Immigration status can become a serious problem when someone is arrested, and employers who hire workers on H-1B or J-1 visas have compliance responsibilities of their own. Greg McCollum addresses who is likely to face immigration issues, whether employers of H-1B workers should be concerned, and whether hiring J-1 workers can lead to trouble.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is likely to face Immigration Issues?
What type of immigration issues arise when someone is arrested? Four or five years ago, immigration was almost never an issue. But with the changing policies in the United States now, and the focus on immigration, that is seen more and more. There are a lot of people who live in this society, who have good jobs, who have been here, they own property, they’ve lived here a number of years; many of them were brought here as children.
It’s a big factor now, because if a person has an expired green card, if a person has some type of immigration status which is not in order, then when the person goes to post bond, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will place a hold on them, and then they’ll be picked up and detained for an immigration hearing.
Most immigration lawyers will tell you that, in those instances, most people will be deported. Sometimes people can be deported to countries that they really haven’t been to in 20 years. A lot of people think it’s related, mostly, to people from areas in South or Central America, but that’s not true. There are people here from all over the world, there are people here from Europe, Eastern Europe, Canada, who never did the proper things for their immigration status.
If they get arrested, then that comes up; and anybody, your neighbor, somebody you go to church with, could quickly find themselves stuck in an immigration court subject to deportation. That has been seen happening over and over.
So, it’s extremely important that, if the firm is helping you, that is coordinated with a qualified immigration lawyer, because it could be the difference between sitting in jail for 6 months waiting on an immigration hearing, and ultimately maybe being deported, which becomes sometimes even more significant than even your criminal charges that are being brought against you.
If I employ people with H-1B visas should I be concerned?
Sometimes the question is raised by people who own companies or factories or other types of service companies, if they employ people with H-1B visas whether they should be concerned about legal compliance. The simple answer is yes. If someone came to work in this country on what’s called a “work visa,” then there are certain compliance issues that the company should be undertaking to make sure that the company is in compliance.
It’s perfectly legal to employ people under work visas and even student visas, provided that all of the requirements are met. Sometimes these individuals overstay their visas. Different things can happen which can fall into the gray area where someone could later say that a crime was being committed and the company was a part of that.
So, certainly, if you have employees who work here under different types of work visas, and are from other countries, then it’s an issue that you should take very seriously and even if there are no problems, start reaching out to make sure you’re in compliance so that if an investigation starts, you and your business will be safe and protected.
If my company hires people with J-1 visas, can we get in trouble?
If your company hires employees from other countries and they come here on a J-1 visa, can you get in trouble for that or should you be worried about it? If you are in strict compliance with the visa requirement, no. Certainly with the student visa and those types of visas, there are certain things that must be done to provide cultural activities in addition to work.
The circumstances where the person came here and the length of time that they’re here, all of those things are regulated, and the company has the responsibility, to some extent, to make sure that the person is in compliance and the company is in compliance. So, it’s really more of a compliance issue, unless the government is already accusing you of having done something wrong.
In the one instance it’s good to get legal advice to make sure you’re in compliance, on the other hand if an investigation has been started you certainly should seek legal advice to make sure that no harm is going to come to you or your company.
When an arrest or a business compliance question involves immigration status, the legal stakes can be significant. Greg McCollum brings 30 years of experience and a background as a former prosecutor to clients throughout South Carolina who are facing criminal charges.
If you have questions about immigration issues after an arrest and employer visa compliance, call the Greg McCollum Complete Legal Defense Team at (843) 626-5480. Consultations are confidential.