Philadelphia Regional DOL Tracker

mvinays said:
Why don't you initiate a status check enquiry with Dallas BEC? They may respond.


If you dont mind what is the e-mail id for the status check and what info we have to give?
 
They will certified according to de PD

tomshu said:
I tried very hard to ask a few BEC officers on when we will start to see any approvals from it. But they all refuse to answer when, only say that once the 45-day responding letters received back in BEC, they will start to analyze those cases according to their PDs. Looks like no one knows when they will start to certify applications. It's really disappointing!!!

Hello Tomshu / Orisa
I rememnber that Orisa told us that they will certified FIFO not by de PD , this is verry important because if its gonna be by the PD wont care if you have recieved now your love letter or not because theybwill wait until they heve send all the letters before start to certified.
What do you think??? :confused: :confused:
 
Received 45 day letter

My lawyer mailed me that she received the 45 day letter on 2/17/05 and replied on the same day. Can someone update the tracker?

Has any one started seeing approvals from BEC?

VA - EB3 - RIR
PD - 1/24/03
PA DOL - 7/26/04
45 Day Letter Received - 2/17/05
45 Day Letter Received - 2/17/05
 
Interesting / Disturbing Artical at Attorney murthy.com Part I

PERM vs. Pre-PERM Labor Certifications : Waiting for the Green Card

Since the final PERM regulations were released on December 27, 2004, many
would-be immigrants have expressed the belief that they will obtain an
employment-based green card in six months or within a year. Some have even
thought that the entire green card process would be over in as little as 4
weeks! Some articles in the foreign press have served to fuel these rumors. It
seems that people are confusing labor certification under PERM with the entire
green card case. PERM does not change the basic requirements for a green card,
only the process for obtaining the labor certification, which is the first stage
of the green card process. Unfortunately, waiting times for a green card after
PERM are unlikely, in many cases, to be much faster than the waiting times under
the pre-PERM system.

Three Stages of Green Card and Timing

As many MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers know, there are three stages to
the green card process: the labor certification stage; the I-140 stage; and the
I-485 (or, alternatively, consular processing) stage. PERM processing only
relates to the labor certification portion of the case. Under the pre-PERM
system, a majority of the labor certifications took more than a year to process.
In many cases, the processing times were in excess of two or three years. Even
at the Backlog Elimination Centers (BECs) that are in place now for these cases,
some cases are not expected to be processed for another two to two-and-a-half
years. Once the labor certification is approved, the I-140 petition and I-485
application could take another one to three years to be processed. As a result,
the pre-PERM labor certification process can take anywhere from two to five
years to complete.

Because the labor certification process often involves the longest wait time in
the pre-PERM labor certification system, people have assumed that, if the PERM
application can be processed in 45 to 60 days, then the case will get through
the I-140 and I-485 stages in about a year or so. This would potentially save
several years of waiting for the green card. These assumptions do not take
retrogression into account, however.

Retrogression Slows Process

As regular readers of MurthyDotCom and the MurthyBulletin know, EB3 priority
dates have already retrogressed for nationals from India, mainland China, and
the Philippines. [See our December 10, 2004 NewsFlash, Employment Visa Numbers
Retrogress, available on MurthyDotCom.] A person who does not have a priority
date that was before the date listed in the Department of State (DOS) Visa
Bulletin cannot file and/or complete the third stage (I-485 or consular
processing) of the employment-based green card process. Thus, when the priority
dates retrogress, or move backwards, many people are unable to move their cases
forward to the I-485 stage. They are, essentially, left waiting until the
priority dates move forward and their priority date becomes available.

Priority dates retrogress when the number of those seeking employment-based
green cards exceeds the visa numbers that are available in the particular
category. These annual numerical and country limits are set by law. When more
people seek employment-based green cards, the numbers retrogress further. Each
time a person is granted an employment-based green card, there is one less visa
number available for that fiscal year.
 
Interesting / Disturbing Artical at Attorney murthy.com Part II

PERM Makes Further Retrogression Likely

When the labor process is slow and only releases a low number of approved cases
at any given time, there are fewer people applying for the I-140 and,
consequently, fewer people applying for the I-485 (or consular processing). This
means that fewer people are obtaining employment-based green cards in any given
year and that retrogression will either not occur or will occur in a way that
only affects a relatively small number of those seeking the employment-based
green card. This is under the pre-PERM system.

When the labor process is faster, as expected under PERM, more individuals are
eligible for I-140 filings and, consequently, more people seek to apply for the
I-485 (or consular processing). This means that the number of people obtaining
the employment-based green card in any given year fills up more quickly. As a
result, retrogression is likely to increase to affect more people. It could
expand to many more countries in EB3; expand into the EB2 category; result in
further retrogressions of the priority dates in categories already affected; or
a combination of some or all of these scenarios.

Faster Processing of Cases by USCIS Fuels Retrogression

Also fueling this retrogression are the backlog reduction efforts by the USCIS.
Since demand for visa numbers creates retrogression, the faster approvals of
I-140s/I-485s and the clearing of backlogged cases by the USCIS creates demand
for visa numbers. A visa number must be available and is allocated to each I-485
or consular immigrant visa approval.

With retrogression, one who files under PERM may get through the labor
certification and I-140 process more quickly than under the pre-PERM system, but
may be held up at the I-485 (or consular processing) stage. Such an individual
will either have to wait to file the I-485 or, if the case is filed before the
numbers retrogress, the I-485 (or consular processing) will not be approved
until the priority date is current for these cases. This could be several years
down the road for some nationals depending upon one's employment-based category
priority date.

Will Pre-PERM Cases also be Affected by Retrogression?

Pre-PERM cases have been and will continue to be affected by retrogression as
well. This means that, even after the wait at the labor certification stage,
they may be stopped at the I-485 (or consular processing stage). Of course,
these cases will have priority dates that are earlier than PERM priority dates.
Thus, these people will have some potential advantage in a situation where the
priority dates have retrogressed. This issue was discussed in our January 21,
2005 MurthyBulletin article, PERM and EB3 Candidates-File Regular LC Now!,
available on MurthyDotCom.

In a retrogressed situation, it may help to think of the three stages as a road
trip. PERM is the highway, with a 70-mile-per-hour speed limit. Non-PERM is the
much slower scenic route. However, both trips end at a body of water, with a
ferry taking the cars to the desired destination. Cars can get on the ferry
based upon the date that they started out. Thus, the PERM car will reach the
body of water before the Non-PERM car. But the PERM car will have to sit until
there is space on the ferry, just as the non-PERM car. In the end, the one who
started earlier will likely get on the ferry first and reach the destination
first.

When Will Retrogression Affect Even More Cases?

No one knows exactly when retrogression will affect more people. In mid-February
2005, the Department of State (DOS) released its March 2005 Visa Bulletin,
indicating that the EB3 "other worker" preference category has retrogressed for
all countries, as reported in our February 11, 2005 NewsFlash, EB3 Numbers Move
Forward, "Other Workers" Retrogress. Unless Congress and the President enact a
law that increases the number of employment-based green cards available per
fiscal year, further retrogression can be expected. At present, it does not
appear that expanding the numbers of immigrants to the United States for each
fiscal year is on the agenda in Washington D.C., so it is likely that
retrogression will continue to be an issue for the foreseeable future.

Conversion of Non-PERM Cases

While there may be other reasons to consider converting non-PERM cases to PERM
cases, the assumption that the conversion will mean obtaining the green card
faster should not be the sole reason for attempting to convert to PERM. Since
there is a risk of losing the original priority date in a re-filing under PERM,
the question of whether or not to convert must be carefully considered.
 
Hi all

I have PD of Apr 2003 from MD. Although I maybe way behind from folks such as mamamiax, I am wondering when I should expect the 45 day letter. Any thoughts? Thanks.

mvinays said:
I just got an e-mail from Dallas BEC when I initiated the status check enquiry...Surprisingly they gave me my new Philly BEC Case Number. My attorney and employer have not received the 45-day letter yet. I hope my 45-day letter is not lost in the mail. I am worried now. See e-mail from Dallas BEC below:

-----Original Message-----
From: DFLC Status [mailto:status@DAL.DFLC.US]
Sent: Thursday, February 17, 2005 5:17 PM
To: Me
Subject: RE: LC Status Enquiry


February 17, 2005

Dear Requestor:

The purpose of this letter is to acknowledge your request regarding the
status of the above-referenced case.

The new case number is: P-04352-084XX

The above-referenced case has been transferred to one of the Division of
Foreign Labor Certification's Backlog Processing Centers. At this time,
we are unable to provide any status information on Permanent Labor
Certifications. All Processing Center files are in the process of being
transferred into a new database. Once the data entry process is
completed, a 45-day letter will be issued on all applications requesting
additional information from the employer if needed.

Please do not request additional status information for at least 90 days
after responding to the 45-day letter.

Sincerely,

DFLC Backlog Processing Center

This message (including any attachments) contains confidential
information intended for a specific individual and purpose, and is
protected by law. If you are not the intended recipient, you should
delete this message and are hereby notified that any disclosure,
copying, or distribution of this message, or the taking of any action
based on it, is strictly prohibited.
 
mamamiax said:
If you dont mind what is the e-mail id for the status check and what info we have to give?

I used the following e-mail and Dallas BEC responded with my case number:
-------------------------------------------

We would like to enquire the status for one of our pending LC applications. The details are furnished below:

Company Name: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Company Address: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Alien Name: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Category: RIR
Job Title: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
SWA: Virginia
SWA Receipt Date (Priority Date): April 24, 2003
SWA Case Number: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Forwarded to Philadelphia Regional DOL on October 29, 2004.

Please let us know the new case number, receipt date and case status at the Backlog Processing Center. Thank you and have a great day!
-------------------------------------------

Send your e-mail to: status@dal.dflc.us
Good luck!
 
How soon you got the reply?

Hi,

In how many days did you get the reply for your email?

Srinivas

mvinays said:
I used the following e-mail and Dallas BEC responded with my case number:
-------------------------------------------

We would like to enquire the status for one of our pending LC applications. The details are furnished below:

Company Name: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Company Address: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Alien Name: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Category: RIR
Job Title: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
SWA: Virginia
SWA Receipt Date (Priority Date): April 24, 2003
SWA Case Number: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Forwarded to Philadelphia Regional DOL on October 29, 2004.

Please let us know the new case number, receipt date and case status at the Backlog Processing Center. Thank you and have a great day!
-------------------------------------------

Send your e-mail to: status@dal.dflc.us
Good luck!
 
srinivas_o said:
Hi,

In how many days did you get the reply for your email?

Srinivas

Philly BEC took about 24 hours (got e-mail the next day).
Dallas BEC took about 7 hours (got e-mail on the same working day).
 
Case Number ???

Can someone post how actually the case numbers are generated and assigned.. I remember reading some kind of formula discussed earlier in the forum.
 
Finally love letter arrived with wrong Occupation

I got a copy from my employer but the occupation is changed to systems Analyst rather than sr systems Analyst. Folks any issue with this?
 
mamamiax said:
I got a copy from my employer but the occupation is changed to systems Analyst rather than sr systems Analyst. Folks any issue with this?

Not a lawyer nor expert but I think it makes a huge difference.
It could be the difference between EB3 and EB2 processing.
 
:cool:

Great!!! Since my case is similar to yours, I'm hopeful that my letter should also be on it's way. Congratulations!
------------------
PD: MD , Dec 2001
RD: Apr 2004

mamamiax said:
I got a copy from my employer but the occupation is changed to systems Analyst rather than sr systems Analyst. Folks any issue with this?
 
mamamiax said:
I got a copy from my employer but the occupation is changed to systems Analyst rather than sr systems Analyst. Folks any issue with this?
Congrats!!! Kindly update the traacker with case info. Thanks!
 
To mvinays

mvinays said:
foret1, What was your SWA NOF about? How did your lawyer fix the problem? Thanks!

NOF was about salary being too low. NOF asked for salary to be raised to a certain level to mach my job and title. after begging them, the company accepted to do so. but only on paper.

they refused to give me the raise itself for real, although they acknowledged that my salary is indeed low. they know they have me at their mercy as i don't have an option to go to another company given that i am 7th year h1 and that i will not risk jeopardizing my lc pending since 2001. they know that i have no choice but to keep working for them regardless of salary.

but i was still grateful since they did accept to do it at least on paper; which gave my lc another chance.

if i had a choice to go back to my country as some seem to do, i wouldn't still be here going through this.
 
foret1 said:
NOF was about salary being too low. NOF asked for salary to be raised to a certain level to mach my job and title. after begging them, the company accepted to do so. but only on paper.

they refused to give me the raise itself for real, although they acknowledged that my salary is indeed low. they know they have me at their mercy as i don't have an option to go to another company given that i am 7th year h1 and that i will not risk jeopardizing my lc pending since 2001. they know that i have no choice but to keep working for them regardless of salary.

but i was still grateful since they did accept to do it at least on paper; which gave my lc another chance.

if i had a choice to go back to my country as some seem to do, i wouldn't still be here going through this.

Foret1, I am very sorry to know about this. At least they were kind enough to support your paper work. It such a shame that it is so easy for companies to exploit H-1B workers by underpaying them. I hope you get your LC approved soon. Best of luck!
 
mvinays said:
Foret1, I am very sorry to know about this. At least they were kind enough to support your paper work. It such a shame that it is so easy for companies to exploit H-1B workers by underpaying them. I hope you get your LC approved soon. Best of luck!

it didn't have anything to do with kindness actually. they know that by supporting it, not only will they have me for a long time (as whole green card process takes forever now), but also my output will be greater than other employees as i will work harder to avoid bieng fired or layed off.

Thanks mvinays! same to you!!!
 
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