Decisions Not to Hire Persons Based on Need for Visa Sponsorship or Employer Submission OK, Justice Dep’t Says

Katherine A. Baldwin, Deputy Special Counsel for the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, noted in a recent letter (PDF, sent on June 29, 2010, to Angelo Paparelli, partner in the Business Immigration Group of Seyfarth Shaw LLP) that in general, decisions not to hire individuals based solely on their need for visa sponsorship or their need for a written employer submission to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, either currently or in the future, would not be actionable under the antidiscrimination provisions of U.S. immigration law. She noted that only certain classes of individuals are protected from citizenship status discrimination under the law, including U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, temporary residents, recent lawful permanent residents, refugees, and asylees.