China to frame its first immigration law to attract foreigners
Headline Legal News
China has kick-started a key process to frame its first immigration law to better manage immigrants as the world's fastest economy seeks to attract more foreigners to boost its development.
Experts on migration have advised the government to learn from other countries in regulating immigration, said Zhang Jijiao, researcher with the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology under the China Academy of Social Sciences (CASS).
Zhang said in the era of globalisation, China needed to attract a variety of talents, investors, skilled workers, and in particular "seagulls" -- a Chinese term for foreign merchants who work with multinationals and must travel across the world -- to contribute to its development.
A sounder migration policy would definitely enhance China's appeal, Zhang said.
The Ministry of Public Security, the Beijing Law Society, the Chinese People's Public Security University and the CASS held a liaison meeting last year. But the discussions had yet to result in any concrete preparations, Zhang told state-run Xinhua news agency at a global forum on migration.
Unlike Western countries, which have special laws to regulate the management of transnational migrants, there were few Chinese legal instruments to regulate immigration and foreign investment.
"This reflects how China's transnational migration management has long been focused on the legitimacy of entry and exit out of economic considerations," said Zhang.
Related listings
-
Trial for Chandra Levy slaying suspect stays in DC
Headline Legal News 05/17/2010A judge has decided to keep the trial of a man charged in the killing of federal intern Chandra Levy in the District of Columbia.Attorneys for 28-year-old Ingmar Guandique (gwan-DEE'-kay) had argued he would not get a fair trial in Washington because...
-
Ex-SEC lawyer gets 8 years for pump-and-dump fraud
Headline Legal News 04/28/2010A former enforcement attorney for the Securities and Exchange Commission was sentenced Friday to eight years in prison for his role in a a series of multimillion dollar pump-and-dump stock fraud schemes.Dallas-based attorney Phillip Offill Jr., 51, w...
-
NY immigration agent pleads guilty to sex coercion
Headline Legal News 04/16/2010A federal immigration officer who was recorded demanding sex from a woman in exchange for a green card has pleaded guilty.Isaac Baichu pleaded guilty to all the charges against him Wednesday in Queens. The 48-year-old is expected to receive a prison ...

USCIS Adjusting Premium Processing Fee
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today it is adjusting the premium processing fee for Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker and Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers beginning on Oct. 1, 2018 to more effectively adjudicate petitions and maintain effective service to petitioners.
The premium processing fee will increase to $1,410, a 14.92 percent increase (after rounding) from the current fee of $1,225. This increase, which is done in accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, represents the percentage change in inflation since the fee was last increased in 2010 based on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers.
“Because premium processing fees have not been adjusted since 2010, our ability to improve the adjudications and service processes for all petitioners has been hindered as we’ve experienced significantly higher demand for immigration benefits. Ultimately, adjusting the premium processing fee will allow us to continue making necessary investments in staff and technology to administer various immigration benefit requests more effectively and efficiently,” said Chief Financial Officer Joseph Moore. “USCIS will continue adjudicating all petitions on a case-by-case basis to determine if they meet all standards required under applicable law, policies, and regulations.”
Premium processing is an optional service that is currently authorized for certain petitioners filing Forms I-129 or I-140. The system allows petitioners to request 15-day processing of certain employment-based immigration benefit requests if they pay an extra fee. The premium processing fee is paid in addition to the base filing fee and any other applicable fees, which cannot be waived.