Visa Lawyer Blog

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Aditya Agarwal, VP of Engineering at Dropbox and Joe Green of FWD

Aditya Agarwal, VP of Engineering at Dropbox and President and Founder of FWD. us Joe Green

For decades, immigrants from all parts of the world have come to the United States, bringing with them their unsurpassed talents and ground breaking innovations.  This entrepreneurial spirit was first fostered by our founding fathers and later matched by such brilliant minds as, telecommunications magnate Alexander Graham, Google founder and college dropout Sergey Brin, and Nordstrom founders John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin, all of whom immigrated to the United States in pursuit of the American dream. Such immigrants have continued to shatter conventions by making significant contributions to our country’s history, its technology, and economy.

In early 2013, the Kauffman Foundation released an updated report as a supplement to the Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, which tracks new business creation in the United States. The report studied rates of entrepreneurial activity among different demographic groups during an 18 year period, beginning in 1996 through 2013. Of interest, is the report’s finding that the number of immigrants who were new entrepreneurs in 2013, at 26 percent, was nearly twice that of the native-born population of non-immigrants, a rate that was up 6 points from 19 percent in 2003.

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Drivers license for undocumented
In October of 2013, California made history when it became the first most populous state in the nation to sign a bill into law which allows undocumented immigrants to obtain a California driver’s license. This measure, Assembly Bill 60, was signed into law by California Governor Jerry Brown and was passed in an effort to make the roads safer. Through this piece of legislation, the Department of Motor Vehicles, was required to begin issuing driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants beginning January 01, 2015.

Early this month, the Obama administration informed California state officials that the design of these California driver’s licenses was found to be against federal law, based on the fact that the design of these new drivers’ licenses appear much too similar to California driver’s license’s issued to law abiding residents.

Since September 11, 2011, federal law has required that state licenses issued to unlawful residents be easily distinguishable from all other forms of identification that can be used for the purpose of boarding commercial airplanes. The Department of Homeland Security recently issued a letter to California’s Department of Motor Vehicles regarding the problematic design alleging that the letters ‘DP’ signifying ‘Driving Privilege,’ placed on the front of these new driver’s licenses, in replacement of ‘DL’ signifying ‘Driver’s License,’ which appears on the front of driver’s licenses issued to law abiding residents, did not meet the federal standard of being easily distinguishable from drivers licenses issued to law abiding residents. Additionally, DHS wrote that the licenses, “must clearly state on the face and in the machine readable zone that they may not be accepted for federal purposes.”

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open for business
On Tuesday May 6, 2014 the Department of Homeland Security announced the publication of two newly proposed rules designed with the purpose of attracting and retaining highly skilled foreign workers. Both initiatives seek to advance the United States economy and improve competitiveness by recruiting the best and brightest professionals the world has to offer.

Proposal to Extend Employment Authorization to Spouses of Certain H-1B Workers:

The first proposal allows spouses of certain H-1B workers to extend their employment authorization in the United States

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Last Monday, April 28, Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, U.S. Representative of California’s 19th district, introduced what is known as a Private Relief Bill to Congress in an effort to reunite fellow DREAMer and San Jose State University college student, David Gonzalez, with his mother Antonia Aguilar. The Private Relief Bill, which is introduced once or twice during each congressional session, is intended to bring congressional awareness to the plight of a specific person, whose situation demonstrates a ‘compelling humanitarian reason’ which would allow them to remain in the country legally.

Ms. Aguilar found herself in the position of being deported from the United States after returning from a trip to Mexico to see her dying father for the last time. David Gonzalez is only one of three of her children, and like thousands of other young men and women across the United States, has had to take on the parental role of raising his younger siblings while tending to his scholarly obligations.

After meeting with the young man and hearing his story, Congresswoman Lofgren echoed the same sentiments that millions across the country have expressed saying, “Sadly, this story is not unique. Our dysfunctional immigration system continues to rip families apart, separating husbands from wives and children from their parents. When our immigration system fails families I step in to do as much as I can….. Even extraordinary efforts on behalf of individuals are often not enough because our immigration system is fundamentally broken and will continue to be broken until we reform our immigration laws.”

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by Lupe Lopez

Several weeks ago, Henry came in for a consultation to discuss an I-601 waiver of inadmissibility for his wife, Elizabeth.  Last year, they had attended Elizabeth’s interview in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico and she was denied a visa.  Elizabeth did not know why she was denied because the officer only told her “you are inadmissible and you will not get a visa.”  Elizabeth was given a blue piece of paper with lots of writing and the officer asked her to leave.

Elizabeth could only assume that it had to do with something that happened many years ago when she was 18.  She had not mentioned this to her attorney or to her husband.  She didn’t think it was important.  But, now, after being denied, she was fearful that this was the reason for her denial.

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The Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division at the U.S. Department of State, Charles Oppenheim, recently shared the expected projections for monthly and annual visa demand and Visa Bulletin projections regarding family and employment based green cards. It is important to note that these projections may be subject to change based on the reported or observed visa demand witnessed by USCIS and the U.S. Department of State.

Important developments to look forward to this year include significant advancement of EB-2 category for India and unmarried sons and daughters of LPR over 21 years old. On the other hand, several immigrant visa categories are expected to retrogress due to high demand, such as the category of spouses and children of LPR, EB-5 for Chinese nationals and EB-3 for Chinese nationals. The expected projections are as follows:

Family Based Second Preference 2A Worldwide (FB-2A) –Spouses and Children (under 21) of Permanent Residents:

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by Marie Puertollano, Esq.

When will I be scheduled for an oath ceremony?

After your naturalization interview, if your case is approved, you will be scheduled for the naturalization oath ceremony. USCIS will send you the form N-445 indicating the date for your oath ceremony. If you cannot attend, reschedule immediately by sending back the notice to the USCIS local office with a letter explaining why you cannot attend.

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On May 01, 2014 U.S. Customs and Border Protection launched a revamped webpage which allows non-immigrant visitors entering the United States, to access their I-94 arrival/departure record and their arrival/departure history. Prior to April 2013, non-immigrant visitors could only access and retrieve their recent I-94 arrival/departure record.

The overwhelmingly positive response to the agency’s I-94 arrival/departure online retrieval tool was what prompted the agency to also offer online travel history retrievals on the website. With this new electronic tool, travelers can access both their I-94 arrival/departure record and their arrival/departure history up to five years back from the date of their request. According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, non-immigrant travelers may no longer need to file a Freedom of Information Act request (FOIA) to obtain their arrival/departure history thanks to this new electronic tool.

Through the website’s new function, travelers will be able to retrieve their I-94 record number, as well as their five year travel history, by entering only their name, date of birth, and passport information. It is important to note that this travel information will not reflect any changes of status, extensions of stay, or adjustments of status granted by USCIS.

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Since the year 1990, USCIS has administered the Immigrant Investor Program, better known as ‘EB-5’. The program was first launched by Congress with the goal of expanding the U.S. economy by encouraging job creation and capital investment through foreign investment. It has now become known for its Regional Center pilot immigration program, with the purpose of allocating certain EB-5 visas to investors in Regional Centers designated by USCIS. These Regional Centers support the goal of economic growth. Recently, the program director of the pilot immigration program, Nicholas Colucci, held a conference with EB-5 stakeholders assuring them that he is committed to revitalizing the program. This action by Colucci signals an interest in making the EB-5 process more efficient, transparent, and resourceful. First a brief overview of the EB-5 visa process:

General Guidelines:

  • Under section 203 (b)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act also known as INA, 10,000 EB-5 immigrant visas are allocated per year
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By Ekaterina Powell, Esq.

In the recent case Caremax Inc. v. Holder (N.D. Cal., 2014), the court granted the government’s motion for summary judgment and ruled that Public Relations Specialist offered to the beneficiary is not an H-1B caliber position.

The H-1B employer and the employee filed a declaratory relief action asking the District Court to determine whether the position of PR Specialist offered to the beneficiary constitutes a “specialty occupation” under the INA and if so whether the employee meets the qualifications to be employed in the position.

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