By Jake VanKersen, VISANOW Video Production Specialist
As many of you have no doubt heard, the United States government shut down as of 12:00 AM on 10/1/13, suspending all non-essential government services. Non-essential government services include things like national parks, national zoos, the Smithsonian, and many other national museums. Of course, the list is not just contained to tourist attractions during a U.S. government shutdown. The list of government services that are either completely shut down or partially closed is exhaustive and touches nearly every corner of daily life here in the United States.
For instance, E-Verify, an internet-based system that is used to verify the legal eligibility of new employees is unavailable due to the shutdown. This means that employers and employees alike will not be able to enroll in the system, run reports, or most importantly, verify employment eligibility. The E-Verify Customer Support is also unavailable for the duration of the shutdown.
To minimize the significant disruption that this will have during the U.S. government shutdown, E-Verify has made some modifications to their process. Employers still need to complete the Form I-9, but the “three-day rule” for creating the case is suspended. In addition, the days that the government is closed will not count towards the eight days employees have to contact DHS or SSA.
(For a complete run down of the list, take a look at this one from CNN.)
Although many of its functions will be disrupted, the government will continue to send Social Security and Medicare benefits, staff the Department of Homeland Security, and deliver the mail.
The U.S. government shutdown’s impact on legal immigration services
One of the important things to remember when it comes to a government shutdown is that the duration will have a profound effect on what will happen on a day-to-day basis ““ which includes legal immigration services.
Time will tell whether immigration processing will be specifically impacted, but as of 9:00 AM this morning the State Department has indicated that they will continue to process visas. All embassies are still open as well. Consulates will remain open as long as there are sufficient fees to support operations. We can, however, expect general delays in any immigration-related matters that depend on those areas of the government that have already shut down.
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Stayed tuned for more updates on how the U.S. government shutdown will affect specific U.S. immigration services later today.
