USCIS Accepting CW-1 Petitions Under CNMI Disaster Recovery Act

On February 19, 2020, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it is now accepting CW1 nonimmigrant visa petitions under the CNMI Disaster Recovery Workforce Act [PDF version].

In order for a CW1 petition to be considered under the CNMI Disaster Recovery Workforce Act, the petitioner must submit the following:

Form I-129CW, Petition for a CNMI-Only Nonimmigrant Transitional Worker;
A cover sheet stating “CNMI Disaster Recovery Workforce Act Eligible” in large, bold letters; and
Evidence to show that the beneficiary meets the CNMI Disaster Recovery Workforce Act eligibility criteria.

In order to be eligible for CW1 status under the CNMI Disaster Recovery Workforce Act, the evidence must show that the CW1 beneficiary:

Is performing service or labor under a contract or subcontract for construction, repairs, renovations or facility services directly connected to, or associated with recovery from a presidentially declared major disaster or emergency (as those terms are defined in section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. section 5122)); or
Is performing service or labor under a contract or subcontract for construction, repairs, renovations or facility services directly connected to preparation for a future disaster or emergency.
 (Quoted)

In order to be eligible for CW1 classification under the CNMI Disaster Recovery Workforce Act, the beneficiary must be the national of a country eligible to participate in the H2B visa program during calendar year 2018. You may find the list of eligible countries on site [see article].

In ordinary cases, construction workers are ineligible for CW1 classification unless they fall under a special exception for certain construction workers who maintained CW1 status since before October 1, 2015. While these restrictions and exceptions for construction workers do not apply in CNMI Disaster Recovery Workforce Act cases, they continue to apply for all other CW1 cases.