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October
2005 |
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The past
month saw everyone in our
office working day and night,
sometimes even over the
weekends. The release of
October Visa Bulletin came
in with the expected news
of a tough time for employment-based
(EB) immigrant visa petitions.
So we had to work especially
hard to prepare and file
the I-140 and I-485 cases
for our clients in order
to meet the September 30
deadline. Our Attorneys
and staff were all quite
relieved when the final
case was filed.
Apart from the case
filings, we also conducted
a record number of consultations
through our Consult
Attorney service
in the last two months.
This service is one
of our efforts to provide
inexpensive and affordable
consultations to our
users – both online
and by telephone. We
feel proud when we are
able to help our clients
through the difficult
and, very often, tiring
immigration process.
One such instance is
shared with you in our
Success
Stories
section.
On my part, I was also busy
with the continuous flow
of emails received from
you. Believe me, we go through
each and every email that
we receive from our friends,
and it feels so encouraging
when you participate in
our continuous efforts to
enhance the design, features
and content of your Immigration
Monitor. A few
of our friends suggested
that we carry some information
on the Green Card Lottery.
So we decided to devote
our In
Focus section
this time to the DV Lottery
process.
Immigration Quiz
is getting more and more
difficult to judge. The
winner this time is –
Sonja
Lueg. Congratulations
for winning a FREE
online consultation!
Over 95% of the friends
who participated in Your
Opinion, our monthly
poll, are of the view that
spouses on H-4 visas should
be allowed to work in the
US. I hope our Congressmen
and Senators will take this
into consideration.
The Industry
Perspective
section covers the increase
in activity during the past
few weeks for employment-based
visas, and discusses the
effect of this development
on employers.
Since most of the newsletter
this month focuses on green
cards, we thought it would
a good idea to explain the
EB-5 category also. This
month’s Immigration
Article is Buying
a Green Card: EB-5 Investor
Visa.
I hope you enjoy this issue
of Immigration Monitor.
Do
let me know if you would
like to see a specific topic
covered in future editions.
And hey, do you know that
you can share this newsletter
with your friends or with
other people who might be
interested in our informative
content? Click on Email
to a Friend and we will
send the Immigration
Monitor to them
on your behalf.
See you next time with more
from the immigration front.
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USCIS
Filing Fees to increase from October
26
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) has announced that
it will increase the fees for immigration
benefit applications and petitions to
account for cost increases due to inflation.
The average fee increase is $10, but
the amount varies from $5–$20
relative to the amount of the application/petition
fee.
2007
Green Card Lottery registration begins
The U.S. Department of State
has announced that registration for
the 2007 Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery
will begin at noon on October 5, 2005.
House
Judiciary Committee votes to increase
L-1 fees by $1,500
The House Committee on the Judiciary
approved by a vote of 20-6, H.R. 3648,
a bill introduced by Chairman James
Sensenbrenner (R-WI), that proposes
to impose an additional $1,500 fee on
L-1 applications.
Cap
exempt H-1B visas still available
As per the latest update over 7000 visas
are still available, both for Fiscal
year 2005 and 2006. Sufficient numbers
are available for FY 2005, but the usage
of the visas for FY 2006 seems to be
heavy.
Green
Card Lottery: Your ticket to the United
States
The Green Card Lottery (also known as
Diversity Visa Lottery) Program was
introduced in the year 1990 to promote
diversity in the United States by giving
citizens of other countries to obtain
United States permanent resident visas
or green cards. All entries must be
submitted electronically during the
registration period. (For DV-2007 the
registration period is between Wednesday,
October 5, 2005 and Sunday, December
4, 2005).
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| DOWNLOAD |
| Download
this Newsletter in PDF Format |
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| IMMIGRATION
QUIZ |
Win
a FREE Online Consultation!
Submit
your answer to the query
below. The best response
will be published in the
next Immigration
Monitor and the
winner will receive a FREE
Online Consultation
from an Experienced VisaPro
Immigration Attorney during
the month of November 2005. |
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| I
am a green card holder planning
to go to France for 2 years
to work for my company.
Can I retain my permanent
resident status and reenter
US after 2 years? |
| Submit
Your Answer |
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| Winner
of the Immigration Quiz
- September 2005: |
| Sonja
Lueg |
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| The
Question: |
| I
am a US citizen and got
married in Russia last month.
I have applied for a K-3
visa for my spouse who already
has a tourist visa. Can
my spouse visit me in the
US using her tourist visa
while the K-3 petition is
pending? |
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| The
Winning Response: |
| Although
there is no law against
entering the US with a Tourist
Visa while the K3 is pending,
the US officials always
have to asume "intentions
to stay". It depends
on the officer and his personal
judgement if the tourist
visa holder passes or not.
The officer has the right
to deny entry and USCIS
may pass out a 2-5yr ban
to enter the US, if they
are not convinced, that
the purpose of the trip
was just a visit. |
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| Sonja
Lueg
receives a FREE
Online Consultation
from an Experienced VisaPro
Immigration Attorney during
the month of October 2005. |
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Visa
Number Retrogression: Tough times continue
for US employers
In September 2005, the U.S. Department
of State (DOS) released the Visa
Bulletin for the month of October
2005 which reflects widespread ‘retrogression’
in most of the employment-based (EB)
immigrant visa categories, affecting
individuals from China and India in
particular. It is essential to understand
the concept of ‘visa number’
and ‘retrogression’, as
they have a huge impact on the employment
based green card process and long-term
immigration strategy.
Buying
a Green Card: EB-5 Investor Visa
Congress created the fifth employment-based
preference (EB-5) immigrant visa category
in 1990 for immigrants seeking to enter
to engage in a commercial enterprise
that will benefit the U.S. economy and
create at least 10 full-time jobs. The
basic amount required to invest is $1
million, although that amount may be
$500,000 if the investment is made in
a ‘targeted employment area.’
Of the approximately 10,000 numbers
available for this preference each year,
3,000 are reserved for entrepreneurs
who invest in targeted employment areas.
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| IMMIGRATION
GLOSSARY |
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Labor
Certification
Requirement for US employers seeking
to employ certain persons whose
immigration to the United States
is based on job skills or nonimmigrant
temporary workers coming to perform
services for which qualified authorized
workers are unavailable in the
United States.
Labor
certification is issued by
the Secretary of Labor and contains
attestations by US employers as
to the numbers of US workers available
to undertake the employment sought
by an applicant, and the effect
of the alien's employment on the
wages and working conditions of
US workers similarly employed.
Determination of labor availability
in the United States is made at
the time of a visa application
and at the location where the
applicant wishes to work.
I-140
Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker.
This form is to petition for an
alien worker to become a permanent
resident in the United States.
This form is filed on behalf of
an alien, and not by the alien.
Employment
Authorization Document (EAD)
Employment
Authorization Document (EAD)
proves that a person is allowed
to work in the United States.
U.S. employers must check to make
sure all employees, regardless
of citizenship or national origin,
are allowed to work in the United
States. Individuals who are not
citizens or lawful permanent residents,
may need to apply for an Employment
Authorization Document (EAD) to
prove that they may work in the
United States.
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| IMMIGRATION
FAQ |
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| 1. |
What
is Adjustment of Status?
Adjustment of Status is
a procedure allowing certain
foreign nationals already
in the U.S. to apply for
immigrant status. Foreign
nationals admitted to the
U.S. in a nonimmigrant,
refugee,
or parolee
category may have their
status changed to that of
lawful permanent resident
if they are eligible to
receive an immigrant visa
and one is immediately available.
Note:
In such cases, the foreign
national is counted as an
immigrant as of the date
of adjustment, even though
the alien may have been
in the United States for
an extended period of time.
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| 2. |
How
do I apply for Adjustment
of Status in the U.S.?
To adjust your status in
the U.S., you must submit:
Note:
Please read the introductory
page to the Form I-485 carefully
for complete details. These
details are different depending
on the visa qualifications
that you have. The introductory
page will also tell you
where to file your application
for Adjustment of Status.
After you submit your application
materials, you will be asked
to go to a United States
Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) office
to answer questions about
your applications. |
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| 3. |
Will
I get a Work Permit after
applying for Adjustment
of Status?
Yes, if you are inside the
U.S. and have filed Form
I-485, Application to Register
Permanent Residence or Adjust
Status, you are eligible
to apply for a Work Permit
while your case is pending.
You should use Form
I-765, Application for
Employment Authorization
to apply for a work permit.
Note:
You do not need to apply
for a Work
Permit once you are
granted an immigrant visa
or adjust to permanent resident
status. As a legal permanent
resident, you should receive
a permanent resident card
that will provide evidence
that you have a right to
live and work in the U.S.
permanently. |
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"My first E2
Visa was arranged
in London 1991. Since
then my wife, myself
and three children
have lived in the
USA and every two
years I renewed my
E2 Visa. I was told
in London that I had
no other alterative
If I wanted to stay
in the USA.
Then four years ago
I was introduced to
an immigration firm
in Ft. Lauderdale
in Florida. They told
me they could arrange
a Green Card and took
a retainer of $5,200.00
from me that they
refuse to return.
The Green Card was
never arranged and
my E2 Visa went out
of status.
My affairs were in
a complete mess when
I found VisaPro who
managed to reinstate
my E2 Visa and now
have renewed it for
a further two years.
I would like to state
that VisaPro is a
very professional
organization. I highly
recommend their services
to anyone wishing
to live in the USA."
Sincerely,
Stephen Comerford
United Kingdom
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Monitor" is published
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