U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is on the verge of running out of money.
If the agency doesn't receive additional funding, it could have an impact on employers right here in the metro, like Systemair.
Systemair plays a crucial role during this pandemic. The ventilation company helps businesses, schools, homes and hospitals with clean air.
"It's critical that we meet production demands and orders," Systemair HR Director, Cindy Lowe said. "Because it could be going to a hospital, which is a life-saving unit."
It's vital in the effort to prepare for long-stretching issues linked to the virus.
The global company employs workers from around the world. While business is busy right now, an indirect COVID-19 issue targeting immigration services could cause a problem.
"The agency provides services to employers when employers file petitions for non-immigrant and immigrant visas for the international personnel as well as other participants in the immigration process, families with immigrant members, and also adjudicates as immigration applications," immigration attorney Mira Mdivani said. "The agency is funded by 97 percent filing fees."
Mdivani is talking about U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Right now, it's in a financial hole because it closed its offices during the pandemic.
Fees they would normally collect for their services weren't coming in.
The agency is asking for $1.2 billion to get out of the hole and remain funded for the rest of the year.
If it doesn't receive the funding, the immigration system could begin seeing a strain as early as next month, impacting several employees here in the metro.
As business immigration lawyers, Mdvani's firm focus is on employers, one of which includes Systemair.
"We are fielding numerous phone calls within the past couple of weeks with our clients of what we're going to do," Mdvani said.
As companies wait to hear the agency's financial fate, more than half of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration staff are preparing to be furloughed starting at the beginning of August.
"I feel like we're in limbo land," Lowe said about the unknowns of the USCIS agency funding. "We can have some very strong employees currently in the U.S. on a visa process and maybe on the applications stage. And they may not get renewed. So then what are my choices? Now we've lost tenured talent to another country."
Mdvani and her team discuss action plans with their employers as they wait to hear when and if USCIS will receive the necessary funding to stay afloat.
"We do a sweep of the system to make sure we have an individual plan for each international personnel member of their team," Mdvani said. "We look at and give them accommodations of when, what to file, or discuss the transfer outside of the country because of restrictions."
Without the agency, immigration attorneys say companies won't be able to file extensions or visa applications for current international employees.
Lowe said it's critical to keep international employees here in the U.S.
"They're providing valuable service, they have not displaced any type of American personnel," Lowe said. "They've gone through the rigorous system to ensure and prove these are individuals needed within the company."
According to the American Immigration Lawyers Association, if the agency does not receive funding from Congress, employees may remain furloughed until October.
Earlier this month, the Office of Management and Budget told CNN in a statement that, "the Administration has formally requested the resources necessary to keep USCIS running. Our hope is that Congressional Democrats accept our proposal to keep the lights on in a responsible manner."
AILA states if furloughs happen, "the anticipated agency furloughs will halt U.S. immigration, negatively impacting families, U.S. businesses, educational institutions, medical facilities and churches.
"If USCIS is essentially shut down, immigrants who are in the process of becoming naturalized U.S. citizens will not be able to complete the process in time to register to vote, DACA recipients will not be able to renew their benefits, asylum applicants will face increased delays, and businesses will be unable to hire or retain employees."
