The Labor Department has intensified its scrutiny of H-1B employers since last year.
The Labor Department has stepped up investigations of employers using the H-1B program to hire foreign workers and is conducting site visits, asking employers complex, technical questions, Bloomberg reported, citing data showing that the DOL has reported a 48% increase in its caseload of H-1B investigations since launching Project Firewall. The project was launched last year to ensure that the H-1B visa program is not abused and that the rights, wages and job opportunities of American workers are protected. The department is also taking the help of AI to find flaws. Immigration attorney Kevin Andrews said investigating officers are no longer just focusing on drugs and swindlers, but are looking for highly technical violations. Nandini Nair, another immigration lawyer, told Bloomberg that some companies are getting site visits every time a new H-1B petition is filed. These officers usually ask for more information about the particular candidate for whom they have petitioned, but then they also ask for the immigration and payroll records of all employees. Brian Coughlin, another lawyer, told Bloomberg that answers given on the site are being compared to answers given in petitions. Any mismatch can raise alarm bells for the government, he said. “No one can be prepared for this other than understanding that they should not just casually answer questions when it comes to minimum requirements or really anything else,” he said. “It is better to take it slow and look at the filings presented to ensure that the government is getting the right information and a consistent message.”For the first time this year, the H-1B lottery was not random but salary-based. USCIS has also changed its Form I-129 to ask employers questions about job requirements, including education, years of experience, technical skills and supervisory roles.The intense scrutiny comes at a time when the H-1B visa program has emerged as the most controversial visa program because it is a three-year work visa that can be renewed and provides a pathway to a green card. American influential people have become vocal against the visa program and alleged that companies are firing Americans because they can hire H-1Bs at cheaper wages.