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 priority date is a person’s “place in line” for a visa, meaning immigrant visas (or green cards) would be available for persons whose priority date…
THE spouse of a US citizen will be granted permanent resident status after the US citizen files a petition for the spouse. If the spouses have not yet been married for at least two years at the time the petition was filed, the spouse shall be only granted conditional resident status by the USCIS. The…
FAMILY Code 760 provides that all property acquired by the spouse during the marriage is community property. That means each spouse has a half interest on any assets that are acquired during the marriage, with certain exceptions, since it is generally characterized as community property. On the same token, Family Code 771(a) provides that earnings…
AS part of President Obama’s continuing executive actions on immigration, the White House issued last July 2015 a report called “Modernizing and Streamlining Our Legal Immigration System for the 21st century” (the “Report”). This report was issued pursuant to the 11/21/2014 Presidential Memorandum which directed heads of the executive departments to develop recommendations to improve…
As required by law, US Citizenship and Immigration Services will deny immigration petitions and applications for adjustment of status where they believe that fraud is involved. Marriage-Based Green Card interviews may also result in findings of fraud by immigration officers. In Marriage-Based Green Card interviews, which are conducted in USCIS District and Field Offices, Adjudications…
DEAR Attorney Gurfinkel: I was petitioned by my US citizen father, and after waiting for over 15 years, I was finally interviewed and just received my immigrant visa, which was delivered by the Embassy’s courier. The immigrant visa is valid for several months. Would there be a problem if I remain in the Philippines for…
IT was a crisp October evening and Gilbert went out with his friends for a Halloween pub crawl. They drank, ate candy and cookies, and had an amazing time. The following morning, Gilbert woke up in holding cell. He finds out that he is being charged with “trespassing” and being “under the influence of a…
BENEFICIARY spouse of marriage based immigrant petition’s where the marriage was less than 2 years old at the time of the immigrant visa or status was approved are issued a 2 year conditional green card. In order for these immigrants to obtain their permanent green card, the immigrant has to either file a joint petition…
MANY parents believe that if you are a working parent, then the other non-working parent will get physical custody of the minor children automatically. This is a misperception of the law and simplifies the law too much that it trivializes it. There are many more issues that a court must look at in determining which…
UNDER US immigration laws, if a non-citizen commits and/or is later convicted of certain types of crimes that person could be removed/deported. This is the case even if a person has been a green card holder for many years or later had the conviction expunged. I have encountered people charged with crimes who either handled…
A COUPLE came to my office for a consultation who was in tears and panic because their “American Dream” was crumbling around them. They are already permanent residents (green card holders), but just received a notice that the USCIS was intending to revoke their green cards! The reason? They had a fraudulent employment petition, based…
While the existing I-601A Provisional Waiver Program is limited to benefitting children and spouses of US citizens, a proposed rule will expand the categories of beneficiaries. The new rule, proposed by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), will expand the waiver to benefit children and spouses of Lawful Permanent Residents (green card holders.)…
THE Department of State and the USCIS revised the procedures for determining visa availability for applicants waiting to file for adjustment of status. The revised procedure will be available beginning October 2015. In the past, an adjustment of status applicant cannot file for adjustment of status until their priority date is current. The priority date…
A JUDGMENT of nullity is when the Court deems a voidable marriage or a void marriage as never having taken place for reasons such as a defect in age, unsound mind, fraud, force, physical incapacity, bigamous, or incestuous marriage. A judgment of nullity should be considered only where the validity of the marriage is in…
EDWARD, a 45 year-old married man from Manila came to the United States in 1999. His mom and dad are U.S. citizens and filed a petition for him in December 1994. He has been waiting 20 years for his priority date to become current so that he could adjust status in the United States. Edward…
LAST September 11, 2015, the incumbent mayors of Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, Long Beach, and Oakland issued a joint letter addressed to California Senators and Representatives entitled “Opposition to Proposed Federal Funding Cuts for Cities with Sanctuary Ordinances”. They expressed their opposition to “recent proposals in Congress that would withhold funding from cities…
STARTING in October 2015, the Department of State (DOS) and the USCIS will utilize a new format for priority dates. (I posted those priority dates already on my website).There will be two separate charts (or priority dates) for people to follow or monitor: • Dates for filing applications (earliest date when a person may file…
ON September 9, 2015, the government announced that it will now allow individuals who have been waiting for their priority dates to be current both in the family based and employment based category to start their immigrant visa applications or file their applications for adjustment of status earlier. In line with this new policy of…
Family Code 760 provides that all property acquired by the spouse during the marriage is community property. That means each spouse has a half interest on any assets that are acquired during the marriage, with certain exceptions, since it is generally characterized as community property. On the same token, Family Code 771(a) provides that earnings…
A TREMENDOUSLY beneficial change to the Visa Bulletin was announced by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) and Department of State (DOS) on Sept. 9, 2015. The change assists those needing a work permit and advance parole travel document by allowing individuals to file these applications earlier than before. The changes to the…
THE news from USCIS: In an important departure from the current rules regarding when someone can apply for a Green Card, USCIS has announced that starting October 1, 2015, I-485, Applications for Adjustment of Status will be accepted earlier than the date on which a priority date is current. This is a major change in…
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 priority date is a person’s “place in line” for a visa, meaning immigrant visas (or green cards) would be available for persons whose priority date…
A person may acquire US citizenship either at birth or through naturalization. A person born in the US and subject to its jurisdiction acquires US citizenship at birth but, under certain circumstances, a person born outside the US may also acquire US citizenship at birth. Under INA 309(c), a child born abroad to a US…
The growing threat of international terrorism, which apparently is without territorial boundaries, has prompted the Department of State (DOS) to tighten its rules of entry into the US. DOS is the governmental entity that works hand in hand with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and is in charge of prospective immigrants to the US. …
AN action under the DVPA (Domestic Violence Protection Act) seeking a restraining order often is necessary to protect parties from abuse or domestic violence perpetrated by the other spouse or significant other. At times, it is effective in preventing harm to one of the parties. At the same time, this process is sometimes…
AS you may be aware, a foreign national who desires to enter the US must obtain either an immigrant or non-immigrant visa. An immigrant visa allows one to stay in the US on a permanent basis. On the other hand, a foreign national can stay in the US on a temporary basis (either for pleasure,…
DIVORCING couples may have established revocable living trust for estate planning pusposes during their marriage which was funded primarily with assets acquired by one spouse prior to the marriage. The issue is what is the characterization of those properties when the couple gets the divorce. Transmutation is the changing of the characterization of a property…
MANY of my clients inquire about the differences between a dissolution of marriage and a judgment of nullity. A dissolution of marriage is when the Court grants a divorce—due to irreconcilable differences, the marriage broke down and the parties wish to end their marriage. On the other hand, a judgment of nullity is when the…
There have been many tragic situations where people were duped into applying for immigration benefits to which they were not entitled. Unscrupulous immigration consultants promise work permits, green cards, and other immigration benefits to people who are eager to work in the U.S. and send money back home. Only later do they find out they…
Under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Canadian and Mexican citizens (known as “Treaty Nationals” or “TNs”) can come to the United States temporarily, not to exceed one (1) year at a time, under a “TN Status” non-immigrant visa, to work/engage in activities at a professional level. TN Status can be extended for as…
