SEATTLE TECH COMMUNITY CALLS FOR H-1B VISA REFORM

Many Seattle-area businesses, most of which are technology giants, immigration reform is a critical issue that may make or break their businesses. Last Friday morning they discussed immigration reform at an event hosted by the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, where USCIS Director, Alejandro Mayorkas, was the keynote speaker.
Technology companies in the Seattle area, such as Microsoft, Amazon and Expedia, use some of the highest numbers of H-1B Visas in the country, most of which are given to computer/tech related occupations and industries. With the low amount of visas that are allowed to be given each year under the Congressional cap, technology companies are struggling to recruit and hire necessary workers.
Mayorkas admitted that his department struggles to understand the business community's needs when it comes to issuing H-1B Visas and other immigration issues. This is an understatement.
Mayorkas said that “The way we interact with the business community needs to change,” that there is no direct way to communicate with the business community, and as of now, the only line of communication between the government and businesses is through lawyers filing requests for evidence. Well, the vast majority of these requests for additional evidence coming from the agency are unnecessary and unduly burdensome. Some of these are outright outrageous asking companies to prove anything and include any document. Opening up to businesses means training officers and going after officers who abuse the system and really limiting the use of the RFE (requests for additional evidence) that ask for specific, relevant and limited information when absolutely necessary, not just to satisfy a whim of an examiner.