09/22/2006: BEC Backlog Processing Update
* AILA-DOL Liaison Meeting Minute of 09/12/2006 gives update on the BEC backlog processing as follows:
o Status of Processing of Cases:
+ Total Cases=362,000
+ Pending Cases=approximately 176,000 (45-day letters for all of these pending cases with a few exceptions have been issued)
+ Completed Cases=approximately 182,000 cases. These cases are completed in the following fashions:
# 50%=Closed or Withdrawn or Closed for No Response to 45-Day Letters
# 50%=Either Approved or Denied
+ At the front-end, the cases are processed on FIFO based on the priority date, but adjudication is done on FIFO based on the order of responses to the requests.
+ Processing Times may be posted on the website in the near future.
o Traditional Case Processing:
+ Recruitment instructions and job order with the states are underway for some cases
+ Amendments (non-material changes) can be made in writing at any time before the job order is placed with the states by the BEC. Once the job order is begun, no amendments are permitted, even if the amendments involve non-matterial issues. BEC places job orders at the same time of issuing the recruitment instructions to the employers. Accordingly, once such recruitment instructions are received, apparently no amendments will be permitted. Unanswered Question: It is unclear whether the amendments will not be permitted once job order has been placed when the amendments involve just substitution of alien beneficiaries. Considering the fact that change of the alien beneficiaries does not affect the terms and conditions for the labor market test in the recruitment process in the traditional cases and such substitution had been permitted before the reengineering of the labor certification system, it appears that the foregoing restriction may not apply to the amendment for substitution of alien beneficiaries. The foregoing policies may be limited to the amendments to change the terms and conditions and requirements for the job.
+ DOL is planning to allow conversion of traditional cases to RIR by amending the existing RIR conversion regulation. The specific procedures and requirements will be published in a federal register soon. However, potential benefit of such conversion may be more or less limited in that the DOL is required to finish up all the BEC cases including traditional cases within next one year.
