This just came in, Charlie Oppenheim, the Chief of the U.S. Department of State’s Immigrant Visa Control and Reporting Division, has confirmed a dramatic reduction in the use of EB-1 immigrant visa numbers and the resulting favorable effect on the EB-2 category for immigrant visas chargeable to India. Due to…
A new bill — introduced by Senators John Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat; Richard Lugar, an Indiana Republican; and Mark Udall, a Colorado Democrat — aims to give two-year visas to foreign entrepreneurs if they secure at least $100,000 in financing from qualified investors. After two years, the start-up must have…
Here is the latest from the American Immigration Lawyers Association on the Visa Waiver Denials issue. Following reports from AILA chapter USCIS liaisons that a favorable resolution on the question of adjustment eligibility for Visa Waiver Program (VWP) admittees has been reached, AILA Liaision has confirmed that USCIS HQ has…
Mr. Skokos is, by all accounts, an accomplished security consultant. But the Department of Homeland Security doubts he is at the very pinnacle of his profession, so accomplished the world over that Mr. Skokos, a Canadian citizen who lives in Las Vegas, merits a special visa to live permanently in…
The Department of State, Office of Visa Services, advises the public of a notable increase in fraudulent emails and letters sent to Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) program (Visa Lottery) applicants. The scammers behind these fraudulent emails and letters are posing as the U.S. government in an attempt to extract payment…
This may not be a big issue but worth reporting. Some of our clients have received information from USCIS that interview appointments are scheduled at the National Benefits Center (NBC). If you receive an I-797 Interview Appointment Notice, e-mail, or update from Case Status Online indicating that an interview is…
Here is an interesting update for our marriage cases readers. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the creation of a new employment authorization document (EAD) which also serves as an advance parole (AP) travel permit. The new card will be available for persons who concurrently file an I-765 application…
The Department of State released the new visa bulletin for March 2011 (http://travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_5337.html) on February 11, 2011. Employment Based Visa Bulletin for the month of March 2011: The EB-1 category is current for both Chinese and Indian nationals. In the EB-2 category, the cut-off dates moved forward 7 days for…
Here is an important update for our readers. Many applicants are reporting sever delays with I-130 applications for Immediate Relative cases. In November 2010, USCIS transferred approximately 36,000 Immediate Relative petitions from the California Service Center to the Texas Service Center. They anticipated that this redistribution of work would result…
The following is new information regarding the ability to schedule a waiver appointment for an immigrant visa in Mexico. The information from the Consulate in Ciudad Juarez States: Please be advised that as of January 10, 2011, the procedure to request a waiver appointment has changed. Applicants can make the…