United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) announced it is implementing the final phase of its expansion of premium processing for Forms I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, in the EB-1 Multinational Executive and Manager and EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) categories. This final phase is set to commence on January 30, 2023.
Read morePremium Processing for Pending EB-1 Multinational Executives or Managers and EB-2 NIW Petitions Set to Start
As part of its commitment to expand premium processing service, United Sates Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) has announced it will begin to offer premium processing for certain petitioners who have a pending I-140 Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker, under the EB-1 and EB-2 classifications.
Read moreEmployment-Based Green Card Options: An Overview
There are a variety of ways to become a lawful permanent resident through employment in the United States. The five main employment-based Green Card categories are: EB-1 (for foreign nationals with extraordinary ability, outstanding professors/researchers, or multinational executives/managers); EB-2 (for foreign nationals holding an advanced degree or its equivalent, or foreign nationals with exceptional ability); EB-3 (for skilled workers, professionals, or other workers—as defined within the immigration regulations); EB-4 (for special immigrants—as defined within the immigration regulations); and EB-5 (for immigrant investors). Under each category, there are several ways to pursue a Green Card.
Read moreTen Things to Watch Out for in an Online Forum
Hardly a week goes by where I don’t hear a client mention that they heard something on a blog/chatroom and want to do what this other person recommended. Years ago when I first started hearing clients talk about these chatrooms I took a look for myself at the type of information out there, and occasionally now I’ll go back and look around at what people are saying in these forums. Every time I look I can’t help but cringe at all the inaccurate advice people are giving each other. While I can certainly understand that many individuals are seeking clear and unbiased information on immigration questions (and that often people want to know if they are getting the best advice from their immigration attorneys), I can’t stress enough how careful readers should be of taking advice from others on the Internet. Below is a list of ten of the more common inaccuracies/misinformation (which I've paraphrased) I have seen on blogs and in chatrooms. (Trust me, this is not an all-inclusive list).
Read moreNBC News: "Michigan to US: Give immigrants visas to help rebuild Detroit"
It is not uncommon for US businesses to request more visas for foreign workers (by increasing the H-1B cap allotment, for example), but not as common for a Republican governor to do so. But Michigan Governor Rick Snyder did just that, calling for the US Government to allocate 50,000 employment-based visas for skilled immigrants and entrepreneurs during the next five years for the city of Detroit. As the governor's fact sheet states: "The visas would seek to attract highly-skilled, entrepreneurial, legal immigrants who commit to living and working in Detroit, thereby contributing to its economic and population growth." NBC News reports:
There is no precedent for special visas to be issued for a specific geographic area, Snyder said. But he compared the program to a current one that grants visas to physicians who agree to work in under-served areas.
The Governor's immigration plan announcement is below.