Visa Lawyer Blog

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On September 24, 2010 the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law held a hearing titled “Protecting America’s Harvest” at 9:30 a.m. in room 2141 of the Rayburn House Office Building.

Here is what Arturo S. Rodriguez President, United Farm Workers of America had to say:

Our society places all the risks and costs associated with a seasonal industry–featuring millions of short-term jobs–on the backs of the workers. For example, if there is a freeze, as occurred last year in Florida and thousands of workers are left without work, there is no unemployment assistance even though emergency aid is promptly extended to agricultural employers.

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This is an important update from AILA for our readers.The following is guidance regarding I-9 and immigration-related discrimination issues in response to the invalidation of pre-July 1, 2010 Puerto Rico birth certificates.

Q: Why is there a new law on Puerto Rico birth certificates?

A: The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security, which investigates U.S. passport fraud, has long had concerns about the prevalence of fraud in passports based on Puerto Rico birth certificates. The State Department reports that about 40% of all passport fraud investigations involve Puerto Rico birth records. In part, the problem was a result of the prevalent use of birth certificates in Puerto Rico for all sorts of unofficial and official transactions and the retention of original true copy birth records by diverse organizations across all sectors of society, including schools, churches, sports teams, and government voter and driver registration offices. Often these birth certificates were not stored in secure environments and, as a result, many were stolen and sold.

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Paris Hilton is not big in Japan. The socialite and entrepreneur was denied entry into the country by immigration officials because of her very fresh conviction for cocaine possession, and flew home to the United States yesterday, the Associated Press reports. She also canceled her appearances in Malaysia and Indonesia, but told reporters she hoped to return soon.

Hilton, who was detained and grilled by immigration officials for hours Tuesday, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor cocaine possession and obstructing a police officer after she and her boyfriend were busted in Las Vegas by a motorcycle.

What is she was a foreign national trying to enter the US?

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Bad news for Dream Act supporters, On 9/21/10, the Senate failed to reach the 60 votes needed to pass a motion to proceed to consideration of the fiscal 2011 defense authorization bill (S. 3454). Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) had previously announced his intention to offer the DREAM Act as an amendment to the bill. After it was evident that the votes needed to proceed would fall short, Senator Reid switched his vote to “no” in order to preserve his right to bring the bill up again which would mostly likely be during the lame duck session of the 111th Congress.

Senate Republicans were joined by Arkansas Democrats Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor in voting down the measure by a vote of 56-43.

Here is what the President of the American Immigration Lawyers Association had to say:

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The UAE’s Ministry of Labor announced plans to use online filing system to speed up the application process for work permits across the country.

In the existing system, a representative from the company must go to the ministry’s physical location to apply for a work permit, a process that unnecessarily consumes time. The new system, on the other hand, will enable applicants to submit all documents electronically. Moreover, companies will be able to process the work permits through a software that they can buy, or use at selected service centers.

Humaid bin Deemas, the executive director for Labour Affairs at the ministry, said we want to make sure that procedures will not form obstacles for any future changes in the criteria for the work permit and this move will work towards that end. It will also enable the ministry to concentrate more on formulating policies rather than spending time on mere procedures.

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On August 18, 2010 we were the first to report the new trend coming from some local Immigration offices, mainly San Diego, regarding Visa Waiver overstay Issues. To recap a recent internal Memo from San Diego stated the following:

” To all Adjudicators effective immediately, any immigrants that have entered to the US under the Visa Waiver program and failed to file for adjustment of Status before the expiration of the 90 days authorized stay, MUST BE denied at the time of the interview.” The email was not very long but that was the general idea.

I could never imagine that they will follow through with denials of Visa Waiver overstay cases, but our first denial came in on Friday. See below the complete decision. The decision is written poorly, stating a partially true legal fact. The fact that when one overstays the Visa Waivers they can not adjust or seek hearing before a judge, UNLESS they are a beneficiary of an immediate relative petition. The USCIS failed to mention this exception in the denial as you can see below. So what will be the future of Visa Waiver adjustments, that still remains to be seen. We are in the process of filing a motion to re open and will keep our readers posted.

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As a service to our readers we publish local ceremony dates. If USCIS approves your application for naturalization, you must attend a ceremony and take the Oath of Allegiance to the United States. USCIS will notify you by mail of the time and date of your ceremony.

The notice USCIS sends you is called the “Notice of Naturalization Oath Ceremony” (Form N-445). In some cases, USCIS may give you the option to take the Oath on the same day as your interview. If you decide to take a “same day” oath, USCIS will ask you to come back to the office later that day. At this time, you will take the Oath and receive your Certificate of Naturalization.

If you cannot go to the oath ceremony, you should return the “Notice of Naturalization Oath Ceremony” (Form N-445) that USCIS sent to you. You should send the N-445 back to your local office. Include a letter saying why you cannot go to the ceremony. Make a copy of the notice and your letter before you send them to USCIS. Your local office will reschedule you and send you a new “Notice of Naturalization Oath Ceremony” (Form N-445) to tell you when your ceremony will be.

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The DREAM Act could be offered as an amendment to the Defense Authorization bill being considered in the Senate next week. In a blog entry earlier this afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced his intention to include the DREAM Act in the major defense bill scheduled for floor action next week. The version of the Defense Authorization bill that passed the House of Representatives in late May did not include the DREAM Act provision. If the Senate passes their version of the defense bill with the DREAM Act intact, it will still need to survive the conference committee reconciliation and then come back before each chamber for a final vote.

The DREAM Act, which has some bipartisan support, would allow young illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. before age 16, and have been here for at least five years, to earn legal status if they pass background checks, attend college or serve in the military for at least two years.

A version of the measure was first introduced in 2001 and was drafted to address the situation of children and teenage immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally by their parents and have only known the U.S. as home. Many have no family or ties to their countries of birth.

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