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INS OFFERS FURTHER GUIDANCE ON IRANIAN CASES
An Iranian reader of this publication recently passed on to us an INS Request for Evidence in an H-1B change of status case that contained the following language:
"The Office of Foreign Assets Control, United States Department of Treasury (OFAC) has reviewed the executive order and OFAC found that an employer in the United States may not lawfully make a binding offer of employment to an Iranian national residing in Iran. It follows from this finding that the Service has determined employment-based immigrant or nonimmigrant visa petitions filed by United States employers on behalf of Iranian nationals residing in Iran must be denied in compliance with the executive order.
Additionally, the Service finds that Iranian nationals presently in the United States in nonimmigrant classifications that specifically require the maintenance of a foreign residence must also be denied in compliance with the executive order.
Please specify the beneficiary's country of residence."
We passed on this information to the American Immigration Lawyers Association as did other immigration lawyers around the country. AILA brought this issue up with the INS in a recent meeting and received the following helpful written guidance from Jackie Bednarz of the INS Office of Policy and Programs:
"The President directed all Executive agencies "to take all appropriate measures within their authority to carry out the provisions" of the Iran trade sanctions [E.O. 12,959, 60 Fed. Reg. 24,757 (1995)]. E.O. 12,959 prohibits "the importation into the United States...of any goods or services of Iranian origin." E.O. 12,959,1(a). Also prohibited is "any transaction...by a United States person relating to...services of Iranian origin." Id 1(d).
In December 1995, the INS disseminated information about the Executive Order to its field offices. In January 1998, the INS General Counsel advised the INS that the Executive Order could require denial, or revocation of approval, of visa petitions relating to employment that would be in violation of the trade sanctions. Since then, INS has consulted with the proper Executive Branch agencies to determine the precise scope of the sanctions and what types of employment might be prohibited. To date, INS has not disseminated additional guidance to its field offices.
There is, currently, no requirement to deny or revoke approval of any petitions.
The INS will develop and distribute appropriate guidance to field offices upon completion of all necessary Executive Branch discussions to determine the appropriate measures to be taken."
Thomas Simmons, the Branch Chief of Business and Trade Services of the INS' Adjudication Division indicated that the INS may begin to take a tougher line after an interagency meeting takes place to discuss the sanctions. According to Simmons, the INS will probably publish a policy in the Federal Register.