News Bytes

The Attorney General has granted an extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali nationals due to the ongoing armed conflict within Somalia that would be a serious threat to the physical safety of returning Somali nationals. The extension is effective September 17, 2003 until September 17, 2004. Nationals of Somalia who have been granted TPS must re-register for the 12-month extension during the re-registration period, which begins July 21, 2003 and ends September 19, 2003.

To re-register for extension, TPS applicants must submit Form I-821 (Application for TPS), Form I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization) and two identification photographs to the local BCIS district office. Applicants who are seeking to reregister for TPS only, and not seeking an extension of employment authorization, must still submit Form I-765, but do not have to pay the application fee. All applicants seeking an extension of employment authorization until September 17, 2004 must pay the $120 filing fee.

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Mohammad Hussein, a Pacific Islander and native of Fiji, worked as a pilot for Trans States Airlines, Inc., until he was fired on September 18, 2001, despite his claim that he had an excellent work record. Mr. Hussein alleges that he was discharged because of his Islamic religious beliefs and Arabic appearance. He filed a charge of religious, race and national origin discrimination with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) after Trans States refused to provide a reason or justification for his discharge.

Since September 11, 2001, the EEOC has received over 800 charge filings alleging post-9/11 discrimination against individuals who are perceived to be Muslim, Arabic, Middle Eastern, South Asian or Sikh. Mr. Hussein's case is the sixth post-9/11 backlash discrimination lawsuit filed by the EEOC.

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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has won its national origin discrimination suit against Colorado Central Station Casino on behalf of a group of Hispanic employees of the housekeeping department who were verbally harassed and subjected to unlawful English-only rules. Employees had been told that English was the official language of the casino and that Spanish could not be spoken. Thirty-six workers will split the $1.5 million settlement.

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By October 1, 2003, people entering the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) must have Machine Readable Passports (MRPs). VWP travelers who do not have MRPs will be required to obtain a non-immigrant B-1, B-2 or B-1/B-2 visa before entering the U.S., as these visas contain machine-readable biographical data. This requirement applies to all categories of passports: regular, official or diplomatic. A MRP can generally be identified by the two typeface lines printed at the bottom of the biographical page.

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The U.S. government is testing a nationwide plan to ease overcrowded jails and ensure appearances at court hearings or deportation proceedings by freeing some illegal immigrants on electronic ankle bracelets. Eleven illegal immigrants in Michigan were given the bracelets in July and the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to expand the program to other field offices. The program is offered mainly to immigrants with no violent criminal past.

Participants in the program have curfews and are allowed to leave their home for work, religious services or medical purposes. The ankle bracelets send an electronic signal through the telephone line that informs the government when the immigrant has entered or exited the home. The program will allow immigrants to spend their last months in the U.S. with their families instead of waiting in jail.

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Eduardo Aguirre, newly appointed Director of BCIS administered the oath of allegiance to over 150 immigrants who were sworn in as U.S. citizens on Thursday, July 24, 2003 at George Mason University in Arlington, Virginia.

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For EB-2 classification, an alien needs an advanced degree or its equivalent, and the regulations state at 8 CFR 204.5(k)(2) that the equivalent is a bachelor's degree "or a foreign equivalent degree" followed by at least five years of progressive experience. Attorneys have noticed that the Vermont Service Center is interpreting this as the foreign equivalent must be a single degree because the singular form of the word is used. Therefore, a three-year bachelor's degree, as is common in India, followed by post-graduate studies leading to a diploma from a recognized institution cannot be the foreign equivalent of a bachelor's degree because it is not a single degree, but a combination of two degrees.

According to correspondence with Efren Hernandez III, Director of the Business and Trade Services at the BCIS, the completion of a three-year foreign university course of study resulting in a bachelor's degree followed by the completion of a PONSI-recognized post-graduate diploma program may be deemed the equivalent of a four-year U.S. bachelor's degree. That equivalent U.S. bachelor's degree combined with five years of progressive experience in the specialty may be deemed an advance degree satisfying the requirements of INA § 203(b)(2)(A) and 8 CFR § 204.5(k)(2).

However, the AAO previously stated that it would give no effect to Hernandez's letters, despite the fact that this is the policy-making department of the BCIS.