IN ur prior article, it was pointed out that an application for an immigrant visa and certain non-immigrant visas may be denied due to certain criminal grounds of inadmissibility. In some cases, the applicant can request for a waiver so a visa can be issued despite that ground. A waiver is a request by the alien…
RECENTLY, he merican Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the ACLU of Massachusetts, on behalf of 10 U.S. citizens and a permanent resident, sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) before the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts over its warrantless searches of travelers’ electronic devices at the border. Based on the…
SOME debtors contemplating filing bankruptcy have expressed their personal preference of filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy, instead of Chapter 13, for various reasons such as a shorter time frame to get a discharge under a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing. While a majority of bankruptcy filings may qualify for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, some might not. One needs…
ON September 5, 2017, President Trump, through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), announced the rescission of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. As a backgrounder, on June 12, 2012, then President Obama, also through the DHS, issued a Memorandum Entitled “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United…
IN an advisory dated August 28, 2017, the USCIS informed the public starting October 1, 2017, in person interviews will now be required for certain applicants seeking permanent residency status in the U.S. This new directive applies to: • “Adjustment of status applications based on employment (Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust…
LAST August 2, 2017, the Trump Administration endorsed new legislation called “Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment (RAISE) Act” that would change the system of granting legal permanent residency. The act was introduced by Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR) and David Perdue (R-GA). (This is not a law yet. The bill must be approved by both…
ONE of the goals of bankruptcy is to allow debtor-filers to start anew. This means that after filing bankruptcy and getting a discharge of their debts, these debtors will be in a position to move on financially. Allowing these debtors to keep certain basic assets despite a bankruptcy filing is one way of helping debtor…
LAST May 31, 2017, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security issued an advisory that the CBP will now remind travelers to the US of their last possible departure date, according to the terms of their admission, in two (2) ways: by email and through a new feature in the…
ONE of the goals of bankruptcy is to allow debtor-filers to start anew. This means that after filing bankruptcy and getting a discharge of their debts, these debtors will be in a position to move on financially. Allowing these debtors to keep certain basic assets despite a bankruptcy filing is one way of helping debtor…
IT’S H-1B season again. On 4/3/2017, the USCIS will start accepting H-1B applications for the 2018 fiscal year. As you may be aware, the H-1B non-immigrant visa is used by various U.S. businesses to hire or employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise in specialized fields, such as accountants, scientists,…
Executive Order 13768 ON January 25, 2017, President Trump issued one of his controversial executive actions on immigration, Executive Order 13768 entitled “Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States” which effectively places any undocumented individual in the United States at risk of deportation. The executive action directs the Department of Homeland Security…
SINCE President Trump’s inauguration last January 20, 2017, the President has issued three (3) executive actions on immigration, namely, (1) Executive Order 13769, “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States” issued on January 27, 2017; (2) Executive Order 13768 ,“Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States” issued on…
IF you are an applicant for an immigration visa, K visa, or V non-immigrant visa, your application may be denied if you are found inadmissible under certain circumstances. In this case, you may file an application for waiver for pacific grounds, such as health-related grounds of inadmissibility, certain criminal grounds of inadmissibility, or immigrant fraud…
AS you may be aware, the USCIS has started implementation last June 2016 the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program (“FWVP”). The program allows certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans (“FWV”) who are beneficiaries of an approved I-130 Petition to apply for parole with the USCIS so they can come to…
Prior to April 30, 2013, all aliens admitted to the US in a non-immigrant visa status were required to fill-up a form, Form I-94, Arrival and Departure Record, and present the same to a Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) Officer who then stamps the form and gives the final approval for admission of the alien….
IN our prior article, it was pointed out that an application for an immigrant visa and certain non-immigrant visas may be denied due to certain criminal grounds of inadmissibility. In some cases, the applicant can request for a waiver so a visa can be issued despite that ground. A waiver is a request by the…
AS you may be aware, the USCIS has started implementation last June 2016 the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program (“FWVP”). The program allows certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans (“FWV”) who are beneficiaries of an approved I-130 Petition to apply for parole with the USCIS so they can come to…
IF you are an applicant for an immigration visa, K visa, or V non-immigrant visa, your application may be denied if you are found inadmissible under certain circumstances. In this case, you may file an application for waiver for pacific grounds, such as health-related grounds of inadmissibility, certain criminal grounds of inadmissibility, or immigrant fraud…
On 7/29/16, the USCIS announced the release of the final rule on the “Expansion of Provisional Unlawful Presence Waivers of Inadmissibility”. This rule expands the class of individuals who may be eligible for a provisional waiver of unlawful presence ground of inadmissibility and takes effect on 8/29/2016. Before an alien who is unlawfully present in…
ONE of the goals of bankruptcy is to allow debtor-filers to start anew. This means that after filing bankruptcy and getting a discharge of their debts, these debtors will be in a position to move on financially. Allowing these debtors to keep certain basic assets despite a bankruptcy filing is one way of helping debtor…
(Part 2) IN an earlier article, I discussed about the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program (“FWVP”). The FWVP allows certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans (“FWV”) are beneficiaries of an approved I-130 Petition to apply for parole with the USCIS so they can come to the US while waiting for…
STARTING June 8, certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans (“FWV”) and who are beneficiaries of approved I-130 petitions can apply for parole with the USCIS so they can come to the US while waiting for their immigrant visa to become available (or to become current). This is pursuant to the July 2015…
FOR married couples who are contemplating bankruptcy, one of the primary concerns they have is whether or not they can file singly. Stated otherwise, if you are married, can you file Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy without your spouse? Yes, you can. Actually, you have three (3) options as to your status when filing…
A DEBTOR with a judgment against him needs to determine if he can discharge his personal liability under that judgment in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition. That would depend whether the underlying debt is dischargeable or not. (In bankruptcy, a discharge is the final order issued by the bankruptcy court which releases the debtor from…
BECAUSE of the current economic downturn, some people are interested about bankruptcy as a relief to their financial dilemma. I deem it therefore appropriate to discuss bankruptcy and Chapter 7 bankruptcy in particular. Any person who resides or is domiciled in the US can file bankruptcy. In fact, a foreigner who owns property or has…
DECIDING to file bankruptcy is a difficult decision for most. On one hand, people recognize the immediate relief filing bankruptcy could bring. Once filed, all collection efforts from creditors stops – no more constant barrage of phone calls from collection agencies or flood of letters threatening legal action and statements of delinquent accounts. On the…
THE U Visa is a non-immigrant visa intended for certain people who have been victims of one or more of specific crimes or similar activities punishable under federal, state, or local criminal laws and who are helpful to law enforcement or government officials in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activity. These crimes include rape,…
SINCE it is practically “H-1B season” once again, this is an appropriate time to discuss the H-1B visa applications. The USCIS will start accepting new H-1B quota- based applications on April 1, 2016 for the fiscal year 2017. For these applications, the earliest start work date is October 1, 2016. Under Sec. 101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b), an alien…
ON 1/19/2016, the US Supreme Court granted the writ of certiorari filed by the Obama Administration in the case United States, et al. v Texas. This means that the Supreme Court, in its discretion, has decided to review this particular case. (The Supreme Court does not have to hear a case unless the case is…
THERE are 140,000 employment-based immigrant visas available yearly and these employment-based immigrant visa are divided into five preference categories: Priority Workers (E1); Professionals Holding Advanced Degrees and Persons of Exceptional Ability (E-2); Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Unskilled Workers (Other Workers) (E-3); Certain Special Immigrants (E-4); and Immigrant Investors (E-5). There are several steps for employment-based…
