On October 28, 2014 the U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued a policy memo regarding the effect of assisted reproductive technology (ART) on Immigration and the Acquisition of Citizenship under the INA (Immigration and Nationality Act) in an effort to shed light on the issue of genetic relationships between parents…
According to new reports released by the U.S. Border Patrol, the surge in Central Americans crossing into the United States is dropping at an alarming rate—approximately 60% fewer unaccompanied minors were apprehended during the month of August, in comparison to the summer months, a time when the migration crisis was…
On September 19, 2014 the California Department of Motor Vehicles released a statement detailing the progress it has made to date in order to implement Assembly Bill 60, operative January 01, 2015. Assembly Bill 60 was signed into law by Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr on October 2013 for the…
On Saturday, September 6th, the White House announced that the President would be holding off on taking executive action, to bring about immigration reform, until after November elections. Although president Obama announced that he would take executive action in June, mounting pressure from Senate Democrats prompted president Obama to abandon…
On August 23rd the Chief of the Department of State’s Immigrant Visa Control and Reporting Division, Charles Oppenheim, made an important announcement regarding significant changes made to the EB-5 preference category. Oppenheim announced that for the first time since the creation of the EB-5 category, the EB-5 preference category would…
Much of the deliberation surrounding immigration reform has largely occurred behind closed doors, despite pressure from the booming immigrant population in the United States to become more transparent. In a much anticipated June speech, President Obama announced that he would be utilizing executive action to bring about comprehensive immigration reform…
The Department of State (DOS) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have announced a joint initiative, in response to the technical problems the U.S. Department of State’s Consular Consolidated Database (CCD)—responsible for the issuance of visas—has been experiencing. These technical problems have had a significant impact on the department’s…
Jose Antonio Vargas has quickly become the face that has humanized the struggle for immigration reform. Unlike other immigrants, Jose is a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, Washington Post reporter, activist, and the founder of an immigration awareness campaign called ‘Define American’. Back in June of 2011, Vargas courageously revealed to…
It has been reported that this Wednesday, July 23, the State Department’s global database for issuing travel documents has crashed, resulting in major delays for potentially millions of people around the world waiting for U.S. passports and visas. Unspecified glitches in State Department’s Consular Consolidated Database have resulted in “significant…
By Ekaterina Powell, Esq. On July 11, 2014, USCIS released new guidance on adjudication of H-1B petitions for nursing occupations, which superseded the previous USCIS Memorandum of Johnny Williams, INS Office of Field Operations, Guidance on Adjudication of H-1B Petitions filed on Behalf of Nurses, HQISD 70/6.2.8-P (November 27, 2002).…