Congress Passes Short-Term Funding Measure While Appropriations Negotiations Continue
December 11, 2015
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Congress has voted to temporarily extend federal government funding through December 16, averting a shutdown of government operations in the short term. The stopgap means that immigration functions will continue and several expiring programs, including the EB-5 Regional Center program and E-Verify, will be further extended temporarily. The President is expected to sign the measure soon.
Over the coming days, Congress will continue to negotiate federal appropriations legislation for Fiscal Year 2016. This omnibus bill is expected to contain several key immigration provisions in addition to the reauthorization of existing programs. The bill is likely to impose stricter security requirements on the Visa Waiver Program. It is also expected to introduce significant substantive changes to the EB-5 Regional Center Immigrant Investor Program, including higher investment thresholds, stringent new obligations for foreign investors and greater federal oversight of Regional Centers.
What the Temporary Funding Measure Means for Employers and Foreign Nationals
The stopgap measure means that immigration operations will continue through early next week. If Congress passes FY 2016 appropriations legislation by December 16, there should be no interruption of immigration services. But in the unlikely event that Congress does not reach agreement on the federal budget, a government shutdown could occur, which would affect some immigration operations. USCIS case processing would continue, since it is largely funded by filing fees, but foreign labor certification functions at the Department of Labor would cease for the duration of a shutdown. This would include the processing of PERM applications, labor condition applications (LCAs) and requests for prevailing wage determinations.
Fragomen is closely following the federal budget legislation and the immigration provisions it could include. We will issue a summary of these provisions when Congress passes the legislation.
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.
