I-751 Biometric Appointment Notices with Incorrect Application Support Center

I-751 Biometric Appointment Notices with Incorrect Application Support Center I-751 biometric services appointment notices dated May 4, 2018 are erroneous, providing for ASC outside their geographical...

H-1B Cap Work Visa Filing Has Begun and 5,900 H-1B Cap Petitions Received (April 8, 2011)!

H-1B Cap Work Visa Filing Has Begun and 5,900 H-1B Cap Petitions Received (April 8, 2011)! On April 1, 2011, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) began accepting H-1B nonimmigrant petitions that are subject to the government-mandated annual H-1B cap of 65,000 and the 20,000 U.S. advanced degree cap exemption. The advanced degree exemption applies to an H-1B beneficiary who has successfully obtained a U.S. Master’s...

EAD and Advance Parole Incorporated Into One New Card!

On February 11, 2011, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it is now issuing employment and travel authorization on a single card for certain applicants filing a Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status; and also filing I-765, Application for Employment Authorization (EAD), and I-131, Application for Advance Parole. This new card represents a significant improvement...

H-1B Visa Cap for FY2011 Has Been Met!

H-1B petitions are temporary work visas for specialty occupation foreign nationals to live and work in the U.S. Many H-1B foreign nationals have successfully gone on to apply for and obtaining green card status. On January 27, 2011, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has received sufficient H-1B cap petitions to meet the statutory cap for the fiscal year (FY) 2011. The final receipt date...

H-1B Work Visa Quota is Almost Met for Fiscal Year 2011!

H-1B petitions are extremely useful for many skilled foreign nationals to live and work in the U.S. Even though H-1B petitions are temporary work visas, many H-1B foreign nationals have successfully moved forward in applying for and obtaining green card status. Potential H-1B candidates who do not make it to the Fiscal Year 2011 H-1B visa quota (October 1, 2010 or later start-date) have the options to have their H-1B cap petitions...

TPS for El Salvadorians Until March 9, 2012

On July 12, 2010, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will extend the temporary protection status (TPS) for another 18 months for eligible El Salvador nationals, from the current expiration date of September 9, 2010 to the new expiration date of March 9, 2012. To qualify, eligible applicants must submit their TPS applications to the USCIS between...

Green Cards: Improving Processing Time & Strategies

Choosing the correct and most suitable immigration classification and category when initiating and applying for green card status in and to the U.S. is extremely important. Depending on the type and/or classification of the green card, the wait time to obtain green card status varies tremendously, and the difference can be several months, to several years or even decades. Immigrating to the U.S. via sponsorships through certain...

Rising Demand for Workforce, Foreign Nationals or Otherwise, As Oil Spill and Environmental Calamities Worsen in the Gulf of Mexico?

With the spread of environmental calamities as a result of the severe and continuous oil leak caused by BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion on April 20, 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico of the United States, international cooperation and efforts from various experts which include, but are not limited to the scientific, environmental, and natural oil/gas communities are more sacrosanct than ever. This oil spill disaster is expected...

Apply for H-1B Cap Work Visas Before Visa Numbers Run Out!

H-1B petitions are extremely useful for many skilled foreign nationals to live and work in the U.S. for a temporary period of time. H-1B petitions are temporary work visas. Normally, H-1B petitions/work visas are approved for a maximum of 6 years (3 years each time). Many H-1B foreign nationals have successfully progressed toward applying for and obtaining green card status. As of April 27, 2010, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration...

H-1B Work Visas Still Available for Oct 1, 2010 Start-Date!

H-1B petitions are extremely useful for many skilled foreign nationals to live and work in the U.S. for a temporary period of time. H-1B petitions are company-sponsored temporary work visas. Normally, these petitions are available for an eligible H-1B beneficiary for a maximum of 6 years (3 years each time). As of April 15, 2010, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has received 13,600 H-1B petitions that are...

Live and Work in U.S.: We Can File H-1B Cap Cases, Starting April 1, 2010!

Qualified foreign nationals who wish to live and work in the U.S. may start applying for first-time H-1B Petitions starting April 1, 2010. These H-1B Cap Petitions will have a start date of October 1, 2010 or later, and will be counted towards the annual H-1B visa quotas for the 2011 fiscal year (FY 2011). The fiscal year cap (numerical limitation on H-1B petitions) for FY 2011 is 65,000; 65,000 is the annual visa cap, unless...

Temporary Protection Status (TPS) for Haiti Starting on January 21, 2010!

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will be publishing the Federal Register notice announcing the designation of Haiti for temporary protected status (TPS) on 1/21/2010, allowing eligible individuals from Haiti to apply for TPS starting 01/21/2010. By Aik Wan Kok, Attorney at Law, at Tiya PLC; Tel: 202-506-9767; 703-772-8224 www.tiyaimmigration.com ; www.tiyalaw.blogspot.com ; www.immigrationresource.net All Rights...

News Headlines: Haitians who are in the U.S. illegally will likely be able to apply as early as Thursday to temporarily stay in the United States.

Temporary Protection Status (TPS) applications can be filed as soon as official notice is published in the Federal Register, likely Thursday. See http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/sns-ap-us-haiti-earthquake-immigration,0,1855138.st...

United States Immigration Relief Measures for Individuals from Haiti

On January 18, 2010, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued DHS' immigration relief measures for individuals from Haiti. DHS will continue to monitor the situations in Haiti to determine if additional actions will be required. As of January 18, 2010, the available immigration relief measures include, but are not limited to, the following: 1. Favorable adjudication...

Temporary Protection Status (Temporary Immigration Status) for Haiti

In response to the January 12, 2010 earthquake tragedy in Haiti, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary, Janet Napolitano, announced on January 15, 2010 that the United States will be granting Temporary Protection Status (TPS) to Haiti for 18 months. TPS is a temporary immigration status (for 18 months, in this case) to qualified foreign nationals for a designated country. To be eligible for this TPS, the...

2010 H-1B Visa Quota Has Been Reached!

On December 21, 2009, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has received sufficient new H-1B specialty occupation worker petitions to reach the statutory cap for the fiscal year 2010 (FY2010). USCIS has also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the advanced degree exemption. USCIS will reject cap-subject petitions for new H-1B seeking an employment...

Tired of Waiting for Your Pending Green Card Cases? Consider Other Employment-Based Green Card Options!

Immigrating to the U.S. via sponsorships through employment or certain skill sets are effective ways to legally and permanently live and work in the U.S., or gain legal permanent residency status in the U.S. The employment-based green card cases in the U.S. fall under several preference categories. Some of the categories include, but are not limited to, green card employment-based preference 1 category (“EB-1”), employment-based...

Comprehensive Immigration Reform - Pathway to U.S. Immigration Status and Citizenship!

In conferences and radio interview held in August 2009, President Obama has reaffirmed his position in pursuing legislative action on comprehensive immigration reform, in 2010, of the currently broken U.S. immigration systems, after attending to more critical issues such as U.S. healthcare and financial reform.Comprehensive immigration reform is a highly advocated proposal by the U.S. government to create immigration systems to...

H-1B Visa Numbers Are Still Available for Foreign Nationals Who Want to Acquire Immigration Status to Work and Live in the U.S.!

Based on the calculation conducted by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on August 14, 2009, visa numbers are still available for filing new H-1B Petitions. H-1B status provides immigration and work status for foreign nationals to work and live, temporarily, in the U.S. All Rights Reserved. For more information, please contact Aik Wan Kok, Immigration Attorney, at koka@tiyalaw.com, 703-772-8224 or http://www.tiyalaw.com/....

A Smooth Sail for Employers? Immigration Worksite Enforcement

As Congress continues to appropriate more money to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), employers in the U.S. will see an increase in immigration worksite enforcement in all industries, and industries involving critical infrastructure, according to officials of ICE who presided in a conference on May 28, 2009, held in affiliation with the immigration bar association. Immigration worksite enforcement (worksite enforcement)...