Groups of Industry Representatives and H-1B Visa Beneficiaries

ATTACHMENT A

Recruitment Cover Email for Focus Group Participants

Dear [NAME]:

I am writing to inform you about an important new study funded by U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services (USCIS), designed to help them better understand employers’ needs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers, learn about pathways for visa holders to legal permanent residency, and improve the H-1B visa petition process. Mathematica Policy Research, an independent, nonpartisan research firm, is conducting this study on behalf of USCIS. We have been working with the American Council on International Personnel to identify companies that employ high numbers of H-1B visa beneficiaries. [Your employer’s human resources office/Name of specific contact] suggested that we contact you as a possible focus group participant.

We hope you will consider participating in this important study to help us better understand and improve visa programs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers in the United States. Please see the attached letter for more information. The letter explains the compensation and logistics for participating in the focus group. It also explains the confidential nature of our research.

If you are interested in participating, please call [NAME], a [TITLE] at Mathematica Policy Research at [NUMBER]. We will ask you a few questions over the telephone to determine whether you are eligible to participate. We appreciate your time and attention to this matter.

Thank you,

[NAME]

ATTACHMENT B

Recruitment Letter AttacHment for Industry
Representatives Focus Group Participants

Dear [NAME]:

I am writing to inform you about an important new study funded by U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services (USCIS). Mathematica Policy Research, an independent, nonpartisan research firm, is conducting this study on behalf of USCIS. We have been working with the American Council on International Personnel to identify companies that employ high numbers of H-1B visa beneficiaries. [Your employer’s human resources office/Name of specific contact] suggested that we contact you as a possible focus group participant.

The High-Skilled Nonimmigrant Labor Study is designed to help USCIS better understand employers’ needs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers, learn about pathways to legal permanent residency for visa holders, and improve the H-1B visa petition process. We are looking for people who recruit for or work in industries that employ high numbers of H-1B visa holders to participate in focus groups. We want to hear from people in a wide range of industries who have a mix of experiences with hiring and employing nonimmigrant, high-skilled workers. The focus groups will help us to better understand trends in the demand for high-skilled, nonimmigrant workers and policy changes that could enhance the benefits of such workers to the U.S. economy.

Everything discussed in the focus group is private to the extent allowed by law. We will never use your name or the name of your company in any reports. The focus group will last approximately 90 minutes, and will be scheduled outside normal working hours in a location near your office. Participants will receive a $25 gift card to compensate for travel expenses, and light refreshments will be provided. A staff member from USCIS will be attending this session, but will not reveal your name or any personally identifying information outside of this group.

To determine whether you are eligible for the focus groups, we would like to ask you a few questions over the telephone. These questions only take a few minutes to answer. If you are interested in participating or if you have any questions about this request, please call [FILL NAME] [FILL TITLE] at Mathematica Policy Research. [FILL NAME] can be reached at [NUMBER].

We hope that you will consider participating in this important study to help us better understand and improve visa programs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers in the United States. We appreciate your time and attention to this matter.

Thank you,

[NAME]

ATTACHMENT C

Industry Representative Focus Group Recruitment Screener

Hello, my name is [NAME] from Mathematica Policy Research.

We are looking for people who recruit for or work in industries that employ H-1B visa holders to participate in focus groups. We are looking for people in a wide range of industries who have a mix of experiences with hiring and employing nonimmigrant, high-skilled workers. We want to learn more about trends in the demand for high-skilled, nonimmigrant workers and policy changes that could enhance the benefits of such workers to the U.S. economy.

These focus groups are being conducted by Mathematica Policy Research, an independent research company, under contract to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. To determine whether you are eligible for the focus groups, I would like to ask you a few questions. This will only take a few minutes.

1. Does your company hire workers from abroad and petition for their visas, or do you recruit employees for other companies seeking workers from abroad?

   1. IF YES: GO TO Q2

   2. IF NO: For these focus groups, we are looking for employees of companies that hire workers from abroad or recruiters for companies that do so. Since you are not involved in these activities, we won’t be able to include you in the groups. Thank you for your time and interest.

2. [For mixed-industry groups only] What industry do you work in?

• Information Technology

• Biomedical

• Finance

• Management Consulting

• Other

3. What is your role or position title?

• Headhunter/recruiter

• Manager/supervisor

• Human resources staff member

• Other _________________

4. How many employment-based visa requests does your company make each year? (IF R IS UNCERTAIN, PROBE WITH: About how many employment-based visa requests does your division, group, or office within the company make each year?)

• Fewer than 1 per year

• At least 1 per year

• 2–10 per year

• More than 10 per year

5. Including all types of employees, how many employees work at your company in total? (IF R IS UNCERTAIN, PROBE WITH: About how many employees work in your division, group, or office within the company?)

• Fewer than 100

• 100–500

• 501–1000

• More than 1000

6. When recruiting nonimmigrant workers from outside the United States, what country or countries does your company typically recruit from? (IF R IS UNCERTAIN, PROBE WITH: What country or countries does your division, group, or office within the company recruit from?) ¹ __________________________________________________________

7. If selected for the focus group, which of the following times would you be able to attend a focus group? Select all that apply

• Morning, between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.

• Lunchtime, between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

• Evening, between 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.

READ TO ALL PARTICIPANTS:

Thank you for your time today. Because there are a limited number of spaces available in the group, our research team needs to review everyone’s information and determine who is eligible to participate. A member of the research team will be in touch with you within the next few days to let you know whether or not you are eligible for this focus group. Confirm participant’s contact information.

AFTER TEAM REVIEW, RECONTACT RESPONDENT AND SAY:

For those not screened into a focus group:

This is [FILL] calling back from Mathematica Policy Research. Thank you for taking the time to answer a few questions for us the other day. Because there are a limited number of spaces available in the group, we are not able to include everyone who is interested in participating. Based on your answers, we do not need your help for these focus groups. Thank you very much for your time.

For those screened into a focus group:

This is [FILL] calling back from Mathematica Policy Research. Based on your answers, we have selected you to participate in a focus group, which is scheduled for [date, time, and location]. Will you be available to attend this group?

If yes: As a token of appreciation, you will receive a $25 gift card to compensate you for your travel expenses.

Confirm participant’s contact information. We will be in touch a few days before the group to confirm your participation and answer any questions you may have. We will also follow up with a reminder email the day before the focus group takes place. Thank you for agreeing to help us out by taking part in this focus group.

If no: I’m sorry that you will not be able to participate in the focus group. Thank you for your time.

Targeted/Planned Enrollment Table

Industry Representatives focus groups2
Total Planned Enrollment:	24 participants3 per industry representative focus group
TARGETED/PLANNED ENROLLMENT: Number of Participants
Number of Employees in Company/Group/Division		Low volume petitioners	High volume petitioners (10+)	Total (# and %)
<100		6	0	6 (25%)
100-500		3	3	6 (25%)
501-1000		3	3	6 (25%)
>1000		0	6	6 (25%)
Number of Employees Categories: Total of All Participants		12	12	24 (100%)
TARGETED/PLANNED ENROLLMENT: Number of Participants
Role or Position Categories		Low volume petitioners	High volume petitioners (10+)	Total (# and %)
Headhunter/recruiter		3	4	7 (29%)
Manager/supervisor		3	4	7 (29%)
Human resources staff member		3	4	7 (29%)
Other		1	2	3 (13%)
Role or Position Categories: Total of All Participants		10	14	24 (100%)

ATTACHMENT D

Telephone script for reminder phone call
to focus group participants

Hello, my name is [NAME] from Mathematica Policy Research. May I speak to [FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT NAME]?

If participant is reached and comes to phone

I am calling to remind you that you are scheduled to participate in a focus group for the High-Skilled Nonimmigrant Labor Study, on [DATE] at [TIME] at the [NAME OF VENUE] located at [ADDRESS].

Are you still able to attend this focus group?

If no, Thank you for letting us know. We appreciate your time.

If yes, Great! We are glad that you will be able to join this discussion, which is an important part of our study on high-skilled nonimmigrant labor in the United States. If you have a few more minutes, I can provide you with some brief information on what you can expect during your participation in the focus group.

If R volunteers no, Thank you for your time. We will follow up with some more information over email. We look forward to meeting with you on [DATE] at [TIME] in [LOCATION].

In appreciation of your time and participation, you will receive a $25 gift card for travel expenses, and we will also serve light refreshments.

Because we have limited space, we ask that you do not bring children or others who are not invited to the group. For our own record-keeping, please bring a photo ID or a printout of the reminder email we will send you. These will be used only to verify that we have the correct participants we expected to meet with at the focus group. If you choose to bring a photo ID, we will not photocopy or retain any information from it.

Do you have any questions? [Pause.] If you think of any [more] questions, you may reach us at [NUMBER]. The telephone number of the venue is [NUMBER], in case you need directions. It will also be included in the email we will send you.

Thank you again for your time and we look forward to meeting with you on [DATE] at [TIME] in [LOCATION].

Voicemail Message Script

Hello, my name is [NAME] from Mathematica Policy Research, and this message is for [FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT NAME]. I am calling to remind you that you are scheduled to participate in a focus group discussion on [DATE] at [TIME] at the [NAME OF VENUE] located at [ADDRESS]. The telephone number of the venue is [NUMBER]. In appreciation of your time and participation, you will receive a $25 gift card for your travel expenses, and we will also serve light refreshments. If you have any questions about this focus group, or if you are no longer able to participate, please call Mathematica Policy Research at [NUMBER]. We thank you and look forward to meeting with you.

ATTACHMENT E

Reminder email to focus group participants

Subject Line: Reminder: Focus Groups for High-Skilled Nonimmigrant Labor Study

Dear [NAME],

On behalf of Mathematica Policy Research, I would like to thank you for agreeing to participate in a focus group discussion related to your experiences with the visa process for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers. You are scheduled to attend a focus group on [DATE] at [TIME] at the [NAME OF VENUE] located at [ADDRESS]. The telephone number there is [NUMBER]. The focus group discussion is an important part of our study on high-skilled nonimmigrant labor in the United States.

The discussion will last about 90 minutes. In appreciation of your time and participation, you will receive a $25 gift card, and light refreshments will be served. A staff member from USCIS will be attending this session, but will not reveal your name or any personally identifying information outside of this group.

If you have a conflict and can no longer attend the focus group, please let us know. Because we have limited space, children and others who are not invited cannot come to the group with you. For our own record-keeping, please bring a photo ID or a printout of this reminder email. These will be used only to verify that we have the correct participants we expected to meet with at the focus group. If you choose to bring a photo ID, we will not photocopy or retain any information from it.

If you have any questions, please contact [NAME], [TITLE] at [NUMBER]. We look forward to meeting with you.

Best,

[NAME]

ATtACHMENT F

Consent form for Industry Representative
Focus Group Participants

Mathematica Policy Research is conducting the High-Skilled Nonimmigrant Labor Study, funded by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). This study will help USCIS better understand employers’ needs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers, learn about pathways to legal permanent residency for visa holders, and improve the H-1B visa petition process.

We are conducting this focus group to better understand your experiences with visa programs for high-skilled workers. We expect that this focus group will be approximately 90 minutes long. During this focus group, you will discuss questions regarding the following topics:

• The impact of emerging business practices in your company or industry on H-1B visa petitions and the use of other types of high-skilled temporary worker visas

• Your company’s expected need for high-skilled workers in the coming years and the potential to fulfill those needs

• Your perceptions of global competition for high-skilled workers and the impact of the recession on demand for such workers

• Your company’s decision to petition for foreign workers under the H-1B visa program

• Your company’s recruitment and petition processes for foreign workers under the H-1B visa program

• Your experiences with the H-1B petition process

• Your recommendations on visa-related policy, and improving outreach and training

Everything we discuss in the focus group is private to the extent allowed by law. We will never use your name or the name of your company in any reports. All participants agree to keep the identities of all participants private. Issues discussed in the focus group may be discussed elsewhere as long as they are discussed in a way that does not identify other participants in this group. A staff member from USCIS will be attending this session, but will not reveal your name or any personally identifying information outside of this group.

We will provide you with a $25 gift card to compensate you for your travel expenses, and will also provide light refreshments during the focus group meeting.

We do not anticipate any risks from participating in this study. You may decline to answer any question you do not wish to answer.

If you would like more information about this study please contact [NAME], [TITLE] at Mathematica Policy Research, at [NUMBER] or [EMAIL]. If you would like to contact the local Institutional Review Board, which reviewed and approved this study, please contact [NAME] at [NUMBER].

Please read the following statements and fill out the appropriate section.

1. Yes, I wish to participate in this study. I understand that my responses will not be associated with me personally in any way. Data from the focus group session will be audio-taped and transcribed. Any names or places that could be attributable to me personally will be omitted from any reports or findings based on the focus group discussion.

I understand that I may choose not to answer specific questions asked during my focus group discussion by simply stating, “Pass” or “I prefer not to answer.”

Signature: Date:

Printed Name:

2. No, I do not wish to participate in this study.

Signature: Date:

Printed Name:

ATTACHMENT G

Industry Representatives Focus Group
Pre-Interview Questionnaire

Thank you for participating in today’s focus group regarding the High-Skilled Nonimmigrant Labor Study, funded by the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). This study will help USCIS better understand employers’ needs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers, learn about pathways to legal permanent residency for visa holders, and improve the visa petition process for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers.

We are conducting this focus group to better understand your experiences with visa programs for high-skilled workers. We’d like you to fill out this pre-interview questionnaire to tell us a little bit about your role in recruiting high-skilled nonimmigrant workers workers, and the demand for high-skilled, nonimmigrant workers at your firm and in your industry. Please provide brief answers to the questions below. You may decline to answer any question you do not wish to answer.

1. Please describe the firm or industry for which you recruit high-skilled nonimmigrant workers, and note how many employees your firm employs.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. In one to two sentences, please describe your role in the recruitment process for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers for your firm or industry.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. What types of high-skilled nonimmigrant workers do you recruit most often? Please check all that apply.

• Engineers

• Technicians

• Programmers/Web developers

• Financial Planners or Analysts

• Departmental Managers

• Other (Please describe):____________________________________________

4. Please estimate how many H-1B or other high-skilled nonimmigrant workers currently work at your firm. If you cannot provide an estimate for your entire firm, please provide an estimate for your division or office location.

___________________________________________________________________________

5. Please estimate how many H-1B or other high-skilled nonimmigrant workers your firm has hired in total over the past 5 to 10 years. If you cannot provide an estimate for your entire firm, please provide an estimate for your division or office location.

___________________________________________________________________________

ATTACHMENT H

Focus Group Protocol for Industry Representatives

Summary and guidelines for conducting the focus group. The industry representatives’ focus groups will be conducted at a comfortable and convenient location, such as a hotel conference room, and at a convenient time of day. The study team will provide light refreshments for participants. An experienced Mathematica researcher will administer consent by reading the consent form aloud verbatim and instructing participants to complete the consent form and a short questionnaire (see Appendix L and M), moderate the focus groups, and ensure that all participants have an opportunity to express their views. The moderator will follow the protocol as a guide and use the probes provided in the protocol as needed to elicit information, but may also ask unscripted questions if the conversation reveals unexpected relevant information. A $25 gift card will be distributed to all participants as an incentive payment at the end of the session.

The virtual industry representative focus groups will be conducted by webinar. Participants will be able to submit feedback verbally or by using the messaging function of the webinar software. A $25 e-gift card will be emailed to participants shortly after they complete the focus group.

MODERATOR: Note that high-priority items within this protocol have been bolded. Be sure each high-priority item is allotted sufficient time for discussion.

Protocol:

1. [Ice breaker for opening question:] To get started, let’s go around the table and introduce ourselves. Could everyone please say your name and tell us the type of industry for which you recruit H-1B workers?

2. What led to your company’s decision to petition for foreign worker(s) under the H-1B program?

Probes:

• Were foreign workers the best applicant(s) for the job?

• After looking, did you have difficulty finding U.S.-born workers?

• Did you intentionally recruit foreign workers for the job?

• Did you already employ a foreign worker who had temporary work authorization through another status (i.e., Optional Practical Training [OPT] work authorization through F-1 student status)?

• Do foreign workers have specialized skills that U.S.-born workers do not have? If so, which specific skills?

• Do foreign workers’ compensation expectations differ from those of U.S.-born workers?

3. After you established the need for foreign worker(s), how did you go about recruiting to fill that need?

Probes:

• Outside the United States?

• Inside the United States?

• Specific universities inside or outside the United States?

• Intra-company networks

• Recruiting firms (including those that specialize in recruiting foreign workers)

• Professional associations, LinkedIn, etc.

• Moving from Optional Practical Training to H-1B

• Matching H-1B caps and application cycles with business cycles and hiring needs

• Matching H-1B requirements with industry and job-specific needs

4. Please describe what the H-1B petition process has been like for you.

Probes:

• Who is usually involved in the preparation of H-1B petitions (e.g., human resources representative, attorney, beneficiary of the petition)?

• Do you generally use a lawyer? If so, why do you need one? Does the company or beneficiary pay for the lawyer?

• How long do petitions typically take to prepare?

• Have the petitions you’ve filed been subject to the H-1B cap?

  • If so, what was your experience with the process?

• Have you opted to use Premium Processing when filing petitions? In what types of cases have you used Premium Processing and what was the rationale for this decision?

• Have petitions generally been approved within the standard processing times? How long did petitions take to get approved? How often, if ever, do you receive Requests for Evidence? How easy or burdensome have they been to respond to?

• Do you need a CPA to demonstrate your ability to pay for an H-1B employee?

5. How have changes in the economy and global marketplace affected the demand for high-skilled workers in your industry generally and your firm in particular?

6. What factors do you anticipate will affect the need for high-skilled workers (immigrants or others) in your industry generally and your firm specifically in the coming years?

Probes:

• Telework and virtual offices

• Outsourcing

• Automation

• Immigration policies (including H-1B and other temporary work programs)

• Lack of sufficient U.S.-born native workers who meet job/industry requirements

• Economic changes

7. Has your use of the program gone up or down? Why?

8. What is the smoothest/easiest part of the petition process?

• [MODERATOR: Please do not lead on this question. Please elicit most common points and only go to list at end of discussion.]

Probes:

• Documentation about your company (or in the case of recruitment agencies, the end employer)

• Documentation about the job

• Documentation of the employee’s qualifications for an H-1B visa

• Documentation of the employee’s qualifications for the specific job

• Documentation of your/end employer’s ability to pay the required wage

• Any other notable parts that were the most straightforward and easy to complete?

9. What is the most challenging part of the process?

• [MODERATOR: Please do not lead on this question. Please elicit most common points and only go to list at end of discussion.]

Probes:

• Documentation about your company (or in the case of recruitment agencies, the end employer)

• Documentation about the job

• Documentation of the employee’s qualifications for an H-1B visa

• Documentation of the employee’s qualifications for the specific job

• Documentation of your/end employer’s ability to pay the required wage

• Any other notable parts that were the most complex and challenging to complete?

10. Has your need to hire H-1B workers gone up or down? Why?

11. Please describe how the cap on H-1B admissions has affected your ability to petition for foreign workers.

Probes:

• Is it easier, more difficult, or about the same as in 2005 to obtain H-1B workers?

• Did your experiences with the cap change during the recession?

• Has the lottery method of selection in recent years affected you? If so, how?

• What has your experience been with filing for beneficiaries under the U.S. master’s cap?

• Does the cap affect your decisions on the recruitment process and timing (i.e., how much earlier do you have to begin recruiting)?

• What was your experience this past year, when the cap was reached within a week?

12. Do you have any recommendations for improving the H-1B petition process, or the petition process for other types of high-skilled nonimmigrant employees?

Probes:

• Changes to the USCIS website

• More or alternative forms of outreach by USCIS

• Information and outreach specifically on policy and procedural changes that could affect petition preparation

• Guidance provided by USCIS for those preparing petitions for adjudication

• Changes to the petition filing instructions

• Changes to business practices by companies filing petitions

• Any other recommendations?

13. Do you have any further comments?

ATTACHMENT I

Recruitment Cover Email for Possible
Case Study Companies

Dear [NAME]:

We are writing to ask you to participate in an important new study funded by U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services (USCIS), designed to help it better understand employers’ needs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers, learn about pathways to legal permanent residency for visa holders, and improve the H-1B visa petition process. Mathematica Policy Research, an independent, nonpartisan research firm, is conducting this study on behalf of USCIS. We have been working with a variety of contacts to identify companies that employ high numbers of H-1B visa beneficiaries. [Name of specific contact] suggested that we contact you and your company about participating in the company case studies we are conducting.

Please see the attached letter for more detailed information about this study and your company’s potential contribution. The letter discusses the logistics of participation in the study, the benefits to your company, and the confidential nature of our research. If your company decides to participate, Mathematica would conduct the following activities:

• A review of any relevant public external documents about your company.

• A 1½ day site visit to your company, during which we will conduct in-depth interviews and focus groups with staff who are knowledgeable about or participate in the visa process.

• A review of any nonproprietary documents provided by your company that are related to the recruitment, hiring, and employment of H-1B and other foreign workers.

We hope that you will consider participating in this important study to help us better understand and improve visa programs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers in the United States. If you have any questions about this request, please contact [NAME], a [TITLE] at Mathematica, at [NUMBER]. We appreciate your time and attention to this matter.

Thank you,

[NAME]

ATTACHMENT J

Recruitment Email for Company Case Study Participants

Dear [NAME]:

We are writing to ask you to participate in an important new study funded by U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services (USCIS). Mathematica Policy Research, an independent, nonpartisan research firm, is conducting this study on behalf of USCIS. We have been working with a variety of contacts to identify companies that employ high numbers of H-1B visa beneficiaries. [Name of specific contact] suggested that we contact you and your company about participating in the company case studies we are conducting.

The High-Skilled Nonimmigrant Labor Study is designed to help USCIS better understand employers’ needs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers, learn about pathways to legal permanent residency for visa holders, and improve the H-1B visa petition process. We are looking for companies that employ past and present H-1B visa holders to participate in an in-depth case study for this research. We want to hear from companies in a wide range of industries who have a mix of experiences with hiring and employing nonimmigrant, high-skilled workers. The company case study will help us to better understand trends in the demand for high-skilled, nonimmigrant workers and companies’ experiences with the visa petition process.

Participation in the study involves three parts. First, the study team will conduct a review of any relevant public external documents about your company (such as mission statements or company websites). Second, we will make a 1½ day site visit to your company, during which we will conduct 90-minute in-depth interviews with key staff such as managers or human resources employees who are knowledgeable about the visa process, focus groups with past and present visa holders, and, if appropriate, focus groups with managers and human resources staff. The number of interviews and focus groups conducted will largely depend on the structure and organization of your company; thus, the study team will tailor the data collection effort on a case-by-case basis. Third, the study team will review any nonproprietary documents provided by your company that are related to the recruitment, hiring, and employment of H-1B and other foreign workers.

We would need your help to coordinate our visit and identify key staff who could participate in interviews or focus groups. The interviews and focus groups would be conducted on your company’s premises during the normal workday. In addition, we would need your help to schedule interview and focus group times with staff, remind and encourage them to keep their appointments, and secure the company’s permission to allow them to participate during work hours.

Everything discussed during the site visits is private to the extent allowed by law. We will never use individual names in any reports or written materials; however, the name of your company may appear in some reports. Any opinions expressed by employees during the interviews or focus groups will never be attributed to the company as a whole or represent company policy. All opinions expressed are solely those of the participants.

We hope that you will consider participating in this important study to help us better understand and improve visa programs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers in the United States. Your participation in the study will have direct influence on the recommendations we provide to USCIS to improve its policies and procedures involving high-skilled nonimmigrant labor. If you have any questions about this request, please contact Mathematica at [NUMBER]. We appreciate your time and attention to this matter.

Thank you,

[NAME]

ATTACHMENT K

Consent form for Case Study Interview Respondents

Mathematica Policy Research is conducting the High-Skilled Nonimmigrant Labor Study, funded by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). This study will help USCIS better understand employers’ needs for high-skilled nonimmigrant workers, learn about pathways to legal permanent residency for visa holders, and improve the H-1B visa petition process.

We are conducting this interview to better understand your experiences with visa programs for high-skilled workers. We expect that this interview will be approximately 90 minutes long. During this interview, you will discuss questions regarding the following topics:

• Your company’s reliance on immigrant workers at varying levels of seniority

• The recruitment paths your company uses for different types of workers

• At what point in the recruitment and employment process your company considers visa sponsorship, and whether financial and administrative costs are deterrents to sponsorship

• Your experiences with the H-1B petition process and your recommendations for immigration policy or other policy/procedure change

• The decision-making process for sponsorship of permanent residents

• Strategies that your company implements when visas are not available

Everything we discuss in this interview is private to the extent allowed by law. We will never use individual names in any reports or written materials; however, the name of your company may appear in some reports. Any opinions expressed by you during the interview will never be attributed to the company as a whole or represent company policy.

No direct benefits are expected from participation in this study other than the opportunity to discuss issues that may be of interest to you. However, we expect that your participation in this conversation will yield valuable information that will help us to make recommendations to USCIS to improve the H-1B visa petition process.

We do not anticipate any risks from participating in this study. You may decline to answer any question you do not wish to answer.

If you would like more information about this study please contact [NAME], [TITLE] at Mathematica Policy Research, at [NUMBER] or [EMAIL]. If you would like to contact the local Institutional Review Board, which reviewed and approved this study, please contact [NAME] at [NUMBER].

Please read the following statements and fill out the appropriate section.

1. Yes, I wish to participate in this study. I understand that my responses will not be associated with me personally in any way. Data from the interview will be audio-taped and transcribed. Any names or places that could be attributable to me personally will be omitted from any reports or findings based on the interview.

I understand that I may choose not to answer specific questions asked during my interview by simply stating, “Pass” or “I prefer not to answer.”

Signature: Date:

Printed Name:

2. No, I do not wish to participate in this study.

Signature: Date:

Printed Name:

1 Categories will be recorded and used to ensure there is some diversity in the country of origin from which the industry representatives typically recruit.

2 Industry representative focus groups will target industries within each site. Thus, we will target Information Technology/Computing, Biomedical, Education, and Finance in each of the four locations we proposed: Silicon Valley, Houston, Boston, and New York. Participants will be asked their occupations as part of the screening process and the study team will ensure that all participants selected are not from one job type but reflect some diversity.

3 Assumes 16-24 participants will be recruited for each focus group, in order to yield 8-12 attendees.