Global Immigration Counsel : Immigration Lawyer & Attorney : Littler Mendelson Law Firm : Permanent Residence, Labor Certification : Global Immigration Counsel

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has unveiled a new, more technologically advanced and secure Permanent Residence Card. The card, commonly known as the “Green Card,” authenticates an individual’s authorization to live and work in the United States on a permanent basis. The intention behind the redesign, which is a collaboration between USCIS and various Department of Homeland Security agencies, is to deter fraud and more quickly authenticate identification. USCIS contends the new card is “nearly impossible to reproduce.”

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The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has unveiled its “super premium service” for applicants seeking to extend their stay in the UK. For £15,000, the following services will be available:

• immigration application forms will be picked up by a Royal Mail courier;
• applicants can have their biometrics enrolled at a location of their choosing, including their home or business premises, at a time and date of their choosing (between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday); and
• a decision on the application will be made within 24 hours of the visit, if all requirements are met.

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The Wall Street Journal reports that a mandatory biometric identification card for U.S. citizens and legal residents could be included in a comprehensive immigration reform bill being spearheaded by Senators Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC). The card would contain standard identifying information, but would also contain a biometric identifier, e.g., fingerprints. Schumer has previously proposed such a card to replace E-Verify, the federal electronic employment verification system.

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According to the Wall Street Journal, an independent report commissioned by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) found that E-Verify, the federal electronic employment verification system, may be failing to detect 54% of unauthorized workers processed. According to the 338-page report (pdf), E-Verify experienced difficulty confirming that workers’ identities were their own. The purported reason: identity theft.

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As this blog previously noted, as of January 6, 2010, the UK Border Agency (UKBA) has started issuing identity cards to skilled foreign workers and their dependents. The identity card confirms the holder's identity, nationality, and immigration status in the UK, and also indicates whether the holder is authorized to work or study under the country’s points-based immigration system.

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Gulfnews.com reports that a single application form for United Arab Emirates residence visas, labor cards and identification cards will be available later this year. Instead of providing the same biographical data (e.g., name, nationality, marital status) on three separate applications, petitioners will complete one application and the information supplied will be used to process all three official documents. Approved applicants will then be issued an all-purpose identification card.

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The United Kingdom’s Identity and Passport Service (IPS) has introduced two new voluntary identification cards: 

• a national identification card for British nationals; and
• an identification card for European Economic Area (EEA) and Swiss nationals.

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Starting November 30, 2009, the UK Border Agency will fingerprint all foreign nationals entering the country with biometric UK visas, entry clearances and identity cards. This initiative is aimed at improving security and securing UK ports-of-entry and borders. On arrival in the UK, border control will perform regular immigration checks on all foreign nationals seeking admission to the UK and then capture their fingerprints to verify that they match the fingerprints given when the foreign national started the process abroad. This added security measure by UK authorities will stop individuals from cheating the system by having someone else complete biometrics abroad so that possible bars to admission, such as a criminal conviction, are not picked up during the biometrics process.

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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has awarded General Dynamics Information Technology a contract to assist with designing and producing DHS’s new Employment Authorization Document (EAD), according to PR Newswire. The EAD, a polycarbonate identification card said to be counterfeit-resistant, will be issued to immigrants who are authorized to work in the United States. General Dynamics will assist in developing the card’s design and security characteristics. Production will commence in 2010 after completion of the design phase.

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The UK Border Agency announced it is three months ahead of schedule in issuing identity cards to skilled migrants renewing their visas. Issuance of identity cards to Tier 2 skilled workers will begin January 2010, which will add 30,000 foreign nationals per year to the list of individuals assigned identity cards. Ninety thousand cards have been issued to date, mainly to students under Tier 4 and to individuals renewing marriage visas.

To provide foreign nationals with alternate and more accessible venues for submitting fingerprints, these services will be made available, on a trial basis, at 17 Crown post offices, beginning October 2009. Applicants must pay a fee of £8 if they choose this option (by contrast, no fee is required when submitting fingerprints at a UK Border Agency or Identity & Passport Service Office).

Identity cards for skilled migrants and temporary workers under Tiers 1 and 5, originally scheduled to commence in 2011, will begin in 2010. 

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Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), chairman of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on immigration, has strongly criticized the E-Verify system and proposes replacing it with a biometric-based federal employment verification system. As reported by Workforce Management, Schumer has called E-Verify “unfair” because it singles out individuals with Hispanic surnames and “ineffective” because unauthorized workers can slip through the system by using stolen Social Security numbers and fake IDs.

However, it is far from certain that Schumer’s plan to scrap E-Verify will succeed. The House recently approved a homeland security appropriations bill that includes a two-year reauthorization of E-Verify, and it also has approved redirecting $50 million of the DHS budget to the U.S. Customs and Immigration Services for E-Verify enhancements.

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Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), the new chairman of the immigration subcommittee, strongly supports introducing "forgery-proof" worker identification cards, which would be secured with fingerprints or other biometric data. Schumer, who is heading the Senate’s efforts to draft comprehensive immigration reform legislation, has stated that such an ID card would be the best method of confirming that workers are authorized. As reported in The Los Angeles Times, Schumer is likely to present the worker ID card plan at an upcoming hearing on employee verification systems.

In his book Positively American (published in 2007), Schumer wrote: “The ID will make it easy for employers to avoid undocumented workers, which will allow for tough sanctions against employers who break the law, which will lead to no jobs being available for illegal immigrants, which will stop illegal immigration. …. Once Americans are convinced that we will permanently staunch the flow of illegal immigration, they will be more willing to accept constructing a path toward earned citizenship for those who are already here.”

Although some business and community organizations support the concept of a worker ID card, others argue that the cards would violate privacy rights and civil rights.

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The UK Border Agency has announced  that, in order to assist the increasing number of foreign nationals who must enroll their biometric information (fingerprints and photograph) when they apply to extend their stay in the United Kingdom, in June it will open four additional biometric enrollment facilities. The latest information on the new sites is available on the agency’s webpage on biometric enrollment.

The agency’s announcement notes: “By recording and checking fingerprints and digital photographs against existing records before deciding whether to grant permission to stay, we can strengthen our border and reduce abuse of the system.” The agency has been issuing, since November 2008, compulsory identity cards to foreign nationals from outside the European Economic Area who extend their stay in the UK as partners or students. In March 2009, the agency expanded the scheme to additional applicant categories.

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The Arkansas Democrat Gazette reports that Arkansas state representative Bill Sample plans to introduce a bill requiring, in part, verification of Social Security numbers prior to the issuance of employee identification cards. Rep. Sample made the following comments about the bill:

It will establish proper guidelines for the issuance of identification cards and documents. ... We're trying to define who can give out identification cards and what those ID cards would state. We don't want those phony ID cards to go out. ... If you give them an ID card, you're responsible to do a little due diligence and make sure that person is in the state legally.

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