The Department of State (DOS) announced changes to the Country Reciprocity Tables for immigrant visa cases. Specifically, the DOS update provided the following country-specific updates:

Date Country Change
11/3/14 Afghanistan Updated birth certificate information
10/23/14 Ukraine Updated police certificate information, regarding name of document.
10/23/14 Jordan Added information on obtaining a certificate of non-conviction.

It is important to monitor these tables closely, as they impact nonimmigrant and immigrant filings with U.S. Consulates abroad. Nonimmigrant visa applicants (H-1B, L-1, F-1, O-1, etc.) should always check the DOS’ reciprocity tables to determine whether they must pay additional visa fees based on their nationality and visa category. The tables also list whether applicants of a certain country are subject to a limited number of admissions and/or if the validity period of their visa has a limited length of time.

 

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Photo of Ian Macdonald Ian Macdonald

Ian R. Macdonald Co-Chairs the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice’s International Employment, Immigration & Workforce Strategies group. He focuses his practice on developing, assessing and managing global mobility programs for multinational companies on a range of challenges affecting the movement of people capital

Ian R. Macdonald Co-Chairs the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice’s International Employment, Immigration & Workforce Strategies group. He focuses his practice on developing, assessing and managing global mobility programs for multinational companies on a range of challenges affecting the movement of people capital domestically and internationally, including secondment agreements, benefits transferability, local host country employment concerns and immigration.

Ian and his team work closely with companies to manage and modify, where needed, corporate immigration programs to maximize efficiency, service and regulatory compliance levels. He is experienced with the full range of business immigration sponsorship categories (visas and permanent residence), anti-discrimination rules to reduce or eliminate risk of employment litigation, employer sanction cases, and I-9 and E-Verify compliance. Ian assists clients with establishing risk-based performance standards (RBPS) and Department of Homeland Security protocol, providing risk assessment assistance to corporations subject to Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) and assisting clients with ITAR/Export Control compliance within the immigration context.

Ian has developed strategic relationships abroad that he utilizes when working with clients to ensure compliance with foreign registration requirements. He is experienced with analyzing complex global mobility opportunities on country-specific matters to facilitate the transfer of personnel. Ian is also experienced in counseling employers on immigration strategy as well as immigration consequences of mergers and acquisitions, reduction in workforces, and furloughs.

Prior to joining the firm, Ian worked for the United Nations, various non-governmental think tanks and corporate law firms in London, Washington, D.C., New York and Atlanta.