Immigration Articles  |
| Useful articles on a variety of immigration topics. |
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| Staffing or Third-Party Placement Consulting Companies May No Longer Qualify for H-1B Visas |
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| On January 8, 2010, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a memorandum intended to clarify the meaning of the “employer-employee” relationship for H-1B visas. The January 8 memo focuses in particular on the employer-employee relationship where beneficiaries are placed at third-party worksites, are independent contractors, or are self-employed. While the January 8 memo does not change any of the basic requirements for H-1B visa classification, the clarifications provided means that USCIS will be taking a closer look at all H-1B visa petitions, both new employment and extension petitions. The article will address several of the main points of the USCIS memorandum on H-1B visas through a “Question and Answer” format. |
| Grab Your Opportunity to File an H1B Visa With VisaPro's H-1B Timeline |
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| As many of you already know, April 1 marks the first day that USCIS accepts H-1B petitions for the federal government’s fiscal year beginning on October 1. The competition for the coveted H-1B visa has been intensifying over the years and now the situation is in a dire state. Filing early is no longer a guarantee of obtaining an H-1B visa; it is now a prerequisite for even being considered. The H-1B timeline discussed in this article will help every company interested in sponsoring an H-1B worker, plan ahead and prepare to file the nonimmigrant visa petition in a timely manner. |
| H-1B Visa - 12 Common Myths and Realities |
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| The H-1B visa category is one of the most preferred visas for foreign nationals who wish to work in the U.S. However there are few common myths attached to it. Let’s take a look at these myths and learn the true facts about H-1B visa. |
| The Child Status Protection Act: How Does it Help an Aged-Out Child to Get a Green Card? |
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| The U.S. immigration law can be harsh. We all know that but the worst part of the immigration law comes up when it separates a child from his or her parents. A recent survey shows that one in 10 families whose family-based immigrant petition has been approved has a child who has aged-out. What do the parents do in such a situation? Do they go to the U.S. anyway, leaving their child back in their home country? Or do they let go of their dream of living in the U.S. to remain with their child? This article will not only answer all these questions but will also tell you how the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) helps a child to become a legal permanent resident if the child turns 21, and ages-out during the processing of the Green Card application. |
| Fiancée Visa Processing in East Asian Countries |
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| Many Consular Posts implement and follow varied visa application procedures and policies depending on the local conditions and requirements. In this article we attempt to cover K-1 visa processing procedures followed by Consular Posts in East Asian countries like China, Korea, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. The information below will help foreign national fiancés from these countries be better prepared for the K-1 visa interview. |
| U.S. Travel Tips - 7 Tips for Travelers to the U.S. for a Safe Journey |
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| Travelers to the U.S. get so excited by the thought of going to the U.S. that they fail to undertake the basic precautions for a safe journey to the U.S. and ultimately they land in trouble. In this article, we discuss 7 travel tips which will help the travelers to the U.S. to be prepared for a safe journey and a secure stay in the U.S. Read the article ‘U.S. Travel Tips - 7 Tips for Travelers to the U.S. for a Safe Journey’ to learn what are the things the travelers to the U.S. should take care and what are the things they should avoid to ascertain a safe journey to the U.S. |
| Optional Practical Training (OPT) for 29 Months: Are You Eligible? |
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| The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had good news for students who are studying in the U.S. or who intend to do so. They released an interim final rule that extends the period of Optional Practical Training (OPT) for qualified F-1 non-immigrant students from the current 12 months to a maximum of 29 months. The extension will be available to F-1 students with a degree in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics and who are employed by businesses enrolled in the E-Verify program. The new rule will provide some relief for US companies seeking to attract and retain highly skilled foreign workers. Under the prior regulations students were granted a maximum of 12 months of OPT so would often be required to leave the US, even when they were the beneficiary of an approved H-1B petition. |
| MAVNI Program: Direct US Citizenship without Permanent Resident Status |
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| The Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) program is a program which authorizes certain branches of the military to recruit certain legal aliens whose skills are considered to be vital to the national interest. The one-year MAVNI pilot program allows the military to recruit up to 1,000 non-citizens who do not have permanent resident status, but who have been in US legally for at least two years. The MAVNI Program allows foreign nationals that join the military to apply for U.S Citizenship through naturalization without first having to obtain permanent resident status. In this article, we will explore how the one-year MAVNI Program gives a direct route to U.S Citizenship regardless of the permanent resident status of the foreign national. |
| Did You Know About the J-1 Umbrella Sponsor and its Advantages in Obtaining a J-1 Visa? |
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| US immigration law has provisions for several categories of “J-1 Exchange Visitors”, which include Au Pairs, camp counselors, summer work/travel, physicians, professors and researchers, short-term scholars, teachers, students, and trainees. To obtain a J-1 visa, you need to have an employer and the employer must be pre-authorized by the State Department to sponsor a J-1. But not all the employers are pre-authorized to have their own J-1 program. Thus, the J-1 umbrella program comes to rescue in such situation. In this article we will focus on the trainee program and discuss what a J-1 umbrella sponsor is. We will also talk about the use of an umbrella sponsor to obtain a J-1 visa. |
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