PROGRAM BACKGROUND: Congress created the EB-5 visa program in 1990 to stimulate the U.S. economy through job creation and capital investment by foreign investors. The EB-5 program makes immigrant visas available to foreign nationals who invest or are actively in the process of investing at least $1,000,000 in a new commercial enterprise (NCE) and create […]
Read more...22 January 2019
By Laura D. Francis International students primed for work in the U.S. are having a tough time getting visas under a strict, unannounced change in government policy. For at least the past couple of months, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has been denying H-1B skilled guestworker visas to former international students who worked in their field […]
Read more...16 November 2018
Red Flags for Consuls in E Visa Cases 1) Overly complicated company structures Consular officers take pride in their ability to process complex E visa cases, and many of them have a pretty sophisticated understanding of complicated business structures, but they also have limited time to analyze them. If an E visa application describes a […]
Read more...26 October 2018
On August 9, 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a revised final policy memorandum with guidance relating to the accrual of unlawful presence for F and M nonimmigrant students, and J nonimmigrant exchange visitors. Pursuant to the revised guidance which became effective on August 9, 2018, students and exchange visitors in F, J, […]
Read more...26 October 2018
Unlike Ls and Hs, there is no specific statutory recognition of dual intent for E visa holders. Compare INA§214(h) with INA 101(a)(15)(e), n.b. 8 CFR§214.2(h)(16) and 8 CFR§214.2(l)(16). Still, there is longstanding recognition that E visas are different from other visa categories. As with A and G visas, adjustment of status from an E visa requires filing an I-508 waiver […]
Read more...19 October 2018
More and more couples applying for a green card through their marriage are experiencing a longer wait period for their Green Card interview. Anastasia Tonello, president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, said she believes Trump administration policy changes are responsible in part for fueling delays by creating more work for immigration officers. Among those […]
Read more...5 October 2018
EB-5 Regional Center program is scheduled to sunset on September 30, 2018. Here are some updates to keep in mind: Non-Regional Center EB-5 Has No Sunset. It is important to remember that only the EB-5 Regional Center Program has a sunset date. If only direct job creation is requested by a client (non-Regional Center), then […]
Read more...28 September 2018
What is It? On July 13, 2018, USCIS issued new guidance regarding adjudicator discretion to deny a request for an immigration benefit without first issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE) or a Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID). The new policy makes it easier for USCIS to deny an application or petition without first issuing an RFE […]
Read more...30 August 2018
On April 18, 2017, President Trump issued the “Buy American and Hire American” (BAHA) Executive Order[1], ushering in a new immigration regime in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).[2] While the laws have not changed, the presidential directive has radically transformed DHS’s approach to adjudicating immigration cases, some would argue, to the detriment of some […]
Read more...30 August 2018
A complaint filed with the Department of Homeland Security accuses ICE of engaging in the “pervasive, illegal practice” of coercing the undocumented immigrant parents separated from their children at the border into signing documents, including deportation documents, they may not have understood. The complaint comes via the American Immigration Council and the American Immigration Lawyers Association, filed […]
Read more...25 August 2018
