Category: Immigration Columnists

DEAR Atty. Gurfinkel: I overstayed my visa, and am now out of status (TNT). I’m living in California, and want to visit my relatives on the East Coast. I’m afraid…

AT the National Federation of Filipino American Associations Region 10 Regional Empowerment Conference in National City on March 25, 2017, I was asked this question: There are many in our…

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…

QUESTION: I have already received my visa at the Consulate. Now I have heard about this extreme vetting and do not know what it means. Will I no longer be…

AN open letter to the president: Dear Pres. Trump: BEFORE you were elected president, you were one of the world’s premier builders. Your buildings fill the New York City skyline,…

A BUSINESS visa attorney can let you know all types of visas that you might be able to apply for under U.S. immigration law.  Depending on your situation, the type…

Recent executive orders signed by President Trump, have sparked widespread discussion within the immigrant community. U.S. immigration laws and policy are centerstage. Much of what is being discussed within the…

A PROVISIONAL waiver can benefit certain people who are not eligible to adjust status in the U.S. These people include: • Crewmen without the benefit of section 245(i), which was…

QUESTION: I’m so afraid to open my door now. I’ve heard ICE agents are doing round-ups and just deporting people left and rights. What can I do? Answer: All people…

EACH month, the Visa Office of the State Department publishes, in the Visa Bulletin, the priority dates for that particular month, for the various family and employment based categories. A…

“ In the United States, the law gives rights to foreign nationals. Some of these rights include due process and appeals. This is why you can fight your case and…

Immigration policy and enforcement continues to evolve undergoing a large shift and uncertainty abounds. Undocumented immigrants fear ICE knocking at their door and those with lawful immigration status, but who…

WHAT is happening? On January 27, 2017, the President signed the Executive Order entitled “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States” (Executive Order 13769) This Executive…

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…

QUESTION: I have heard that with Trump’s executive order and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) memo and with further items to be processed,  people are being thrown out of…

WITH the election of Donald Trump as president, and his pledge to fulfill his campaign promise of enforcing immigration laws (with news reports of immigration raids throughout the country), many…

QUESTION: What is a ‘revocable’ Living Trust? Answer: A ‘revocable living trust’ for a single person (including a typical “survivor’s trust” that is revocable by the surviving settlor as described…

EACH month, the Visa Office of the State Department publishes, in the Visa Bulletin, the priority dates for that particular month, for the various family and employment based categories. A…

QUESTION: What has happened with this Muslim ban per the executive order? Answer: Just a few days ago, a U.S. District Court Judge ruled that it was unconstitutional and would…

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have taken into custody a 23-year-old man brought to the US as a young child, but had applied for, and was GRANTED, Deferred Action…

SINCE becoming president, Donald Trump has issued over 20 executive orders (EO) on a wide variety of topics and issues, including immigration. So far, there has not yet been an…

IN the first two weeks of the Trump Administration and with a quick stroke of a pen, the country was swept up in a whirlpool of Executive Orders the tangled…

Since its issuance on Jan. 27, 2017,  the Executive Order on immigration (Trump’s E.O.) has been dissected because it is a “travel ban” of nationals from seven specific countries (…

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…

QUESTION: I have been put into deportation proceedings. Do I really need an Immigration Attorney? Answer: Hiring an Immigration Attorney is critical to the successful outcome of your case. Immigration…

ON January 27, 2017, President Trump issued an Executive Order (EO) on “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States.” Among the EO’s more controversial provisions are:…

QUESTION: I have just received my Green Card. It took years of waiting and I’m so happy. I have heard about getting a Living Trust, but I really don’t see…

On January 25, 2017, President Trump issued an executive order on “Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States.” In that executive order, he lists those people who…