The Biden Administration’s new Family Unity Program begins Monday August 19, 2024, called Keeping Families Together. The official notice takes place Monday August 19th, but the Biden Administration has already provided filing guidelines on Friday August 16, 2024. Eligibility The program announced in June will allow undocumented spouses and stepchildren of US citizens to obtain… Read more »
The Biden Administration will announce tomorrow a program to allow undocumented immigrants married to US citizens to avoid the long and arduous process of getting a green card abroad with a waiver. They can file for parole status in the US – referred to as “parole in place.” If approved, it would give them parole… Read more »
Update on TN Visa Delay in Mexico Obtaining a TN visa in Mexico has been streamlined over the past couple of years to only 3 US Consulates – Mexico City, Guadalahara, and Ciudad Juarez. Updates can be found on the Mission Mexico website page. As such, the processing times have been deteriorating, resulting now in… Read more »
Introduction Are you trying to get your permanent residence or “green card” from USCIS based on marriage or an engagement to a US citizen? USCIS is very good about telling you what to file with your Adjustment of Status Application (Form I-485), but they are not very specific about what you can use to support… Read more »
On day one, President Biden reversed two H-1B rules recently issued by the Trump Administration that have stymied H-1B employers and employees. Trump H-1B Regulations – What Are They? The Trump Administration issued 2 new H-1B rules in the past few months. The first, “Strengthening the H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa Classification Program,” narrowly amends a regulation… Read more »
In a drastic change from the past several years, President-Elect Biden has announced that on Day 1, January 20, 2021, he will propose his immigration reform plan to Congress. According to the Washington Post, “the centerpiece of the plan from Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala D. Harris is the eight-year pathway, which would put millions… Read more »
Good news for DACA advocates this week! A federal judge in New York ruled that the Trump Administration should re-install the program as established under the Obama Administration in 2012 to its “full” capacity. What Happened Since 2017, the Trump Administration has attacked the DACA program as unconstitutional. However, after several court fights, the Supreme… Read more »
During the COVID-19 pandemic, I received several questions from H-1B workers who are losing their jobs. The H-1B non-immigrant work visa allows foreign workers to temporarily work in the U.S. in specialty fields such as IT, architecture, engineering, mathematics, science, and medicine. While many advantages to H-1B status, one drawback is that your rights to… Read more »
Covid-19 has turned the US labor market into a bloodbath – but it’s even worse for those foreign persons who work here temporarily on visas like the H-1B (professional) or H-2B (seasonal workers). First, try to get the employer to give the H worker time to change into a different status before the effective termination… Read more »
In B.C. (Before Coronovirus), USCIS and the US Department of State were permitted after litigation favored the Trump Administration in January 2020, to proceed with their much expanded application of the “public charge” rule. The new rules take effect for both agencies on February 24, 2020. The essence of the rule has remained the same… Read more »
The southern border of the United States has long been a point of entry for people migrating from or through Mexico into the States. Due to a surge of undocumented Central Americans seeking asylum in the States at the southern border, a crisis at the border was declared by the Obama Administration in 2014. The… Read more »
On August 15, 2019, United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) formally announced the return of all rejected H-1B cases who lost in the H-1B lottery this fiscal year. The lottery was completed on 11th April 2019. Here’s a quick recap of the H-1B Season 2019-20: More petitions were filed 201,011 foreign nationals put in… Read more »
USCIS today confirmed reports from Politco.com and NBC News that it would be expanding interviews to employment-based permanent resident (aka “green card”) applicants and others who file their applications in the US. Currently, employment-based applicants are generally waived of an interview, which normally does take place for family-based applicants. This will likely slow down processing times…. Read more »
On August 2, 2017, Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR) and David Perdue (R-GA) introduced a new comprehensive immigration reform bill — Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy (RAISE) Act. The plan was endorsed by President Trump on the same day. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) summarizes the highlights of this immigration reform bill: Aims… Read more »
Dream Act of 2017 Introduced With Bipartisanship in the Senate Now here is some legislation both parties can support! The Dream Act was introduced in light of concerns that the Deferred Action Childhood Arrival (DACA) Program may not survive a legal challenge in the courts this year. This is driving the push for Congress to… Read more »