It’s common knowledge that our immigration system is broken. What follows is an example of how broken it is.
A couple of years ago, I wrote about the case of 41-year-old Anatolie Vartosu. Born and raised in Moldova, Vartosu was required to serve for two years in the former Soviet army. He went on to graduate from Romania’s Sport University with a Master in Sport and went on to teach physical education, ballet and track.
Anatolie Vartosu
A former Olympic marathon qualifier, Vartosu was invited to the US in 2003 to compete in a marathon in Clearwater, Florida and arrived on a six-month tourist visa. Later that same year he ended up in Stamford, Connecticut, where he received immigration sponsorship and a job working for Jack Rabbits Gym in nearby Greenwich. Fellow Romanian immigrant Nicolae Piperea and his business partner, John Schwartz, the owners of Jack Rabbits, were looking to build their gymnastics program to an elite level, making the addition of Vartosu to the staff a natural fit. He received a three-year H1B working visa and his wife, Maria (also from Romania) opened in 2007 what has become a very successful day care program with a business partner.
In March 2006, when he and his employers went to renew his visa, Vartosu was told that he had to wait until October, when he would have to file additional documentation to justify the renewal, which he did. At that point, the 60 days he was told he’d have to wait turned into six months. After placing a call to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in April 2007, he was instructed to further file the I-29 (an internal status query) and told to wait another 60 days, which turned into yet another filing of the I-29 and a further 60 day wait.
Finally, after over a year of waiting, Vartosu and his employers were told in July 2007 that his application had finally been processed. He received a work permit, but his visa was denied on the grounds of Vartosu being “overqualified” for his job as a gymnastics coach. The kicker is that he was granted the original H1B for the very position for which they now claimed he was overqualified! The work permit was then nullified. Obviously the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing.
And if Vartosu cannot stay, neither can his wife Maria, whose visa status hinges upon his.
According to Jack Rabbits co-owner John Schwartz,
They’re saying that since we’re not a high-level gym, we don’t need someone with his expertise. But my point is, we are building our program up to an elite level, and so we do need his expertise. Frankly, it’s difficult to find qualified instructors. And since we are a USAG-member gym, qualified instructors are essential.
He added,
They delay and delay and delay and have people on a string. And then they say 60 days and it takes six months. They take as long as they want, and when they make a decision, he has only 30 days to appeal or leave the country.
Vartosu and his employers managed to secure an additional review. Fast forward to 2009. They have exhausted their reviews and are awaiting final word on Vartosu’s case – and if he is denied a final time, they are prepared to go to court. I caught up with Schwartz, who had more to say about the situation:
This isn’t just about Anatolie; it’s about a movement to get Congress and the president to focus on the immigrants who are doing everything right, those who are contribuing to American society and aren’t taking any shortcuts. All you ever hear about when immigration is discussed is the issue of amnesty for illegal aliens. Meanwhile, the legal aliens in the queue – those who dot all the Is and cross all the Ts – are lost in the shuffle. Frankly, it’s insulting to them.Legal aliens who seek a green card or citizenship also have to lay out a lot of money, between lawyers fees and immigration applications – and the taxes they pay – and they are put in ‘la la land’ while waiting to find out about their status. Their very lives are put on hold.If the final appeal is denied, Anatolie and Maria will be given a deadline to leave or face formal deportation. And because he’s done everything by the book, he can’t hide – the government knows who he is and can find him. He’s not like an illegal alien who snuck over the border and no one knows who he is.
Hot Air’s Ed Morrissey has picked up on the story and notes:
This sounds more like a bureaucratic snafu rather than any kind of malice towards the Vartosus, but that’s hardly comforting if he gets deported and his wife loses her business. Hopefully, someone can intervene to bring some common sense to this situation, and encourage a family which is obviously contributing positively to the American experience to remain in the country.
Help has been requested from Congressman Jim Himes, who represents CT-04. (Former Congressman Chris Shays was part of the effort to keep Vartosu in the country.)
Vartosu remains hopeful. “I can say it’s like the American dream here. If you are a good citizen and a hard worker, you can make it and you can do it. That’s why I’m here.”
A website with an overview of Vartosu’s case can be found here. The site also has a link to a petition supporting his bid for permanent residency in America.