Mar 30 2007

USCIS Will Accept Screen Prints of LCA Certifications for FY 2008 H-1Bs

The USCIS will start accepting H-1B visa petitions for the Fiscal Year 2008 visa cap April 2. With this announced date comes a range of issues and concerns regarding submissions of H-1B visas. Today, USCIS commented on concerns raised about a glitch with the Department of Labor’s (DOL) website.

Apparently, the DOL’s website, through which a Labor Condition Application (LCA) is requested, has not consistently been able to print copies of certified LCAs after completion of the certification process.

USCIS, in response to this technical problem, is guiding its officers to accept H-1B petitions filed without a copy of that certified LCA for the FY 2008 cap, as long as those filings are submitted with screen prints from the DOL website showing certification for those LCAs on March 30, or any other day on which the USCIS can verify that there were problems with the DOL’s website.

Please note that this screen print must include the following information: (1) the ETA case number; (2) the petitioner EIN; and (3) the employer name.

USCIS, at a later date and prior to official adjudication of this case, may ask for actual copies of the certified LCA, but these screen prints will suffice for now.