USCIS Fee Increase December 23; Significant EB-5 Increases; Income Based Naturalization Fees
On October 24, USCIS announced new processing fees which will be effective December 23, 2016. The fee increase is the first in six years. There is an average 21 percent increase for most forms. The fee increase was driven by the need to recover the full cost of services which include costs associated with fraud […]
Planificación de una Presidencia Trump: Opciones de Inmigración
El 8 de noviembre de 2016, el Sr. Donald Trump fue elegido para ser el 45.o presidente de los Estados Unidos. La retórica utilizada por la campaña Trump colocó a muchas comunidades de inmigrantes en el miedo. Muchos inmigrantes indocumentados ahora viven con incertidumbre acerca de su futuro en los Estados Unidos. Muchos extranjeros en […]
Planning for a Trump Presidency: Immigration Options
On November 8, 2016, Mr. Donald Trump was elected to be the 45th president of the United States. The rhetoric of used by the Trump campaign placed many immigrant communities in fear. Many undocumented immigrants are now living with uncertainty about their future in the United States. Many foreign nationals in the United States have […]
Meet with United States Attorney Vishal Chander About Immigration Through Investment
Meet with United States Attorney Vishal Chander About Immigration Through Investment Mr. Vishal Chander, a United States Immigration Attorney, will be offering free consultations in Bangkok to individuals interested in learning more about immigration to the United States through foreign investment, trade, and business. Mr. Chander is a United States immigration lawyer who currently leads […]
October Visa Bulletin Released: EB-1 Current; Family Based Retrogression; Regional Center EB-5 Unavailable
The highly anticipated October 2016 Visa Bulletin was released today. As expected visa availability for the EB-1 category moved to current for all countries. EB-2 visa availability moved to current for the Global, Mexico, and Philippines numbers. China EB-3 availability moved up to January 22, 2013 priority dates. There was no significant movement forward in […]
Long Awaited International Entrepreneur Rule to be Released for Comment
In what will perhaps be the final immigration action taken during the Obama presidency, the Department of Homeland Security released the long awaited proposed rules entitled International Entrepreneur Rule. The proposed rule would add new regulatory provisions guiding the use of parole on a case-by-case basis with respect to entrepreneurs of start-up entities whose entry […]
Visa Bulletin Predictions from Charlie Oppenheim
On August 12, 2016, the American Immigration Lawyers Association Department of State Liaison Committee spoke with Charles Oppenheim, Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division for the U.S. Department of State to obtain his analysis and predictions for visa bulleting trends in the future. Here are some of the most important highlights: EB-2 Worldwide […]
USCIS Issues Final Rule Providing Employment Authorization to H-1B Spouses
On February 25, the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued final regulations making H-4 dependent spouse status holders eligible for an employment authorization document (EAD) under two circumstances: 1) where the H-1B principal is the beneficiary of an approved I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker or 2) where the H-1B principle has been […]
District Court Vacates H-2B Regulations: USCIS Suspends H-2B Adjudications
On March 5, 2015, the Federal District Court for the Northern District of Florida vacated the 2008 Department of Labor (DOL) regulations covering the H-2B temporary labor program. As a result, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) announced it was no longer processing requests for prevailing wage determinations or applications for temporary labor certifications […]
Preparing for H-1B Season: Tips for Filing and After
With the coming of the New Year also comes the beginning of a new H-1B filing season. The H‒1B visa program is the primary method United States companies use to hire foreign nationals in IT, engineering, and business professions. H-1B visas are subject to a strict quota which does not meet the current demand. The […]