US accused of 9/11 migrants ban

The US authorities have been accused of using measures introduced to increase security after 11 September as a way of stopping Britons and other expatriates from taking jobs from Americans.

Late last month the US Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) proposed a rule change that would oblige aliens in the US to acknowledge a requirement to notify the INS within 10 days of any change of address.

The INS said its intent was to ensure aliens are notified of any details regarding their case. But James Mayock, managing partner at the San Francisco office of immigration law firm Elliot & Mayock, said the US authorities clearly want to keep jobs for Americans as well as to beef up security.

Legal aliens who have been working in the US for some time and who apply for a green card, the first step towards citizenship, are having a harder time getting certification from the Department of Labor, said Mr Mayock. US unemployment rose again last week, and employers wishing to sponsor foreigners working in the US face tougher tests to prove there is a shortage of Americans.

The H-1B visa programme, which allows US companies to recruit specialist workers from abroad, is also being scrutinised more closely.

The programme, which permits foreign nationals to work in the US for an initial period of three years, was massively expanded during the late 1990s, as the technology boom sucked in talent from around the world.

Mr Mayock said require-ments that may have been overlooked a couple of years ago – for example that a candidate has completed a four-year degree – are being rigorously enforced for current applicants.

A spokesman for the US Department of Justice, of which the INS is part, said that aliens in the US do not face any significant new rules.

But he confirmed that "across the board, everything is looked at with a different set of eyes" since the 11 September terrorist atrocity.

He accepted this was one reason for lengthening backlogs in visa processing times, particularly for H-1Bs.