Talk about U.S. Immigration

Extended Employment Authorization Document

On June 12, 2008 the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) issued a communication in the form of Questions and Answers which included among other information that it would soon start issuing the work authorization documents with a 2 yr. validity period to a specific group of adjustment of status applicants and that within two weeks from now the applicants would even start receiving their extended EADs. The authority to do so is claimed under its interim rule, “Employment Authorization Documents” at 69 Federal Regulation 45555, issued July 30, 2004, which gives it the discretion to issue EADs with a validity period different from one year, based upon certain specific criteria the agency chooses to apply.

According to the USCIS Communication, the extended work authorization would be provided only to those who are seeking the Lawful Permanent Resident Status by filing the I-485 adjusment of status application but are unable to adjust their status because of the unavailability of the immigrant visa numbers. The present effort comes as an ameliorative remedy to cure the situation caused by the huge backlog after August ‘07 when the immigrant visa numbers retrogressed as a result of the July ‘07 Visa Bulletin fiasco and the consequential rush in filing the AOS applications in July – August 2007.

The standard for grantng the two year work authorization is set by the most recent Visa Bulletin issued by the Department of State.

The Communication also clarifies that the I-765 filed along with the I-485 application would not qualify for the favored treatment because such an application would have been filed when the Immigrant Visa numbers were available. The adjustment applicant in this case scenario would receive a one year work authorization. If the visa numbers remain unavailable at the expiration of the first EAd period he could then apply for the two year employment authorization document.

The Myth about Hispanic Undocumented Workers and the English Language

While it is a widely known fact that the undocumented workers find it difficult and are often unable to communicate in English and that it is imperative to know Spanish if you are in Latin America; it is erroneous to assume that undocumented workers do not want to learn English.

It is a common myth that Hispanic Immigrants don’t want to learn the English language and often restrictionists use it as one of the reasons to oppose immigration of foreign nationals into the United States. Although, far from truth the myth could raise doubts in common minds about whether immigrants in general, not just Hispanic immigrants, are willing to learn English.

I have come accross several foreign nationals, not just hispanics, who struggle to communicate in English or at the least, not able to speak English as freely as they would in their native languge, but certainly would be appreciative of another foreign nationals who had a good grasp over the language and would like to know how to attain the English language skills. All these foreign nationals had one thing in common and it is the desire to communicate their thoughts in English and communicate well.

The other myth is that linguistic skills are divine gift. Everyone starts learning the language their parents spoke ever since birth and additional languages sometime after birth. Our ability to communicate our thoughts in a language largely depends upon the people and the place surrounding us which also influence our determination and effort that we put forth to learn the language of the people to communicate effectively with them. That is why a foreign national who never spoke English in his country of birth begins to speak a few words of English after coming to U.S. and develops what one may call a broken English but their children who are raised in the United States converse fluently in English.

It is wrong to assume that Hispanic immigrants don’t want to learn English or don’t try. As far as I know, all immigrant parents in U.S., give high priority that their children become proficient in English and take pride in the fact that their offsprings speak better English than themselves.

According to the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) a survey conducted in 2006 reports that 1) majority of Hispanics (regardless of their income) agree that immigrants should speak English; 2) more than half of Latinos speak both English and Spanish; and 3) 96% of the foreign born Latinos believe that teaching English to their children is very important.

Often, foreign studets join the “English as a Second Language” (ESL) classes before seeking admission in an acredited academic institutions as a full time student. In Indiana, especially in my town, several Hispanics who came out of the ESL classes provide interpreter/translation services.

ESL classes are in high demand. According to the 2006 Survey, over 57% of the ESL providers reported placing their prospective students on waiting list. AILA reports the wait times ranged from 3 weeks to 3 years and that in New York the waiting list was replaced by a lottery system turning away 3 out of 4 applicants. In my view, knowledge of English is a priority among most immigrants in the United States.