COMPLIANCE UPDATE: New Immigration Form I-129 Requires Certification of Deemed Export Compliance for H, L and O Petitions for Nonimmigrant Foreign Workers

February 4, 2011

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“CIS”) has issued an updated Form I-129, “Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker”, which allows employers to petition for an alien to come to the United States temporarily to perform services or labor, or to receive training, under certain visa categories.  Among other revisions, the revised Form I-129, sets forth a new employer certification requirement concerning the release of controlled technology.  This certification will appear for the first time on the new Form I-129 petition that employers must use when sponsoring nonimmigrant foreign workers beginning February 20, 2011.

The deemed export rule governs the release of technologies to foreign nationals located in the United States, including those who hold temporary immigration status.  Where technology is controlled, based on the foreign national’s home country and the nature of the technology, the employer must obtain a U.S. government export license before the foreign national worker can be given access to that technology.

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