Articles Posted in Top Immigration Stories

USCIS announces that 2014 Diversity Visa Program (DV-2014) will open at noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) (GMT-4), Tuesday, October 2, 2012, and will close at noon, EDT, Saturday, November 3, 2012.

Applicants must submit entries electronically during this registration period using the electronic DV entry form (E-DV) at http://www.dvlottery.state.gov. Paper entries will not be accepted. We strongly encourage applicants not to wait until the last week of the registration period to enter. No entries will be accepted after noon, EDT, on November 3, 2012.

The congressionally mandated Diversity Immigrant Visa Program is administered on an annual basis by the Department of State and conducted under the terms of Section 203(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Section 131 of the Immigration Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-649) amended INA 203 and provides for a class of immigrants known as “diversity immigrants.” Section 203(c) of the INA provides a maximum of 55,000 Diversity Visas each fiscal year to be made available to persons from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. Fifty-five thousand immigrant visas are set aside for DV immigrants; however, since DV-1999, Congress has reserved 5,000 visas from this annual allocation to be made available for use under the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (NACARA).

Our firm will able to assist in filing of the annual DV program.

Like many of my Immigration law peers, I’ve often griped about the burdens of practicing law and how court deadlines, Appeals and demanding clients at times leave little room for anything else. That all changed, however, when I stumbled upon my passion and somehow found time to pursue it while continuing to build my legal career.

It began several years ago when I was trying hard to find an economical way to market my practice. As a small law firm owner I decided that, despite my day job, I wanted to become a marketing expert. After all, I had gone to law school in my 20s in Europe, Obtained a Masters in Law passed the Bar exam, and finally started my own firm. Marketing my practice couldn’t be harder than that—could it? I would soon learn the importance of perseverance in accomplishing one’s dreams.

Within days of setting on that mission—I knew that marketing was indeed my passion. I learned that Marketing was an art as well as a science, I became captivated by this. Nothing short of that could explain my behavior. Despite the long hours at the firm, I eagerly climbed out of bed at 4 a.m. to take online courses about marketing before work. I went to seminars every weekend. On business trips I listened to podcasts in the airport, on the airplane and in my hotel room late at night. I devoted my vacations not to relaxation but to learning about Marketing. I finally found my secret formula while searching for wine online. Yes, wine. This person who was selling wine online had an amazing following online and off line. He was passionate about his business as well as Marketing. He determined that we live in special times and he called it the Thank you Economy.

He writes that “no relationships should be taken for granted. They are what life is all about, the whole point. How we cultivate our relationships is often the greatest determinant of the type of life we get to live. Business is no different. Real business isn’t done in board meetings; it’s done over a half-eaten plate of buffalo wings at the sports bar, or during the intermission of a Broadway show.

“It’s done through an enthusiastic greeting, with an unexpected recommendation, or by offering up your cab when it’s raining. It happens in the small personal interactions that allow us to prove to each other who we are and what we believe in. … Now imagine you could take those interactions and scale them to the hundreds, thousands, or even millions of people who make up your customer base, or better yet, your potential customer base.” Read: social media.

“social media” … is a misnomer that has caused a boatload of confusion. “[W]hat we call social media is not media, nor is it even a platform. It is a massive cultural shift that has profoundly affected the way society uses the greatest platform ever invented, the Internet.” Imagine the power of change this cultural shift can bring to immigration law and the need to change this system.

So I started a few Blogs and never stopped writing. I have developed a Media roster and often reached out to story craving reporters. I contributed to hundreds of online forums and started answers questions for free. Suddenly things started to happen, reports started calling and asked for my take on stories.. We got featured on the Radio, TV and National Papers. Once it is a story about H1B visa, or the Birth Right Citizenship issue, High Skilled workers leaving the US and most recently our victory for Ayded Reyes that was featured on ESPN. As we get publicity through these mediums, I always mention the problems with our immigration system and the need for reform. This is the only way to make a difference and bring the change we need.

The American Immigration Lawyers Association provided me with great tools for advocacy and information over the years. I have attended every single AILA conference since joining the organization and look forward to our meeting this June in Nashville at the National Conference. I look forward to the open forum sessions with our government partners, and look forward to using all our social media tool to update our followers live, as well as providing valuable commentary to our readers.

Bottom line is new technology is the name of the game. Companies that use YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, etc. to forge personal relationships with customers on a massive scale with untold speed, come out the winners. Others will simply be left behind. This applies to lawyers as well. Those who use this medium to connect with clients and the public to spread the word about immigration, will get more business and Change Immigration Law. Others will …oh well you know.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced that Self Check, a free online service of E-Verify that allows workers to check their own employment eligibility status, is now available in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. Launched in March 2011 by Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano and USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas, today’s announcement delivers on the goal of expanding Self Check nationally within one year.

“We are pleased to complete, ahead of schedule, our expansion of this important tool for employees,” said USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas during a press conference at the agency’s field office in Orlando, Fla. “Since our initial launch in March, approximately 67,000 people have used Self Check and we anticipate that participation will dramatically increase with service now available to individuals across the country.”
Self Check was developed through a partnership between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Social Security Administration (SSA) to provide individuals a tool to check their own employment eligibility status, as well as guidance on how to correct their DHS and SSA records. It is the first online E-Verify service offered directly to workers. Available in English and Spanish, Self Check enables individuals to enter the same information into Self Check that employers enter into E-Verify.

Since the program’s inception, thousands of individuals have used Self Check, available in English and Spanish, to access their federal employment eligibility records and for guidance on how to correct potential record discrepancies prior to the hiring process.

In August 2011, Self Check became a bi-lingual service available to users in both English and Spanish, broadening the scope of the program to members of our U.S. workforce who are more comfortable reading Spanish-language materials.

The Austrian Embassy on Thursday introduced its services for the collection of visa applications and delivery process in Jeddah through a dedicated Austria Visa Application Center (VAC) set up at VFS Global, described as the world’s largest outsourced consular services company.

The center was formally opened by Georg Postinger, deputy head of mission at the Austrian Embassy in Riyadh, and Nesma Holding Vice President Abdulaziz Gabel, who represented Austria’s local honorary consul Saleh Al-Turki. The center at the Jeddah Visa Application Center (JVAC) on Manazil Muttaqin Street, off King Abdullah Road in Ruwais district, will be operational from Jan. 14.

Postinger said: “Austria is very glad to offer to the citizens and foreign residents the possibility of handing in their visa applications not only in Riyadh but also in Jeddah. The number of Saudi citizens visiting Austria for business and tourism has seen a steady increase over the past years.

Russia will finalize the details of a long-discussed visa agreement with the United States by the end of November, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on Thursday.

“Within the next few days we will complete all the technicalities concerning simplification of the visa regime [with the United States],” Ryabkov said.

The agreement will shorten the time it takes to process visa applications and extend the visa validity period.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin proposed scrapping visa restrictions between the two countries altogether during a meeting with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden in Moscow in March.

In May, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and U.S. President Barack Obama announced plans to liberalize visa restrictions for businessmen and tourists traveling between the two countries. Under the new agreement, eligible business travelers and tourists would be issued visas valid for 36 months at a unified and reciprocal fee.

The new building of the UAE Embassy in Manila, the capital of Philippines, was inaugurated today by Ambassador of the UAE Musa Abdul Wahid Al Khaja.

The ceremony in Mckinley Hills neighborhood, Manila was attended by senior Philippine Foreign Ministry officials, Arab ambassadors and diplomats.

In a speech, Al Khaja hailed the distinguished relations between the UAE and the Philippines.

France said Wednesday it was tightening immigration rules to require would-be citizens to provide written proof that they speak enough French to manage their daily lives.

Announced in the government’s official gazette, the new rules require candidates for citizenship to “prove knowledge of the French language consistent with understanding the essential points needed to manage daily life.”Candidates previously had their language skills tested in interviews with government officials, but will now be required to provide evidence of French-language skills “by producing a diploma or certificate delivered by a state-recognised organism.”The new rules take effect in January. It is learnt that about one million foreigners living in France did not speak French.

It said the French government was growing increasingly concerned over the issue and was spending 60 million euros ($83 million) to promote French-language skills and integration among immigrants.

France grants citizenship to about 100,000 candidates every year, according to official figures.

Foreign nationals could soon have to take a test on British history before they are granted a UK passport after David Cameron set out moves to toughen up requirements for citizenship. The Prime Minister appealed to the public to “shop” illegal immigrants and announced a drive against bogus marriages as he promised to “reclaim our borders”. In a major speech on immigration, he said the Government would overhaul the structure of citizenship tests, which were introduced nine years ago by Labour, to give them a more traditional flavour.

“Instead you’ll find questions on the roles and powers of the main institutions of Europe and the benefits system within the UK. So we are going to revise the whole test and put British history and culture at the heart of it.”
Mr Cameron has set his government the target of reducing net migration to Britain from “hundreds of thousands” to “tens of thousands” by the next general election. The figure for last year was a “staggering” 239,000, he told the Institute for Government in London.

Ministers believe a series of reforms to the visa system are already beginning to have an effect and the target can be achieved. Striking a note that could dismay his Liberal Democrat coalition partners, the Prime Minister said he wanted the Government to “go further and be even tougher” on immigration. He urged the whole country to play its part in tackling the issue by reporting suspected illegal immigrants to the authorities. He declared: “Together we will reclaim our borders and send illegal immigrants home.”
Under moves set out by Mr Cameron yesterday, individuals applying to come to Britain for family reasons will have to demonstrate that they can speak English, have the means to support themselves as well as genuine family links in Britain. Families who want to sponsor overseas relatives to settle in Britain will have to post a financial bond worth thousands of pounds.

“We will make migrants wait longer, to show they really are in a genuine relationship before they can get settlement,” Mr Cameron said. “We’ll also impose stricter tests on the genuineness of a relationship, including the ability to speak the same language and to know each other’s circumstances.

“We will also end the ridiculous situation where a registrar who knows a marriage is a sham still has to perform the ceremony.”
Mr Cameron also confirmed that forcing someone to marry against their will could become a criminal offence. He said he had asked the Home Secretary, Theresa May, to consult on whether the practice should be outlawed in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Yvette Cooper MP, the shadow Home Secretary, said: “The Prime Minister needs to realise that making pledges and consistently failing to meet them undermines trust in the entire system.”

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Alejandro Mayorkas joined the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness in Pittsburgh to announce “Entrepreneurs in Residence.” This new innovative initiative will utilize industry expertise to strengthen USCIS policies and practices surrounding immigrant investors, entrepreneurs and workers with specialized skills, knowledge, or abilities. Mayorkas announced the initiative at the Jobs Council’s High Growth Entrepreneurship Listening and Action Session at AlphaLab in Pittsburgh before the Council’s quarterly meeting with President Obama.

“This initiative creates additional opportunities for USCIS to gain insights in areas critical to economic growth,” said Director Mayorkas. “The introduction of expert views from the private and public sector will help us to ensure that our policies and processes fully realize the immigration law’s potential to create and protect American jobs.”
USCIS will launch the “Entrepreneurs in Residence” initiative with a series of informational summits with industry leaders to gather high-level strategic input. Informed by the summits, the agency will stand up a tactical team comprised of entrepreneurs and experts, working with USCIS personnel, to design and implement effective solutions. This initiative will strengthen USCIS’s collaboration with industries, at the policy, training, and officer level, while complying with all current Federal statutes and regulations.

The initiative builds upon USCIS’s August announcement of efforts to promote startup enterprises and spur job creation, including enhancements to the EB-5 immigrant investor visa program. Since August, USCIS is:
– Conducting a review of the EB-5 process
– Working with business analysts to enhance the EB-5 adjudication process
– Implementing direct access for EB-5 Regional Center applicants to reach adjudicators quickly; and
– Launching new specialized training modules for USCIS officers on the EB-2 visa classification and L-1B nonimmigrant intra-company transferees.

Overseas visitors who fail to pay off their debts for NHS treatment will soon be denied permission to enter or stay in the UK, Immigration Minister Damian Green has announced. Changes to the Immigration Rules were laid in Parliament today, meaning that those subject to immigration control who fail to settle an outstanding bill of £1,000 or more will not be allowed to enter or remain in the UK until the debt is paid off.

Damian Green said:
‘The NHS is designed to meet the healthcare needs of the UK and we won’t tolerate abuse of this service.

‘We welcome overseas visitors, but those who use NHS facilities need to pay for them, or they will be barred from coming here.

‘It’s very simple – pay up or you won’t be welcome in the UK.’
The NHS will provide information that will enable the UK Border Agency to identify the debtors and – when they apply to return to or remain in the UK – to refuse their applications. The information sharing arrangements are being phased in over the coming months.

It is hoped that the £1,000 threshold will capture 94 per cent of outstanding charges owed to the NHS. This change follows consultations carried out last year by the UK Border Agency and the Department of Health. A 2009 review set out to examine the rules on charging overseas visitors for access to NHS services in England.

The change was announced in a written ministerial statement, which you can download from the right side of this page. Our Consultations section contains an impact assessment and policy equality statement relating to the change.