USCIS Revises I-129 Petition Form; Imposes New Export Control Certification

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has issued a new version of the Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker (Form I-129) to include the new fee increases. USCIS will accept previous versions of the form until December 22, 2010. Beginning on December 23, 2010, USCIS will only accept the revised form and will reject previous versions.

Among other changes, the revised I-129 form requires employers who are sponsoring foreign nationals for certain work visas to certify that they have made an export licensing determination regarding each employee sponsored. More specifically, employers must certify that they have evaluated the applicable export control regulations and have determined whether the employee will require an export license to perform the job.

Under the Department of Commerce’s export control regulations, the release of technical information to a foreign national is deemed an “export” to that person’s country of origin. That remains true even if the foreign national is lawfully employed. Compliance with this “deemed export rule” can be complex. Consult your Alliance of Business Immigration Lawyers attorney to determine how to comply.