Beginning on December 23, 2010, companies petitioning for certain non-immigrant visas to employ foreign persons in the United States will, when completing a Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker – Form I-129, be required to certify whether or not an export license is required for that foreign person to perform his or her job at the company. This newly added certification (shown below) ensures that the petitioning company is complying with export control laws relating to the release of technology or technical data for the development, production, or use of U.S.-origin items to that foreign person (“deemed export laws”). This is the first time that the visa petition process has required an export-control related certification. Making an inaccurate or false certification to a U.S. government entity can carry stiff penalties.

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