Comment submitted by Penny Rosser, Director, International Scholars Office, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

"REGS, RFS" <RFS.Regs@dhs.gov> 06/08/2005 02:50 PM To: Docket EPADC@EPA cc: Subject: FW:PLEASE ADD TO E-DOCKET FOR DHS-2004-0009   -----Original Message----- From: Penny Rosser [mailto:pennysun@mit.edu] Sent: Friday, May 06, 2005 1:45 PM To: Regs, Rfs Subject: CIS No. 2295-03 May 6, 2005 Director, Regulatory Management Division U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Department of Homeland Security 111 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. 2nd Floor Washington D.C. 20529   Re:            Comments to Proposed Rule CIS No:        2295-03 Subject:       Petitioning Requirements for O and P Visa Classifications Dear Sir or Madam: We appreciate the opportunity to comment on Proposed Rule 2295-03 regarding Petitioning Requirements for the O and P Nonimmigrant Visa Classifications. The proposal to extend the time frame for submitting O or P nonimmigrant petitions to a full year prior to the petition start date could be helpful. In some situations, detailed plans are indeed known this far in advance, and having the option to take advantage of this provision could be beneficial. However, we strongly object to the proposal to restrict the filing of O and P petitions to a period of between twelve and six months prior to the requested start date. Six months in advance is too long in many situations and petitioners must have the flexibility to submit petitions with less lead-time. The rule indicates that CIS will accept petitions on a discretionary basis when the requested start date is less than six months from the filing date. The rule also indicates that premium processing can be used in such cases. All of these components of the proposed rule will have a negative impact on academic institutions. Academic institutions such as MIT use the O and P visa categories for specific events, but also use the O-1 in particular for certain high-level research and faculty appointments for qualified beneficiaries for whom H or J status is not possible or appropriate. Generally, academic appointments are not finalized more than six months prior to the start date. Offers are typically made in late spring for academic appointments that begin on July 1st. Additionally, the proposed rule does not distinguish between initial petitions and petitions to extend status of persons already holding this status. Details required for extension petitions are not always known six months or more in advance. The proposed long filing lead time would seem to encourage long processing times, penalizing petitioners and beneficiaries and contradicting CIScurrent efforts to streamline and reduce backlogs. If CIS does have delays in processing, petitioners can elect to change plans or use premium processing. We note that CIS proposes to accept petitions filed closer to the requested start date on a discretionary basis, but this is not a practical option. Attempts to reach CIS with such requests are not always successful, and any CIS time evaluating such requests could be more effectively spent on the standard adjudication process. An increased need for premium processing will be the actual outcome of the proposed rule, such that in most cases premium processing would be required rather than elective. This would be an expensive burden on non-profit academic institutions. In order to ensure that the proposed regulation respects the needs of all users, we respectfully request that the proposed filing window for O and P petitions be amended. We support allowing petitions to be filed up to a year in advance of the requested start date. We ask that a minimum lead-time for filing petitions not be specified, but rather be dictated by the reality of (improved) processing times. Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions. Sincerely, Penny Rosser Director,   +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+- Penny Rosser Director, International Scholars Office Massachusetts Institute of Technology 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Room 4-105 Cambridge, MA 02139-4307 Tel: (617) 253-2851 Fax: (617) 253-6624 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)