CW-1 Employers Must Verify Continued Employment and Payment of CW-1 Workers by Submitting Form I-129CWR

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is reminding employers of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Transitional Workers (CW-1) that they must confirm the continued employment of the CW-1 workers every six months. 

USCIS created a new standalone form, Form I-129CWR, Semiannual Report for CW-1 Employers, for this requirement. USCIS established this requirement in an interim final rule (IFR) implementing the k' href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/5956/text" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">Northern Mariana Islands U.S. Workforce Act of 2018. The IFR established that the semiannual report is required for all CW-1 petitions approved by USCIS with employment start dates in fiscal year 2020 for a validity period of six months or more. 

For approved petitions with start dates from Oct. 1, 2019, through Dec. 18, 2019, CW-1 employers had until Aug. 17, 2020, to file Form I-129CWR as required in the IFR. On Sept. 1, USCIS began issuing Notices of Intent to Revoke for CW-1 employers who have not filed a required Form I-129CWR and are now overdue.

Employers can verify if USCIS received the Form I-129CWR by entering the receipt number of the approved Form I-129CW petition in Case Status Online.

USCIS reminds all CW-1 employers that during the validity of the petition, they must file Form I-129CWR with USCIS every six months after the petition validity start date, and that USCIS may revoke an employer's approved petition or deny their future petitions if they do not comply with the reporting requirement. No additional documentary evidence should be submitted with Form I-129CWR. Any additional documentary evidence that is submitted with Form I-129CWR will not relieve an employer of the CW-1 document retention requirements and could be subject to shredding/destruction.

The Northern Mariana Islands U.S. Workforce Act of 2018 protects U.S. workers in the CNMI and ensures that U.S. workers will not be displaced or encounter a competitive disadvantage for employment compared to non-U.S. workers.