Work authorization for parents of DACA recipients?
According to news reports, President Obama is considering executive action to let millions of undocumented immigrants obtain work permits and allow them to stay in the US “legally,” without threat…
Category: Immigration Columnists
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US residents in the Philippines: How to not abandon US resident status
LAWFUL Permanent Resident (LPR) status in the US is a privilege, and the status can be abandoned, even involuntarily. Abandonment of permanent residence (also known as the “green card”) occurs…
States take up immigration reform as us congress wallows in its own mire
AS the US Congress continues to mire itself in a tiresome partisan war over every issue that crosses its path, States have begun to answer the call and do the…
If you don’t claim your visa, your case could be shred
Dear Atty. Gurfinkel: Years ago, I was petitioned by my US citizen father. The priority date is current, but our family has not received any papers in connection with processing…
Avoiding an affidavit of support (Form I – 864) by working 40 quarters
Family based petitions and some employment-based petitions (where a relative owns a 5% interest in the petitioning company) require the petitioner to submit an affidavit of support (Form I –…
Filing for DACA extensions: Two more years!
LAST week, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Jeh Johnson announced that the USCIS is ready for the first round of applications for extensions of deferred action and…
The I-601A Provisional Waiver: ’Reason to Believe’ memo, six months later
On March 4, 2013, the Final Rule on Provisional Unlawful Presence Waivers for Certain Immediate Relatives took effect. The new law provided a significant benefit to spouses, children and parents…
Avoiding an affidavit of support (Form I – 864) by working 40 quarters
The substitute sponsors include spouse, parent, mother-in-law, father-in-law, brother or sister, child, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, brother-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, or legal guardian. Family based petitions and some employment-based petitions (where a…
CSPA’s “Sought to Acquire” Requirement
The Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) allows an applicant for immigration benefit under a preference category, either as a direct or a derivative beneficiary, to retain his classification as a…
Is premises liability included in general negligence?
ON July 8, 2014, the Hon. Brian C. Yep, presiding Judge of Department A-10 of the Lancaster Superior Court, ruled that premises liability in Plaintiff’s second amended complaint is included…
The I-601a provisional waiver ‘reason to believe’ memo—six months later
ON March 4, 2013, the Final Rule on Provisional Unlawful Presence Waivers for Certain Immediate Relatives took effect. The new law provided a significant benefit to spouses, children and parents…
Presenting a compelling case for prosecutorial discretion
WITH the USICE Prosecutorial Discretion program under way, thousands of cases pending before the US Immigration Courts and Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) are ripe for review to determine whether…
When is misrepresentation material for purposes of INA 212(a)(6)(C)(i)?
About a year ago, we discussed inadmissibility under INA 212(a)(6)(C)(i), which bars an alien from receiving a visa or admission into the U.S. if this alien has previously obtained or…
There is hope in the world of immigration court cases
Not a week goes by that our office receives inquiries as to whether a comprehensive immigration reform, or any type of immigration reform, is likely to happen soon. As immigration…
The August 2014 Priority Dates: Single children of US citizens (F1) moves forward
Employment based EB-3 and OW also advances The August 2014 Visa Bulletin provides great news for Filipinos petitioned as single children of US citizens (F-1), as the priority date move…
INA 237(a)(1)(H) waiver for misrepresentation
INA 237(a)(1)(H), commonly known as the fraud waiver, provides relief to lawful permanent residents (LPR) and battered spouse self-petitioners in removal proceedings. To understand this waiver, we must first examine…
212(c) relief for those ordered deported for crimes-BIA sets new rules
IN accordance with the US Supreme Court’s 2011 decision in Judulang v. Holder, the BIA issued a decision on February 28, 2014 that makes Section 212(c) relief available to thousands…
New hope for aged-out children who missed CSPA’s one-year filing deadline
On June 27, 2014, the USCIS published a Policy Memorandum (PM) which could provide new hope for children who may have been eligible for benefits under the Child Status Protection…
The E visa classification as an immigration option for the business savy immigrant
FOR most professional immigrants that seek long term immigration status in the US, the key to success is finding an employer who would petition them for an H-1b visa. The…
Filing for DACA extensions-two more years!
LAST week, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Jeh Johnson announced that the USCIS is ready for the first round of applications for extensions of deferred action and…
Immigration options for crewmen
Individuals entering the United States on a crewman’s visa face several prohibitions on making their status legal that other non-immigrant entrants to the US are not affected by. Crewmen cannot…
The E Visa classification as an immigration option for the business-savvy immigrant
FOR most professional immigrants that seek long term immigration status in the US, the key to success is finding an employer that would Petition them for an H-1b visa. The…
USCIS provides guidance for DACA renewals
It is hard to believe that it is already time for many young people to renew their eligibility under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which grants relief from deportation/removal…
Cantor loss signals no immigration reform- alternatives available now!
WITH House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s loss in a Virginia primary election last week to “Tea Party” challenger David Brat, the US House of Representatives looks even less likely to…
Permanent residency through marriage to US citizen spouse
The economic crisis of the past few years and changes in immigration legislation has made it more difficult to pursue certain traditional paths to obtaining permanent residency in the United…
The Supreme Court’s decision does not mean CSPA is ‘dead’
In a long-awaited decision, the US Supreme Court recently ruled that the only aged-out children who can retain (and convert) their original priority date under the Child Status Protection Act…
Use of assets to qualify as an affidavit of support sponsor
An applicant for admission or adjustment of status must generally have a qualified sponsor who executes a Form I-864 Affidavit of Support. Otherwise, such alien would be inadmissible under INA…
The July 2014 Priority Dates: Employment-based priority dates moved forward one year to January 2009!
The July 2014 Visa Bulletin provides great news for Filipinos petitioned in the third preference (professional/skilled worker) and other (unskilled) worker categories, in that the priority date moved forward one…
Consultant’s unnecessary lies result in UNNECESSARY denial and fraud waiver
Recently, a person came to my office for consultation after her adjustment of status application (based on marriage to a US citizen) was denied due to fraud. She had entered…
Reinstating a deceased petitioner’s family based petition
It is very common for beneficiaries of family based petition to wait many years before their petition’s priority date becomes current. This is usually the case with US Citizen parent…