A Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa program

This is a report from the Congressional Research Service on the EB5 investor program. The program allows some investors to obtain a perament residence in the United States. Summary The immigrant investor visa was created in 1990 to benefit the U.S. economy through employment creation and an influx of foreign capital into the United States. The visa is also referred to as the EB-5 visa because it is the fifth employment preference immigrant visa category. The EB-5 visa provides lawful permanent residence (i.e., LPR status) to foreign nationals who invest a specified amount…Read More Breaking News

Beware of Immigration Scammers!

May 2 2015 - It has been to our attention by many callers that they are receiving a call from someone claiming to be from immigration.  The voice is appearing with a caller ID of "911" telling people that if they don't pay $5000 or $10,000, they will be immediately deported.  Please note that all those callers are scammers trying to get money from poor immigrants knowing their fear. First of all the government does not call this way.  Second, there is a process before someone is deported. If you are victim of…Read More Breaking News

USCIS completed the H1B 2017 lottery today.

USCIS announced on May 2, 2016, that it has completed data entry of all fiscal year 2017 H-1B cap-subject petitions selected in our computer-generated random process. USCIS will now begin returning all H-1B cap-subject petitions that were not selected. Due to the high volume of filings, USCIS is unable to provide a definite time frame for returning these petitions. USCIS asks petitioners not to inquire about the status of submitted cap-subject petitions until they receive a receipt notice or an unselected petition is returned. USCIS will issue an announcement once all the unselected…Read More Breaking News

OPT Denials especially based on the 30 day Rule

Recently there has been a surge in OPT denials because of some of the reasons below: 1. OPT filed not meeting the 30 day rule 2. OPT denied because of CPT 3. OPT denied because of transfer of  SEVIS 4. OPT denied because DSO did not properly update SEVIS. 5. OPT denied because form I-765 not properly filed. The video below covers the issueRead More Breaking News

There are nearly 1.2 million international students with F (academic) or M (vocational) status studying in the United States

ICE releases quarterly international student data F, M students up 6.2 percent compared to March 2015; Number of certified schools down 3 percent ICE releases quarterly international student dataICE releases quarterly international student dataICE releases quarterly international student data WASHINGTON — There are nearly 1.2 million international students with F (academic) or M (vocational) status studying in the United States according to the latest "SEVIS by the Numbers," a quarterly report on international student trends prepared by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), part of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland…Read More Breaking News

List of Civil Rights Organizations – UNNJ Updates

Since the situation of the UNNJ is getting quite complicated, many students have suggested that they should contact a civil rights organizations or similar organizations to help. Note that unless the organization agrees to help, you cannot force them to do so. However, if many students call them individually and ask them to help, it will have an impact .  Since most of these organizations will work in the interest of justice, we can only recommend to students to seek their help. Well-known organizations which usually handle immigration and civil rights issues are:…Read More Breaking News

Couple Indicted for $20 Million Visa Fraud Involving Indian Workers

Press Release from United States District Attorneys Office - Eastern District of Virginia. ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Raju Kosuri, 44, and Smriti Jharia, 45, of Ashburn, as well as four co-conspirators, were indicted by a federal grand jury yesterday on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and visa fraud, among other charges. According to the indictment, Kosuri, his spouse Jharia, and their co-conspirators have fraudulently applied for more than 800 illegal immigration benefits under the H-1B visa program.  Since 2008, and at much greater scale since 2011, Kosuri has built a staffing…Read More Breaking News

The E3 Visa for Australians

The non-immigrant E3 Visa was created by the REAL ID Act of 2005 : It is the “Reciprocal Visas for Nationals of Australia.”   There are 10,500 E-3 visas allotted annually to qualified individuals. Though the E-3 Visa is classified in the same category as E-1 (treaty trader) and E-2 (treaty investor) visas, E-3 visas share some similarities with H-1B Visas (workers in a specialty occupation). Therefore, the E-3 Visa can be understood as a slight hybrid between the two categories, and the E-3 visa has unique traits such as: An E-3 candidate…Read More Breaking News

Immigration Relief for Those Affected by Severe Earthquakes

USCIS offers immigration relief measures for people affected by natural disasters, such as the severe earthquakes that recently occurred in Ecuador, Japan and Burma. These measures may be available upon request: * Change or extension of nonimmigrant status if you are currently in the United States, even if the request is filed after your authorized period of admission has expired; * Re-parole, if you were previously granted parole by USCIS; * Expedited processing of requests for advance parole documents; * Expedited adjudication of requests for off-campus employment authorization for F-1 students experiencing severe…Read More Breaking News

USCIS Affirmative asylum schedule as of April 25 2016

  • Posted on April 26, 2016
  • /Under Asylum
USCIS’s Affirmative Asylum Scheduling Bulletin as of 4/25/16. This Bulletin explains how the Asylum Division has prioritized the adjudication of affirmative applications for asylum. As you can see for most of the regular cases, it is around 2 years to get an interview. This Bulletin explains how the Asylum Division has prioritized the adjudication of affirmative applications for asylum.  On December 26, 2014, we began prioritizing asylum applications for interview scheduling as follows: 1.) Applications that were scheduled for an interview, but the interview had to be rescheduled at the applicant’s request or…Read More Breaking News

Ex-ICE attorney Jonathan Love sentenced to prison for falsifying document in immigration case

ICE, Apr 20, 2016 - "A former attorney for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) who used a falsified document in an immigration proceeding, was sentenced Wednesday in federal court to 30 days in prison, 100 hours of community service, one year of supervised release, and a 10-year ban on practicing law. Jonathan M. Love, 58, pleaded guilty in January 2016 to deprivation of constitutional rights under color of law. At Wednesday’s sentencing Magistrate Judge Brian A. Tsuchida said, “This is a very sad day…for no good reason you did great harm to…Read More Breaking News

Guide to Law Enforcement on U and T Visas

The U visa is actually an important visa for many, as such the Department of Homeland Security has created a guide for law enforcement on U visas. We have essentially attached the guide to our series on U visas. U and T Visa Law Enforcement Resource Guide The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) provides this guidance to federal, state, local, tribal and territorial law enforcement officers. This public guidance primarily concerns law enforcement certifications for U nonimmigrant status, also known as U visas. The U visa is an immigration benefit that can be…Read More Breaking News

H1B Visa Alternatives – What can someone do if not selected in the H1B lottery?

  • Posted on April 23, 2016
  • /Under H1B
April 23 2016 - As you all know USCIS has received approximately 250,000 for the 2017 H1B Cap, many are now worried and looking for other options or alternatives to the H1B visas.  The truth is that H1B is the most sought out visa in the industry. However there might be other solutions for you depending on your situation.  This is why it is good to have a good lawyer assess the case for you. The video below covers some but only some of the alternatives to the H1B visa.  You can call…Read More Breaking News