de caso y consejos útiles publicados en el Centro de Recursos de Ciudadanía, muchos de los cuales pueden ser fácilmente incorporados a programas existentes.


Para aprender más acerca del Programa de Subsidios de Ciudadanía e Integración, incluyendo consejos útiles acerca de cómo preparar una propuesta, por favor visite www.uscis.gov/grants.

Laura Patching
Jefa Interina de la Oficina de Ciudadanía

Labels: Citizenship, Compás

Throughout 2013, the Department of Homeland Security is commemorating its 10th anniversary. In recognition of this important milestone, leaders from across the Department and its component agencies will be discussing their beginnings, their present operations, and what’s to come.

Recently, Director Mayorkas sat down to answer questions about the present and future of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). For ten years, USCIS has been securing America’s promise as a nation of immigrants and a beacon of hope and opportunity. You can read his interview on the DHS Blog.

Labels: Director's Posts

We made many gains for the public last year. Let’s recap!

New Resources for Users:

• Self-Assessment Guides for E-Verify users and web services users to help participating employers comply with E-Verify user requirements and improve overall use of the program. Self-assessment demonstrates an employer’s commitment to compliance.
• A Quick Audit Report that allows employers to quickly review their E-Verify activity.
• The E-Verify Employers Search Tool, which lets users easily learn which employers are enrolled in E-Verify.
• Updated questions and answers on redesigned pages.
• E-Verify Listens, which created a new buzz in 2012 by providing a forum for submitting innovative ideas to help improve the program.
• More foreign-language resources. During the past year, we posted:
• Tentative Nonconfirmation Notices and Referral Letters in 9 more languages, doubling the number of foreign languages in which these notices are available.
• An E-Verify overview in Spanish.
• Spanish versions of I-9 Central and the Handbook for Employers to help more users with Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, which is the first step to an E-Verify inquiry.

Expanded Services:

• Self Check became available nationwide in February 2012, giving everyone over the age of 16 access. A great tool for all job seekers, Self Check is a free, easy-to-use service that confirms your employment eligibility. 
• Florida became the second state to join Records and Information from DMVs for E-Verify (RIDE). This fraud-prevention initiative makes it possible to verify department of motor vehicles information against the issuing state’s records.

Technical Enhancements:

• E-Verify now supports mobile Web browsing as well as four major browsers: Internet Explorer (version 6.0 and above), Firefox (version 3.0 and above), Chrome (version 7.0 and above) and Safari (version 4.0 and above).

Employee Rights:

• The Employee Rights Toolkit helps stakeholders educate workers on their rights in the employment eligibility verification process and more. Workers can use its multimedia and print resources to easily find information they need.
• USCIS partnered with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division to create new Employee Rights webinars.

Growth:

• E-Verify enrollment increased by 35% in 2012 and continues to grow by more than 1,500 employers each week. As of Jan. 12, 2013, more than 424,000 employers are enrolled to use E-Verify at more than 1.2 million worksites.

We expect E-Verify to keep growing and moving forward in 2013, providing vital assistance to even more users and stakeholders.

Signing up for E-Verify is easy. Visit the new enrollment page to get started.

Find information on E-Verify on Facebook and Twitter. Sign up to receive E-Verify updates and our newsletter.

Labels: e-verify

We’ve upgraded the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program’s website. We added a variety of features that will help the agencies that participate in SAVE as well as people who apply with these agencies for benefits.

SAVE is an online service available through USCIS.gov. Federal, state and local benefit-issuing agencies and institutions use it to determine the immigration status of their applicants.

SAVE’s New Website

The first thing you may notice is that we’ve totally redesigned the SAVE website. We’ve made the main page more visually appealing and added a series of option buttons to improve navigation. It’s now much easier to find information about SAVE webinars and publications, and on how to request a SAVE expert to speak at an upcoming event, among other choices.

SAVE Self-Assessment Guides

We’ve also introduced the SAVE Self-Assessment Guide, a tool that USCIS personnel use to ensure they use the program properly. These USCIS workers can access the guide to get step-by-step instructions for setting up internal monitoring procedures.

For Benefit Applicants

Access to more materials: An option button links to another recent SAVE development: Expanded availability of benefit applicant materials. Here visitors will find fact sheets, fliers and brochures in English and other languages that explain the SAVE program and what applicants for public benefits should do if they need to correct their immigration records.

SAVE Case Check: The website now links to the newest SAVE enhancement, SAVE Case Check. This free and easy-to-use service allows benefit applicants to check the progress of immigration status verification requests that SAVE-participating agencies submit on their behalf.

SAVE Case Check reduces the need for applicants to visit their benefit-granting agency repeatedly while their immigration status is being verified. Applicants can return to the agency to continue their application for a benefit after SAVE Case Check indicates the verification process is complete. The service also helps participating agencies save time and resources.

SAVE Case Check is currently being piloted with 47 SAVE agencies in 15 states. Participation is open to all 1,030 current SAVE agencies.

Agency Search Tool: The SAVE website now features an Agency Search Tool that lists all 1,030 agencies participating in the program. Use this database to learn which agencies in your state participate in SAVE, or to see if a particular benefit-granting agency uses it. You can filter your search by agency type (federal, state or local) or by benefit category (badging agency, background investigation or department of motor vehicles).

Learn More

Browse the new website, contact us, or take our free webinar to learn how SAVE can serve you.

Labels: e-verify

Immigration Services Officer Bao Dinh is always ready to offer help and advice to anyone who has a question about their case. Like many USCIS employees, Dinh is an immigrant and a naturalized U.S. citizen. However, few people who meet and work with this soft-spoken man can imagine the hardship and danger that was a part of much of his early life.

Dinh grew up and lived in Saigon during the height of the Vietnam War. As a young man, he graduated from the National Institute of Administration, a preparatory school for civil servants. Dinh soon took a job with the government of South Vietnam, which assigned him to assist people in rural areas. Traveling between Saigon and the war-torn countryside, Dinh had many close calls. Shelling and shootings by communist guerillas occurred on a daily basis. He remembers his house being damaged by a mortar round. Fortunately, he was not home at the time.

Shortly after the capture of Saigon by North Vietnam in 1975, Dinh was arrested and sent to a “re-education” concentration camp where he was held as a political prisoner and forced to labor in state-run rice fields and coconut plantations for six years. After his release in 1981, he returned to his home in Saigon, but the government attempted to exile him to the countryside. They told him that he was not welcome in the city and repeatedly harassed his family. He and his wife decided to keep their home in Saigon, but twice they paid smugglers to help them escape Vietnam. Each time, storms forced the boat to turn back. The cost of the escape attempts also depleted Dinh’s finances, and he began to lose hope of a better life in another land.

In March 1991, Dinh was finally able to leave Vietnam as a refugee to the United States through a program to assist political prisoners. He was very excited and relieved to escape a life of peril, oppression and harassment. When Dinh arrived in California, he worked several jobs and earned an associate degree. After working as a clerk, he applied for a job opening in 2002 with the Immigration and Naturalization Service (the predecessor of USCIS). Dinh was hired, and has since been promoted several times.


Today, Dinh helps other immigrants who have questions about immigration benefits or their case status. He also recently participated in a Vietnamese-language outreach program called “Giao Tiep,” which informs and educates Vietnamese speakers on what is required to become a U.S. citizen. After traveling a perilous and difficult path in life, he is proud to assist other immigrants seeking a better life in the United States.

Labels: Citizenship, refugees