POLICY PURPOSE:

CSU Pueblo relies on a diverse community of scholars, researchers, teaching faculty and other employees to fulfill its educational mission. The University is committed to recruiting, hiring, and retaining scholars and professionals from around the world who have the potential to make significant contributions to the success of its programs and services. The University does not discriminate on the basis of national origin in recruiting, hiring, advancing, or terminating university personnel. The purpose of this policy is to establish rules for when the University, on behalf of a department, may sponsor immigrant and non-immigrant employees from outside the United States.

POLICY APPLIES TO (Persons affected by):

This policy is applicable to all faculty and staff positions and persons that require immigration sponsorship for temporary or permanent employment with the University.

DEFINITIONS:

Foreign National: A person without U.S. citizenship or nationality (may include a stateless person). This term is synonymous with “noncitizen” and with “alien” as defined in section 101(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(3)) at the time of their appointment.

Immigrant: A Foreign National who seeks to live and work permanently in the United States.

Nonimmigrant: A Foreign National who seeks enter the United States on a temporary basis and must obtain a visa/temporary work authorization to work in the United States

Nonimmigrant Visa: A visa that allows the person to work for the University in a specific position for a limited time.

Optional Practical Training:  Temporary employment that is directly related to an F-1 student’s major area of study. Eligible students can apply to receive up to 12 months (additional 24 months for STEM fields) of OPT employment authorization before completing their academic studies (pre-completion) and/or after completing their academic studies (post-completion).

Permanent Resident or “Green Card” Holder: Any person not a citizen of the United States who is living in the U.S. under legally recognized and lawfully recorded permanent residence as an immigrant.

Visa Status: The legal category under which a Foreign National was admitted to the U.S. This includes H-1B status, TN status, O-1 status, and J-1 status, among others. The Foreign National’s Visa Status will determine eligibility for hire by the University and the length of time for which employment may continue.

POLICY:

CSU Pueblo will comply with the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), Public Law 99-603, 8 U.S.C. § 1324a and related regulations in Title 8, C.F.R., with respect to the hiring and retention of Foreign Nationals. The IRCA requires all employers, under penalty of fine and/or imprisonment, to hire only U.S. citizens and aliens lawfully authorized to work in the United States and to maintain documentation indicating compliance.

A Foreign National cannot be hired by CSU Pueblo unless and until such person obtains a qualifying visa for entry into the United States for purposes of employment, or if in the United States, must transfer their visa status to CSU Pueblo, and may remain employed by CSU Pueblo only for so long as such Visa Status remains valid.

All employees hired after November 6, 1986, must complete and sign the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Form I-9, the Employment Eligibility Verification, and deliver it to Human Resources and Institutional Equity (HRIE) no later than three days after the commencement of employment. A copy of the supporting documentation must be attached to Form I-9.

Foreign National workers will not be permitted to work at the University until authorized to do so by federal law. Consequently, it is imperative that the Hiring Authority work closely with HRIE in the hiring process to assure that the Foreign National has authorization to work in the United States before beginning work at the University. This includes the appropriate transfer of a Nonimmigrant Visa for work authorization at CSU Pueblo. The determination of whether the individual is authorized to begin employment, or will need immigration sponsorship, will be made by HRIE.

A Foreign National worker who receives an offer of employment from the University may need to be sponsored for a Nonimmigrant Visa. In such cases, the University must sponsor the petition of the prospective employee to secure the immigration status that the employee needs to be legally employed by the University. The employing department, through its department head, must timely request sponsorship from HRIE and may be required to pay a premium processing fee for late requests.

A student who files an application with the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to enter into an Optional Practical Training (OPT) program while on an F-1 visa may be sponsored by the University with a recommendation from the CSU Pueblo Designated School Official (DSO), by using Form 1-20, Certification of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant Student Status, and making the appropriate notation in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS).

Permanent Residence sponsorship is available only for tenure/tenure-track faculty and highly specialized staff after careful consideration of the benefit to the University for sponsorship. The request to sponsor a Permanent Resident must originate with the department chair and be approved by the dean, who will in turn request approval from the provost.

All approvals must occur prior to the request being made to HRIE. Once the approvals are made, HRIE will contact the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) to begin the process.

The Office of General Counsel (OGC) contacts outside legal counsel to authorize work on the petition. Outside legal counsel may contact the employee and HRIE for further assistance. No employee of the University, including faculty members or administrators, are authorized to retain the services of outside legal counsel for the University, except the OGC, as there are laws regarding who may represent the University’s interests. Only the outside legal counsel retained by OGC are permitted to represent the University and the employee on the sponsorship of any visa or permanent residence petition.

Only the employee needing a visa or permanent residence, the HRIE office and the OGC may contact the outside legal counsel. Other staff and faculty are not to directly contact outside legal counsel on behalf of the employee or the University unless authorized by OGC.

The University will pay all fees and costs associated with Nonimmigrant visas, except premium processing. The University may pay for premium processing if the requirement is based on the failure of the University to timely hire, otherwise, the employee to be hired is responsible for such payment. The University will pay for the fees and costs associated with the first two phases of permanent residence petition. The employee is responsible for the third phase of payment. Payment of costs and legal fees must be made prior to a petition being filed. These costs and fees are the responsibility of the sponsoring department, unless otherwise approved by the Provost. The University does not sponsor or pay for the costs associated with obtaining a visa or permanent residence status for dependents of an employee.

An employee or prospective employee who is in the United States illegally, or who has concealed or misrepresented any aspect of their immigration or work history, or who is inadmissible to the United States or removable under federal immigration law, may not be sponsored by the University.

Extensions and Renewals of Nonimmigrant Visa Status

• In order to ensure the timely filing of an extension, it is the responsibility of the employee to inform HRIE of the pending expiration of any university-sponsored immigration status no less than 12 months prior to the expiration date.
• It is the responsibility of the employee and their hiring department to provide HRIE with all documents that may be required to prepare and file a timely extension of the employee’s Nonimmigrant Visa Status.

RELATED LAWS, POLICIES & PROCEDURES:

• Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), Public Law 99-603, 8 U.S.C. § 1324a and related regulations in Title 8, C.F.R.
• Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), Pub. L. 104-208, Div C, 110 Stat. 3009, 8 U.S.C. 1325

FORMS:

Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

APPROVAL:

Approved by: Armando Valdez, President

12/16/2024