Visa Lawyer Blog

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As we reported before, if you are a Permanent Resident (Green Card holder), and your spouse is currently legal in the United States, as of August 1, 2013 you could file for Adjustment of Status (I-485 Benefits). That will include an application for a Green Card, Work Authorization, as well as a travel permit. The work card will be issued in 60-90 days in most jurisdictions. The Visa Bulletin for September was released and is still current.

On the employment side, EB3 for China, Mexico, and all chargeability areas except those listed jumps forward by a year-and-a-half to July 1, 2010. It is unclear what will happen in the next few months but we can not predict it will last. The same may happen in the Family categories as visas may retrogress again.

So if you are a Green Card holder, file fast for your spouse and children under 21.

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A federal judge has ruled that Immigration detainees in Southern California are entitled to bond hearings after remaining in custody for over six months. A preliminary injunction granting the bond hearings that had been in place for the past year are now going to be automatically granted. Senior U.S. District Judge Terry J. Hatter Jr. made the order permanent Wednesday and established that the hearings should be provided automatically rather than only at the detainee’s request.

The decision applies to more than 2,000 detainees in four Southern California facilities: Adelanto, James A. Musick, Theo Lacey and the Santa Ana City Jail. On an average day before the lawsuit, 400 to 500 people were in custody for more than six months as they contested their immigration cases, according to Kaufman.

Alejandro Rodriguez, one of the plaintiffs, was in immigration detention for more than three years while fighting his deportation. Two other plaintiffs were detained for more than a year. Such a long period of time without a bond hearing is a waste of government resources when the bond hearing might show that the person does not need to be detained during their deportation proceedings.

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Guidance following the Courts Decisions on Same Se Marriage continue to be released. The latest is regarding Student Visas.

The Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs has advised consulates that their officials may issue derivative visas based on same – sex marriage if the marriage is “recognized in the place of celebration.” That is, if the country where the couple married recognizes same – sex marriage as legal, then the U.S. government will recognize the union as legal for visa issuance, irrespective of where the couple plans to reside.

So from now on School DSOs and other officials may issue I-20 to same sex spouses of F1 and M1 students. These are ground breaking changes and we are excited. See the email below with the announcement.

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There have been recent changes to the way USCIS and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issue the Form I-94, the document that is used to show your valid stay in the U.S. CBP has fully implemented its program to automate Form I-94 at all air and sea ports pursuant to the agency’s interim final regulation. Outlined below are some details on how you can print and keep your I-94 for your stay in the U.S. and some points on any difficulties there might be in getting a copy.

Q1: I found my I-94 on the CBP website, what do I do now?
A: You should print the I-94 every time you enter the U.S. Next, you should verify that the information on the Form I-94 is correct. The Form I-94 may be needed for I-9 compliance in future immigration petitions or applications and/or to apply for other benefits, such as a social security card or a driver’s license.

Q2: What if I cannot locate the Form I-94 on the CBP website, and instead, I received a “Not Found” message? What should I do next?
A: It is possible that the Form I-94 does not exist because of a system error. However, it is more likely that the Form I-94 is in the CBP system, but the data is formatted differently than you entered it, so the I-94 is “hiding.” Here are some tips to assist you in obtaining the Form I-94 out of the CBP automation system.

First, Ensure data is entered correctly in all applicable fields.

a. Enter the name as stated in the passport, visa, or the submitted Form DS-160.

Although CBP has stated it would draw the name for the Form I-94 from the travel document (e.g., passport biographic page), that is not always the case. The instructions on CBP’s website state that the name is drawn from the visa, if any. Therefore, check the passport, visa, and a copy of the submitted Form DS-160 (if available) for name variations. Try entering the name as stated on each document.

b. Enter the first and middle name in the First Name field. In the first name field, type
the first and the middle name (if any) with a space in between. Do this even if the middle name is not stated on the passport or visa.

c. Switch the order of the names. Switch the last and first name when entering the
information on the website. Some countries state the name in the passport as first name, last name, rather than the more standard order of last name, first name. This may cause the name to be recorded incorrectly in the CBP system.

d. Enter multiple first names or multiple last names without spaces. If a person has
two first names or two last names, type the first names without a space between them or the last names without a space between them. Example: type the first names “Mary Jane” as “Maryjane”
e. Check for multiple passport numbers. Check the Form DS-160 (if available) for the passport number stated. If the passport number on the Form DS-160 is different than the passport number on which the person was admitted, type the passport number as stated on the submitted Form DS-160. Also, check the passport number stated on the visa. If the passport number is different than the current passport, enter the passport number stated on the visa.

f. Do not enter the year if included in the passport number. Some passport numbers
may begin with the year in which the passport was issued, causing the number to be too long for the relevant field in CBP’s automation system. If relevant, try entering the passport number without the year. For example, a Mexican passport that was issued in 2008 may have a passport number that starts with “08” followed by nine digits. Try entering the passport number without the “08.” This problem should not arise for newer Mexican passports, as those passports do not begin with the year.

g. Check the Classification. Check the classification designated on the visa and compare it
to the classification stated on the admission stamp in the passport, as there may be a slight variation. Be sure to try both designations. For example, the visa may state “E-3D” for an E-3 dependent, but the admission stamp may state only “E-3.” The automated I-94 could state the classification either way.

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More than 100 Republican donors — many of them prominent names in their party’s establishment — sent a letter to Republican members of Congress on Tuesday urging them to support an overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws.

The letter, which calls for “legal status” for the 11 million immigrants here illegally, begins with a simple appeal: “We write to urge you to take action to fix our broken immigration system.”

The effort was organized by Carlos Gutierrez, who was secretary of commerce under President George W. Bush and was a founder of a “super PAC,” Republicans for Immigration Reform. The letter is the beginning of a campaign to lobby Republican lawmakers in favor of a broad immigration bill as they return to their districts for the August break.

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Many readers inquire about Naturalization benefits for same sex couples filing for Immigration under the new changes. In a recent FAQ released by USCIS the following question was discussed:

Can same-sex marriages, like opposite-sex marriages, reduce the residence period required for naturalization?

Yes. As a general matter, naturalization requires five years of residence in the United States following admission as a lawful permanent resident. But, according to the immigration laws, naturalization is available after a required residence period of three years, if during that three year period you have been living in “marital union” with a U.S. citizen “spouse” and your spouse has been a United States citizen. For this purpose, same-sex marriages will be treated exactly the same as opposite-sex marriages.

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In the Republican-led House, the question is which of the nation’s 11 million undocumented immigrants can eventually qualify for U.S. citizenship.

Last month, the Senate voted 68-32 to allow most of the nation’s undocumented immigrants to eventually apply for U.S. citizenship. But as the House continues to slowly consider small pieces of immigration, one bill at a time, Republican leaders proposed allowing only undocumented immigrants brought to the country as children to become citizens.

As Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va. reasoned in his statements, the children known as DREAMers after a failed bill in Congress designed to help them, had no say in the decision to immigrate to the U.S. and know no other home than the United States. He then qualified his position by saying it was irresponsible to provide an avenue to citizenship for their parents.

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As the immigration debate dragged on in the House of Representatives, Speaker John A. Boehner offered perhaps his most optimistic assessment yet when asked how member education efforts were going in the House for an overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws.

Mr. Boehner told reporters on Thursday. “I think it’s going pretty well. We had a great conversation last week. The more this issue is around, the more action there is in committee, the more information there is for the members to put their hands on. And, frankly, the American people are engaged in this issue as well.”

He added: “You know, it’s not just organizations that are up here lobbying for immigration reform. You got a lot of individuals, a lot of constituents, who have opinions on this, and all this serves to help educate our members.”

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This is a very important update from AILA. The deadline for submitting an

Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status (I- 485) for winners of the 2013 Diversity Visa (DV) lottery is fast approaching; an adjustment of status application must be approved or immigrant vis a issued by September 30, 2013.

With the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in U.S. v. Windsor,570 U.S. 3196928 (2013), married same – sex couples are no longer barred from receiving federal

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Wouldn’t it be nice to enter the US visa Free. I just left Israel a few days ago, most Israelis complain about the harsh requirement to get a simple visa to enter the US. Now the debate is on if Israel should join the Visa Waiver Program.

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is a program of the United States Government which allows citizens of specific countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business for up to 90 days without having to obtain a visa. The program applies to the 50 U.S. states as well as the U.S. territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands in the Caribbean, with limited application to other U.S. territories. Most of the countries selected by the U.S. government to be in the program are high-income economies with a very high Human Development Index and are regarded as developed countries.

Israel’s entry into the 37-nation U.S. Visa Waiver Program is the most controversial element in a pair of broader U.S.-Israel bills dealing with everything from improving cybersecurity to enhancing economic cooperation. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen is hoping to get the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s approval before Congress’ August recess. A version by Sen. Barbara Boxer is picking up support in the Senate.

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