State Department

Possible Class Action by famous Attorney Ira Kurzban for UNNJ students.

  • Posted on July 28, 2016
  • /Under UNNJ
This is an announcement from a group of volunteers from UNNJ regarding all those affected by the University of Northern New Jersey (UNNJ) tragic situation. We are UNNJ student volunteer group founded by 15 former UNNJ students. In the past 2 months, we were actively seeking opportunities of a class action to fight against the fraud charge and regain our lawful status. Up to this moment, we have made significant progress. The legend of American Immigration Law, Mr. Ira Kurzban, who is a past-national President of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and has…Read More Breaking News

August 2016 Visa Bulletin is out and bad news for every EB categories!

The August 2016 Visa Bulletin is probably one of the biggest horror stories in years, not only we are not seeing a movement for India, we are seeing retrogression on EB1 for China and India. There is a retrogression on EB2 for all countries of the world . They have also added El-Salvador and Honduras which is also retrogressed. We will prepare our prediction for September 2016 in the coming weeks and unfortunately, it seems we are not going to see good things happening. Let us wait and see!Read More Breaking News

Consulting companies can place STEM OPT students but cannot sign the form I-983

After a clarification from DHS that placement companies also known as consulting companies can actually place students on 24 Months STEM OPT, there is still the question on who or which organization is allowed to sign on form I-983 to obtain the form I-20 OPT and ultimately get a work authorization. This article from the website of "Study in the States" partly clarifies who can actually sign on the form I-983 in such cases.  The DHS is mentioning who should sign he form I-983  when candidates are placed at a third party organization.…Read More Breaking News

Shah Peerally Law Show June 30th 2016

This law shows covers H4 visa and H4 EADs most frequently asked questions including changing jobs while and spouse on H4 EAD, revocation of I-140 impact on H4 and H4 EAD.  Attorney Shah Peerally also covers issues relating to students new rules on I-983.  Listen to the recorded podcast on ITunes, Google play and Podomatics.Read More Breaking News

Alert for F1 Students entering the United States

June 15 - 2016 - We have been getting multiple reports of students being returned from the airport on just impression that they are not compliant with the student visa. Note that these are called expedited removal proceedings which carry a mandatory bar of 5 years to entry to the United States. We are advising cautions to foreign students and we recommend talking to a lawyer before traveling abroad. You can reach us at (510) 742 5887 if you need help.Read More Breaking News

August 2016 Visa Bulletin Predictions!

June 13 2016 - We have made a prediction for August 2016 on the Visa Bulletin. Unfortunately things do not look good for India and China. We might unfortunately be seeing even another retrogression for both India and China. Having said that, you never know with the Visa Bulletin, we might actually see a better situation. Subscribe to our Youtube channel for updates. Let us hope for the best, please sign our petition below - to reduce the time on EB2 for India and China.Read More Breaking News

Visa at the US Consular in India highly backlogged.

Just like the Visa Bulletin for India, the waiting time at the US consulate for India is totally backlogged. This what AILA posted today. U.S. Consular Posts in India are currently experiencing extraordinary wait times for nonimmigrant visa (NIV) interview appointments. At the time of this writing, the current wait times for all NIV categories other than B, F, and J are: Chennai - 75 days Hyderabad - 93 days Kolkata - 96 days Mumbai - 88 days New Delhi - 100 days In discussing this issue with the Visa Office, the AILA…Read More Breaking News

July 2016 Visa Bulletin is out and no good news for India and China

As expected the July 2016 Visa Bulletin for India and China has not improved from June 2016. At this point it seems only a miracle would help. We are going to analyze further on a few hours on our youtube channel. Please see the chart for processing time for F category and EB categories: Family Processing Family- Sponsored  All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed CHINA-mainland born INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES  F1 22MAR09 22MAR09 22MAR09 08MAR95 01FEB05 F2A 15NOV14 15NOV14 15NOV14 01SEP14 15NOV14 F2B 08DEC09 08DEC09 08DEC09 08SEP95 01JUL05 F3 01DEC04 01DEC04 01DEC04 22OCT94 01MAR94…Read More Breaking News

Open Letter to President Obama on Visa Bulletin Retrogression for India and China

June 2, 2016 The Honorable Barack Obama President of the United States The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, DC 20500 Mr. President: I am writing in regards to severe, debilitating delays in employment based immigration wait times for Indian and Chinese nationals seeking to enter the United States or change status from non-immigrant employment visas to employment based immigration visas in primarily the second and third categories. The State Department’s June 2016 Visa Bulletin indicates a 4-year retrogression for India. In May 2016, India was 8 years behind being current, i.e., authorized…Read More Breaking News

What is/are acceptable field(s) to be filled for CPT or OPT employment.

Following a question by AILA members on CPT and OPT, this is what the USCIS answered: Some Designated School Officials (DSOs) endorse Forms I-20 with only the dates of practical training, and not the employer name. May an employer accept such an I-20 (with the passport and I-94 card) for I-9 purposes without additional documentation, or must the employer obtain documentation listing the specific employer? An acceptable Form I-20 for curricular practical training or optional practical training STEM extension (STEM OPT) should have all Employment Authorization fields completed. The Form I-20 Employment Authorization…Read More Breaking News

Are the Students of NorthWestern Polytechnic University (NPU) in trouble?

May 30 2016 - Is NPU (NorthWestern Polytechnic University) next in the list of investigated Universities? An article on Buzzfeed on May 26 2016 describes NPU as “A college on the edge of Silicon Valley has turned itself into an upmarket visa mill, a BuzzFeed News investigation has found, deploying a system of fake grades and enabling thousands of foreign students to enter the United States each year — while generating millions of dollars in tuition revenue for the school and the family who controls it." The issue at hand is not whether NPU…Read More Breaking News

Dealing with Denials on INA 214(b) – How is your luck?

What is INA 214(b)? Denials on INA 214(b) is the most common denial at the US consulates. Note that INA 214(b) rarely applies to dual-intent visas such as H1, H4, O visas. However, it is extensively used for B1 visas, B2 visas and F1 visas denials. The law reads: (b) Every alien 10/ (other than a nonimmigrant described in subparagraph (L) or (V) of section 101(a)(15), and other than a nonimmigrant described in any provision of section 101(a)(15)(H)(i) except subclause (b1) of such section) shall be presumed to be an immigrant until he establishes to the satisfaction of the consular officer, at the time…Read More Breaking News