Details:
As the business world emerges from pandemic-induced stagnation, moving foreign professionals to the United States and remaining compliant with largely unchanged pre-COVID rules presents new and pressing challenges. This session will examine the crucial role Global Mobility professionals play in helping their organizations understand the evolving state of affairs at U.S. consulates abroad, including visa appointment wait times, interview waivers, applications from third-country nationals, and obtaining expedited appointments in light of business exigencies. It will also review state-side expansion of immigration programs, including new opportunities for work-on-arrival for certain dependents, extended grace periods when seeking work permit renewals, and new opportunities to expedite application processing. And as an increasing number of U.S. employers permit professional staff to work in remote locations some, most, or all of the time, it will help immigration and mobility professionals remain vigilant of the compliance hurdles, including government enforcement actions, presented by key visa programs, which are often designed around “local” labor market wages and U.S. worker availability. Finally, as President Biden continues to shape his regulatory agenda, the session will help Global Mobility anticipate the impact of proposed changes and maintain the integrity of their immigration programs.